Strokes Gained

Getting Started with Strokes Gained

Strokes Gained is a powerful metric that helps golfers understand where they gain or lose strokes compared to others. By using Strokes Gained, golfers can identify specific areas for improvement and gain an edge over their competition.

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Setup

1. Start Your Round: Begin by selecting "Strokes Gained" as your scoring method.
2. Adjust Settings: Set up your preferred round settings and get ready to play.

Marking Shots and Editing Shot Details

18Birdies uses GPS to track your shots to make things quick and easy. Each marker is labeled with the shot number to keep you on track. 

• Use GPS: 18Birdies utilizes GPS to track your shots.
• Add Shots: Tap the “+ Shot” button before swinging to mark your location.
• Edit Shot Details: Tap the shot marker and enter additional info like lie and club used. Penalties can be added here if needed.

To get the most out of Strokes Gained insights, add details to every shot. If you’re short on time at the course, don’t worry! You can always enter these details later, either at the end of a hole or once you’ve finished your round.

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Putting and Hole Out

Tracking Putts

1. Mark First Putt: Tap “+ Putt” to record your first putt’s location.
2. Locate the Pin: Adjust pin position by dragging it on your device. Alternatively, use your Apple Watch for GPS marking.
3. Finalize: Confirm the pin location and continue tracking each putt.

Completing the Hole

• After all putts, tap “Hole Out” to validate your entries. You can edit details before saving and moving to the next hole.

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How do Penalties Affect Strokes Gained?

Whether it’s a sliced tee shot or a shanked wedge, penalties happen – we’ve all been there. But if you score with Strokes Gained, how are these factored into your post-round stats?

Adding Penalties

• Identify and Assign: Select the shot marker, add penalty strokes accordingly, and confirm.

Impact on Stats

• Penalties are automatically factored into your Strokes Gained categories, adjusting your stats to reflect performance accurately.

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Using Strokes Gained on the Green 

Tracking shots on the green with Strokes Gained is a breeze, helping you dial in your putting stats with a few quick taps. We’ll walk you through adding putts, marking the pin, and holing out so you can sink them smooth with your flat stick.

Adding Putts

• Mark Putt Position: Tap “+ Putt” at your ball’s location.
• Pin Adjustment: Drag the pin to its correct spot, confirm, and save.

Completing the Hole

• After all putts, tap “Hole Out” to validate your entries. You can edit details before saving and moving to the next hole.

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How do you Calculate Strokes Gained?

Strokes Gained metrics provide plenty of insights to help you zero in on how to improve. But what is going on behind the scenes to bring you these rich and insightful stats? Let’s break down the basics of Strokes Gained categories and calculation. 

Strokes Gained Categories

Understanding where you gain or lose strokes on the course is key to improving your game, and that’s exactly what Strokes Gained is all about. Let’s break it down:

• Total: Your all-in-one metric that shows how you’re performing across every aspect of your game. See the full picture of where you’re gaining or losing strokes and track your overall improvement.
• Tee-to-Green: This covers all the shots you take from the tee box until you reach the green. It’s a big-picture view of how well you’re navigating the course before you pull out the putter.
• Off-the-Tee: Here’s where you can evaluate your driving game on par 4s and par 5s. How’s that big stick working for you? We’ll let you know.
• Approach: These are your shots from the fairway or rough more than 100 yards to the green, including all tee shots on par 3s and second shots on par 4s and par 5s. If you’re looking to dial in those approach shots, this is the stat for you.
• Wedge: See where you’re gaining or losing strokes between 20 and 100 yards. Focus on sharpening your approach with this key metric.
• Around-the-Green: This one’s all about your short game—those chips, pitches, and recovery shots within 20 yards of the green. If you’re a short-game wizard, this is where you’ll shine.
• Greenside Sand: Track your greenside bunker performance and see how you stack up. Improve your sand game and lower your scores.
• Putting: Finally, the moment of truth—how are you doing on the greens? This stat measures how many strokes you gain (or lose) with the flat stick. Whether you’re draining putts or leaving them short, we’ve got the numbers.

Each of these metrics gives you a clear picture of your strengths and where you might need extra work. The best part? It’s all broken down in the Strokes Gained feature on 18Birdies.

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Strokes Gained Calculation

So, how do we calculate Strokes Gained for any shot? It’s simpler than you might think. Here’s the formula:

$\text{Strokes Gained}=\text{Starting Position Benchmark}-\text{Finishing Position Benchmark}-1$

Strokes Gained=Starting Position Benchmark−Finishing Position Benchmark−1

Example:

• Starting at 2.5 strokes, landing at 1.25 strokes = 0.25 strokes gained.

In this case, you’ve gained 0.25 strokes—nice work! This equation applies to every shot you take, whether it’s off the tee, an approach, around the green, or putting. Each shot gets a Strokes Gained value, and these numbers can be positive (strokes gained) or negative (strokes lost). It’s all about giving you the insight you need to focus your practice and improve your game. 

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Strokes Gained Stats Breakdown

Now that you have tracked your first rounds using Strokes Gained scoring, you may wonder why you did all that work. Lucky for you, 18Birdies turns all those tracked shots into powerful, in-depth stats, making your effort pay off big time. These stats highlight a clear path to improvement through detailed shot breakdowns and performance trends across your rounds. Let’s jump into the visualizations and discover where you can start improving.

Setting your Benchmark

Strokes Gained is inherently a comparison metric, measuring your performance against a benchmark. We’ve analyzed thousands of rounds played by golfers at all different skill levels, allowing you to gauge your performance against golfers with similar abilities. Set your handicap benchmark to see exactly where you need to focus your efforts to improve and reach your next scoring goal.

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Dive into the Details: Graphs and Breakdowns

The Overall Graph gives you a quick snapshot of your game, showing exactly where you’re gaining or losing strokes. If you want to see how you’re doing on everything but putting, check out your Tee to Green stats for a clearer picture.

Want to dive deep into a specific Strokes Gained category? Each one is broken down by distance so you can identify exactly what shots you need to work on. Get even more granular by filtering out specific lie types to analyze your performance in any condition. If you’re struggling with the putter, 18Birdies shows you which distances are causing the most trouble so you can zero in on the ranges that need the most work.

Strokes Gained is a great way to help you set realistic goals and gain that little edge over your friends on the next round. With Strokes Gained stats breakdowns, you’ll know exactly where to focus your practice – whether it’s dialing in your drives, mastering your short game, or sinking more putts. Sure, it takes a little effort to track your Strokes Gained, but the payoff is huge. Not only will you see your scores drop, but you’ll also make the game more fun as you watch those birdies sink. Who knew a little data could bring so much excitement to your round!

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