The Scratch Dad Project

THE SCOREBOARD                                    (as of June 2026)
ARCCOS HANDICAP INDEX: 18.4  →  Goal 3.4
STROKES GAINED / ROUND (vs scratch, 8-round avg):
  Driving -4.9 | Approach -7.3 | Short -3.3 | Putting -2.0 | Total -17.5
DAYS TO MID-AM QUALIFYING (~July 2027): ~395

Note: SG figures and handicap reflect REAL rounds (Arccos-tracked) only.
Simulator rounds are noted separately and do not count toward these numbers.

The Week That Was

This was a lighter week on volume — one practice session, one strength session, one nine-hole round. Life was busy and a rough-sleep stretch ate into a couple of days. But the quality of what landed mattered more than the quantity, and the trend lines kept moving the right way.

The honest principle holds: measure the week, not the round. And the week, even a thin one, told a clear story.

The Tally

Practice sessions:  1
Strength sessions:  1 (Day B)
Rounds played:      1 (Mustang Creek, 9 holes, walked)
Mobility:           4 / 7 days
Meditation:         5 / 7 days
Walk:               3 days over 7,000 steps

A down week on inputs. Named honestly, not dressed up. The constraint was life and recovery, not execution.

What Worked

The pre-shot routine is connecting. The curiosity-based routine — commit to target, extended exhale, curiosity cue, narrow to one external detail, then the feel word “free” — is showing up where it counts. That “free” feel word is landing right now, in the simulator and on the course both. Not just understood intellectually — felt. It’s helping me stay present in the one shot in front of me.

The strategy shift is showing up in the data. Targeting the back of the green — taking enough club, aiming to the fat part instead of the pin — is producing more greens in regulation. That’s a deliberate strategy change, and it’s working.

What Didn’t

Volume. Only one practice session when I wanted more. Not a frustration with the work itself — a constraint on how much I could fit in after the round and around a busy week. The work that happened was good. There just wasn’t enough of it.

The Data Trend (not single rounds)

SCORING (real rounds):    95  →  82  →  43 (9 holes)
GIR RATE:                 16%  →  33%  →  44%

The greens-in-regulation rate is climbing steadily, and it traces directly to the strategy change — targeting the back of the green. Input producing output. The scoring trend is following.

One round is noise. Three rounds trending the same direction, tied to a specific strategy change, is signal.

Body Check

Knee:      Tweaky but improving — "getting there." Tolerating load.
Shoulder:  Solid. Resolved.
Overall:   Decent. Recovery clean.

The knee continues its slow, steady trend the right way — warming into sessions, tolerating progressive load, improving week over week.

The Hard Question — Is the Plan Matching Reality?

Yes. Right on track. The scoring trend is jumping, and it’s traceable to the practice work and the strategy changes. When I see it, it’s working well. The plan and the reality are lining up.

The Verdict

A thin week on volume, but the signal stayed strong. The pre-shot routine is real and connecting. The back-of-green strategy is moving the GIR rate. The body is trending right. The constraint this week was life and sleep — not the plan, and not the execution.

Next week: more reps if life allows, keep feeding the back-of-green strategy, and groove the wedge work (the 25–80 yard system is built; the open clubface on the 60° and 52° is the next thing to square up).

Measure the week. The week was good.