The Scratch Dad Project

THE SCOREBOARD (June 2026)
ARCCOS HANDICAP INDEX: ticked up from 17.3 (Lions round entered)
PREDICTED SCORING AVG: 90.3
GOAL: Scratch (3.4 index for Mid-Am qualifying)
DAYS TO MID-AM QUALIFYING (~July 2027): ~385

Tournament week. My first competitive round of this project went in the books, and the review has to hold two true things at once: a real milestone, and an honest dip in the number.

The Tally

Practice: 1   Strength: 2 (Day A, Day B)
Rounds: 1 (Firecracker Open - first tournament)
Mobility: 2/7   Meditation: 4/7
Walk: 2 days over 7,000 steps   Mental practice: 1/7

The daily habits dipped this week. Not surprising in a tournament week where the energy went to the event and recovery, but named honestly. The strength held, and the big thing happened.

What Worked

The 100-150 approach work transferred to competition. From my worst strokes-gained band at the start, I hit 6 of 7 greens and gained strokes on scratch in a tournament, under pressure. The central question of this project, does range work transfer to the course, just got answered yes for the scoring irons.

The mental game held up under real pressure. First competitive round, and the pre-shot routine and the “free” feel word carried through. Sixteen of eighteen holes were competitive golf, and I kept perspective walking off a rough number.

What Didn’t

My putting needs a routine. I have a pre-shot routine for full swings that works. But I have never applied it to putting, and the putter is exactly where things broke down under pressure (hands active on short putts). The part of my game without a routine is the part that flinched. The deeper version: I have not been getting real putting practice in, and it shows in the 4-to-7-foot range. A volume problem more than a stroke problem, and the most fixable kind. The fix is a mat, fifteen minutes, every day.

The Data Trend

The index ticked back up this week. The tournament round entered my scoring record, and because it was a worse differential than what I had been posting, it nudged the number up. The variance lesson cutting the other way: the same mechanic that pulled the index down after the Kizer 82 pushes it up after a rough round. Single rounds move the number both directions; the trend is the signal. Read by component, it is more hopeful than the dip suggests. The 100-150 game is transferring, and the leaks have narrowed to a known set: the short approach, putting, and recovery from trouble.

The Hard Question

Is the plan matching reality? Right on. The tournament validated the core (the scoring irons transferred) and clarified the next targets: the short approach, a putting routine, recovery from trouble, and the discipline to cap a bad hole at double instead of letting it become a 9. Not changing direction. Focusing it.

Measure the week. This week: a real milestone, an honest dip, and a sharper map of what’s next.