I
nsurance actuaries
prove with sobering
accuracy just how little
information they need to
predict how long a person will
live. Can we do the same for
how good a person will get at
golf? Potential is a funny thing
to gauge in this game, where
great amateur players come in
all shapes and sizes. There are
so many intangibles, but let’s
just say we think the golfer
who stands to improve the
most has a good attitude and a
lifestyle conducive to playing
loads of golf. Tally the value
of your answers to see how
many strokes we think you can
improve. If it’s depressing, hey,
we hope you’re the exception
who proves us wrong.i shot my career
best round...
+ 3 Within the last six months
+ 1 Within the last six years
0 Within the last six decadesa telling feature of my
local climate is...
0 Some golf carts have heaters
+ 1 Some golf carts have misters
+ 2 Carts? You could walk all day
in this weather
+ 3 Our club pro is also a scuba-
diving instructorwhen i’m playing well...
0 I’m waiting for something
bad to happen
+ 1 I just ride the wave
+ 2 It’s one shot at a time- 1 I need to focus extra hard
the largest impediment
to my sleep health is...
+ 3 My bedroom blinds let in
just that creep of light
+ 2 Bingeing Netflix
0 Pre-dawn alarm clocks
for work and golf- 2 Multiple infants/children crying
in the night
Another difference from a normal
scramble is that you get only one extra
chance on the green. In other words, you
can take another try at improving your lag,
or re-do a shorter putt you feel you should
have made, but you don’t get multiple
whacks from every location on the put-
ting surface.
The final step to completing this test is
to take your nine-hole score and double
it. That number reflects the best you can
expect to play with the physical skills and
mental game you have now, Riccio says.
A bonus benefit of taking this test is
it magnifies the tendencies—good and
bad—of your typical game. For example,
you might need to take all four of your
scramble tee shots on a majority of holes.
That means your driving is likely holding
you back. Or you can’t capitalize on the
extra shots you get around the greens.
Maybe more time around the practice
green is needed. But if you’re still not sure,
Sieckmann and Clearwater have designed
programs to evaluate exactly where your
skills in those areas stand, with practice“WHEN YOUR EXPECTATIONS GET OUT OF CONTROL, YOU TEND TO QUIT.”—McCABE
62 golf digest | issue 4. 2020eddie guyplans that will translate into noticeable
improvement the next time you try the
modified scramble.
Sieckmann’s short-game challenge al-
lows you to compare your test score to
those of players from beginners to tour
level. If you don’t perform as well as you’d
like, check out his two drills to improve
your success rate (page 60).
If you think your full swing is too incon-
sistent, Clearwater’s two skills tests—one
for your driver and one for your 7-iron—
show you how to measure yourself against
other golfers in terms of ball-striking. He
also ofers a practice plan to help you hit
better shots (previous page).
One of the fascinating elements of
Riccio’s research is that it predicts the score
players of various abilities should shoot in
the modified scramble (chart, below). How
you fare in comparison to Riccio’s predic-
tion is another indicator of why you aren’t
(or are) playing to your potential. If your
scramble score is significantly lower than
Riccio’s predicted score, it means you have
the physical goods to be a lot better at thisgame, but you likely need to improve your
playing strategy and/or mental perfor-
mance to access that ability more often.
According to McCabe, it’s a skill any
player can learn. “It starts with understand-
ing that your best is not your standard,”
McCabe says. “When your expectations get
out of control, you tend to quit when it gets
hard. You make a double or triple bogey
early in the round and throw in the towel
because you know you aren’t going to shoot
a ‘good’ score.”
Instead, McCabe says defuse the per-
formance pressure that comes with those
expectations by resetting your focus on
shooting your average score, treating each
shot as separate and distinct with no linger-
ing feelings about them, good or bad. “Try
to do just your thing, not create an outlier
score,” he says. “Accept that there are vari-
ances. That’s what gives you the freedom
to shoot some of your lowest scores—not
putting pressure on yourself to do it on the
first tee.”
An example of that thought process?
One of McCabe’s clients was struggling
through a poor driving day, but after the
round, he was practical and matter-of-fact
about what happened.
“He said the range was the place to work
those issues out,” McCabe says. “In the
moment, on the course, it was time to play
golf with whatever he had. He embraced
the challenge of being the best version of
himself he could be that day.”HOW LOW CAN YOU GO?
▶ Researcher Lou Riccio’s model predicts what
players at each skill level should shoot if they
play his modified nine-hole scramble and then
double the score. The key is strictly adhering to
the rules, especially always putting out.