Scoring Expectations for Par 5's

Yesterday I shot my typical 9 hole score as the quintessential bogey golfer, but I birdied both par 5's (something I've never done before).

Which got me thinking.... When playing 18 at your home course, what are your scoring expectations for the par 5's?

No bogeys, a birdie or two, a bogey or two, furious if all 4 aren't birdied lol etc?

Understand you said "home course" but it depends on the hole/conditions. On Saturday we played 5 par 5's, 2 of which were 550+ and into a 15 MPH wind. Anywhere on/near the green in 3 was a good thing. A shorter one of 480 was a legit birdie opportunity and the other 2 were in the 525 range and par was the expectation on those.

I consider par to be 68. I think all par 5's should be birdie holes. Doesn't happen all the time, but that's my thinking.

I'm generally playing them all as 3 shot holes, gives me a putt at birdie, if I don't make it, tap in par. So I always play my second shot to leave a 80-100 yard shot in, I feel comfortable hitting a decent wedge shot from that range, so that's my usual strategy. I'm aiming to make pars, but try to have a birdie putt every time.

At my home club, par-5s are the best birdie opportunities. A couple are also the most likely places to have a double or worse. I'd say I expect to finish them in about even par.

My scoring average is 76.1 in my last 20 rounds. I'm a .8 right now.

When I have a really good round, it's usually because I play the par 3's in even, or I play the 5 toughest par 4's in 1-2 over.

The par 5's -- it's not like I'm automatically going to get up and down from 75 yards just because I "played smart". I want to get a ball greenside at worst if I want to maximize my birdie chances. I can still make a bogey from 100. but I'm not making bogey from greenside.

I don't have an expected score for each part 5. But I do expect to play them a certain way. As long as I hit a quality drive (not behind a tree), I can have a go at the green. If I'm somewhere around the green in two, I expect to get up and down. If I hit a bad drive and need to lay up to 100-150 yards, then I'm playing it normal and won't be disappointed with a 5. So I think the drive is key.

IMO score goals do one thing only, they determine your tee shot (line, club, shot). You know this before the round starts and focusing on it during a round will only hurt you. Just focus on the shot at hand. Keep track of how you score and adjust strategy accordingly. If I stand on a tee box thinking this is a birdie hole, I might as well mark down a bogey before I tee off.

I'm currently sitting around a 10.5 handicap. This season, my scoring average for my home course's par 5's is as follows (expressed as shots over par):

1.1 (hardest hole on the course, also the first hole)

.5

.3

.7

So realistically, I should expect a bogey and be happy with anything under. It only works out that way in my mind on the hardest hole, though. On that hole, I'm satisfied by a bogey, happy with a par, ecstatic with a birdie (only have one on that hole this year).

In my mind, the two holes in the middle should be reached in regulation, so I should have a birdie putt. The last hole is tougher and I should at least have a decent putt for par. So, my expectation is par.

At home I expect to play the par fives a bit under par and usually do. When I go to a course where I can reach the par fives in two I expect to be 2 or 3 under for those holes.

Steve

I'm a bogey golfer but not a strong driver of the ball. My average score on Par 5's is pretty poor, probably 1.5 strokes over par, which I realize is obscene. It mostly comes from penalty strokes I would guess.

I can't reach any Par 5 in two but for some reason I still default to using driver from the tee. I would be far better off going fairway wood/fairway wood/short iron. It's pure stubbornness and ego that keeps me in that bad habit. I'm going to adjust going forward. I think I could improve my stroke average by 3-4 shots per round by eliminating penalty shots on par fives.

Usually I should birdie two of 4 with looks at eagle chips or putts at my home course as 2-3 of them are easily reachable in two. Bogies on any of them is a recipe for a bad day.

10 handicap here and my best scoring average is on par 5's, but it definitely depends on the hole. On a course that I play often, the 1st hole is a short par 5 and I average 4.5 strokes. The 3rd hole is a tight par 5 and I probably average 6.5 strokes.

