First of all well done for posting the longest post I have probably ever come across on this site, however TL;DR
esllou: My 'distance from pin' stats went from 25ft in the 10 rounds before I started to 14ft in the last ten rounds I played (once I'd perfected it)
From your profile your average distance to pin is still 25 so ?? dont know whats up with that.
I wish you well with your scientific approach, I.m all for science, however don't forget it is WGT & they are well know for having different laws of physics to the rest of us, but what ever works for you is cool.
One tip I would give you tho is try to play with some higher level players, either stroke or matchplay, watch what they do & try to emulate what you see. Its not all in the science of a shot, a lot is course management, when to go for the pin, when to lay up, what rough is OK & what bunkers are absolute no,no's - in other words game management.
I broke the game down to two basic things to master
1 - Get approach shots 10ft or closer to the hole
2 - Get good at holing putts under 10 ft
Its still a work in progress, so maybe I know nothing in the end ;-)
ps - if u were in a cc you could use free shot & putter pal, just an idea