I expect to birdie #17 at my home course and expect to birdie at least one of the other Par 5s. My handicap is 0.0 at the moment.Averages (Last 20 Rounds)

#1 (542 yards) - 5.0

#6 (530 yards) - 5.0

#10 (563/592 yards) - 4.9

#17 (526 yards) - 4.6

Honestly, I really need to drop my scoring average on #1 more than anything. It is a relatively easy hole and I just don't convert enough up-and-downs for birdie there for some reason.

#6 is a double dogleg (both left) with various OB/hazards so it plays tougher than the yardage.

I have no "home" course, but I base my expectations on hole length, wind and hazards. If I can get inside 50 yards for my regulation shot to the green, without taking any silly chances, I expect to score under par on a hole.

BT

Hole #1

550-yd / Flat-but-narrow / HC-5 / Elevated Green - Par is a GREAT score here (certainly a 3-shot hole)

Hole #2

500-yd / Uphill-dogleg-right / HC-9 / Small Green - Hard to expect anything better than par (usually 3-shot hole)

Hole #3

500-yd / Uphill-dogleg-left / HC-10 / Misses long & short are dead - Hard to expect anything better than par (usually a 3-shot hole)

Hole #4

490-yd / Flat, open & straight / HC-18 / Relatively friendly hole - Best birdie opportunity on the course (usually a 2-shot hole)

This kind of thinking is the person I want as my partner. Par 5's are scoring holes.

During Tiger's heyday, his par 5 scoring average and dominance was unmatched.

I'm not a long hitter and I do not hit fairway woods well off the deck so realistically I am not getting home in 2 unless I crush a drive and give myself a distance I can reach with a hybrid. My goal on par 5's is to give myself a putt for birdie.

Just follow the Tiger 5...

No bogeys on par 5sNo double bogeysNo three puttsNo bogeys with 9i or lessNo easy blown saves (no double chips is a little more quantifiable)Nothing about this is about making birdies. Especially for better players trying to make birdies on par 5s is reasonable. For most the golfing world avoid bogeys on par 5s and doubles elsewhere will go a long way. Check the GOAT had that attitude.

No expectation to make birdie, but I know it’s the most probable time to do so. Given you will have at most a wedge in hand, long as you had a decent drive.

Most par 5s I’m trying to be down around the hole in 2 shots and trying to get up and down for birdie....

Download, TheGrint app. Keeps statistics on your game. Scoring averages by holes par and then broken down into distances. I’m a Pro member and it’s $4 a month and it plugs all my scores right into my handicap as well.

I have no score in mind. If I just play golf the scores work themselves out at the end. The only time I think of a score on a hole is when I absolutely need something to catch up to someone beating me, and even this thinking rarely works out in my favor.

I love the answers that are "birdies only." Like, your Expectation is a birdie. Not a reward for excellent play. This has theory not practice written all over it.

Why not just say you Expect to eagle them all, you know, since you routinely crank out 300 yard drives and stick your 220 yard 5 iron to 10 feet.

You watch PGA golf and see top 10 players routinely stink it up, drives 300ish but not always and not always straight, and the single digits says he expects to birdie all 4 on a par 72.

Well, why not think birdie all four every time? It's not like it's a terrible day if it doesn't happen. I never complain about having a birdie putt.

Approach to 5 pars you ask??

destroy

Expectation and outcome are 2 very different things. Minus the really tough par 5s or insane conditions, I can assure you most pros look at par 5s as birdie holes, they typically look pretty dejected if they walk away with a par after a decent drive. As long as you can get off the tee, par 5s represent your best chance at birdie so why not treat them as such?

We have different expectations, so how about we just leave it at that? I'm not a 15 handicap like you, but I'm not going to make a snarky remark about your game. I played today and birdied three out of the four par fives. I don't expect to eagle par 5's, but I have more chances to do it than you have. I just wasted most of my youth playing golf and hitting golf balls. Don't hate us for it... ;)

Depends on scoring opportunity and risk reward for me. At the course I currently play the most, I typically am looking for a shot at the green on my second shot. It’s a tighter course with their 4 par 5’s averaging about 440yrds