Characteristics of someone who shoots 70s/80s/90s

[Twoironblade]

70s: Average at least 8 greens in regulation, very few wasted strokes (i.e. OB, 3 putts, etc.)

 

Low 80s: Much like the 70s except you waste the strokes. Others I see who shoot in this range have really good short games and keep the ball in play (but don't hit the ball that great).

 

Once you get to the mid 80s and above, you're probably not averaging more than 5 or 6 greens in regulation. You're dealing with greenside rough, a bunker, chipping off a tight lie, etc. on lots of holes. Unless you've got a great short game, you can only get up and down so many times before it starts catching up to you.

[Ronzo]

Sigh. It's painful to open my kimono like this, but I'd like the group's opinion of where I should concentrate my efforts. This is an average score for me on this course. The 3 sand shots aren't indicative of my usual sand play; I left it under the overhanging lip of the bunker when trying to be too cute with the pin very close, and it took me two more shots to get out. My usual sand miss is a bladed shot over the green, which happens on 20-25% of my bunker shots. Usual shot is within 6-10 feet 75-80% of the time. Other than that, it's typical.

[sksmall]

Sigh. It's painful to open my kimono like this, but I'd like the group's opinion of where I should concentrate my efforts. This is an average score for me on this course. The 3 sand shots aren't indicative of my usual sand play; I left it under the overhanging lip of the bunker when trying to be too cute with the pin very close, and it took me two more shots to get out. My usual sand miss is a bladed shot over the green, which happens on 20-25% of my bunker shots. Usual shot is within 6-10 feet 75-80% of the time. Other than that, it's typical.

 

In my opinion - iron play. You hit 50% of fairways, but only 17% of your greens, and your par 3 scores were way over par, even with the one birdie. The 50% isn't bad, and I'm sure some of your driver misses were probably just in rough, not in trouble. So my advice would be work on your irons, dial them in so that you're hitting more greens. The one thing missing is how bad were your iron misses, whether they were easy up and downs, or what. But to me, on that card, it all goes back to approach shots.

[cb_golfer]

Sigh. It's painful to open my kimono like this, but I'd like the group's opinion of where I should concentrate my efforts. This is an average score for me on this course. The 3 sand shots aren't indicative of my usual sand play; I left it under the overhanging lip of the bunker when trying to be too cute with the pin very close, and it took me two more shots to get out. My usual sand miss is a bladed shot over the green, which happens on 20-25% of my bunker shots. Usual shot is within 6-10 feet 75-80% of the time. Other than that, it's typical.

 

That looks like my buddy's typical scorecard from last year. He's down to 19 now without really much practice. Here's what I told him. I asked him to subtract 6 yards from all of his "known iron distances" and play that way.

[avrag]

Sigh. It's painful to open my kimono like this, but I'd like the group's opinion of where I should concentrate my efforts. This is an average score for me on this course. The 3 sand shots aren't indicative of my usual sand play; I left it under the overhanging lip of the bunker when trying to be too cute with the pin very close, and it took me two more shots to get out. My usual sand miss is a bladed shot over the green, which happens on 20-25% of my bunker shots. Usual shot is within 6-10 feet 75-80% of the time. Other than that, it's typical.

 

It looks a lot like one of my scorecards from 2007 and April/May 2008. You certainly need too many putts, given the (low) number of GIR. Now, this could be because of your putting (the 3 3-putts would also indicate that) or because of your pitching and chipping.

You'll need to analyze this a little more:

Do you need 2 putts on the non-GIR holes because you miss inside 4 feet a lot, or because the first putt is so long that the chances of making it are slim? If the first option is true, your putting needs some serious work. AND (that's always a good thing to say on this forum ;) ) a new putter might help. No kidding, I got rid of those missed short ones by getting a Sabertooth and practicing them a little more, which knocked about 4 strokes off my average scores immediately. But that's just one option.

If the second option is true (first putt is a long one, despite missing the green in regulation), then chipping and pitching is the key.

Again, two possibilities: Do you leave your chips and pitches a long way from the hole, because you just do not hit them like planned or are you faced with a lot of near impossible short shots, because your lie is so bad or because you have no green to work with?

In the first case, it's just a matter of practicing chipping and pitching a lot. From a lot of different lies, a lot of different shots. High and checking, low and running, and so on. Have an instructor put you through the basics of each kind of shot or read the Utley book or the Pelz book (or both, like I did :shout: ) and practice practice, practice. Play games as you do, imagine a TV commentator in your head, do everything to make it fun.

If, on the other hand, you are always faced with very difficult up and downs, then it is about your course management. This is what the previous poster was talking about. 80s and 90s shooters leave themselves in impossible places (I should know).

Try the following: Play a few rounds on your regular course without ever trying to hit a GIR. Instead, by thinking from the hole backwards find the spots near the greens, from where you'll have the easiest, straight forward up and down tries. If the course is not crowded, try to play 3 or 4 balls from these spots to different spots on the green, where the most common hole locations are. It will help you to learn, where the "safe misses" on your home course are around the greens and you'll also gain self confidence, because you will see, that you can actually hit it close from there. Now, when you play for real again, like in club competitions, try to use your "miss tendencies", so that if you hit a bad shot, it will end up in one of those safe spots around the greens.

And have fun!

[TheWoat]

Id also add a line for Up-and-down saves, Approach shots, and a line for your 2nd shot on par 5s.

[Ronzo]

In my opinion - iron play. You hit 50% of fairways, but only 17% of your greens, and your par 3 scores were way over par, even with the one birdie. The 50% isn't bad, and I'm sure some of your driver misses were probably just in rough, not in trouble. So my advice would be work on your irons, dial them in so that you're hitting more greens. The one thing missing is how bad were your iron misses, whether they were easy up and downs, or what. But to me, on that card, it all goes back to approach shots.

 

That is my analysis, too.

[Ronzo]

That looks like my buddy's typical scorecard from last year. He's down to 19 now without really much practice. Here's what I told him. I asked him to subtract 6 yards from all of his "known iron distances" and play that way.

 

I've done that with the help of my GPS, and it has helped me but not cured me. From greater than 125 yards out, I don't miss greens by a little; I miss them badly, leaving recovery shots from deep Bermuda rough, often having to clear a bunker. Or I blade them into a water hazard, as I did on the 4th hole that day from the center of the fairway after a 225 yard drive.

 

Yes, I remember that shot as if it were made yesterday. The tennis player Rosie Casals put it well: "Losses stay with you forever."

[sksmall]

In my opinion - iron play. You hit 50% of fairways, but only 17% of your greens, and your par 3 scores were way over par, even with the one birdie. The 50% isn't bad, and I'm sure some of your driver misses were probably just in rough, not in trouble. So my advice would be work on your irons, dial them in so that you're hitting more greens. The one thing missing is how bad were your iron misses, whether they were easy up and downs, or what. But to me, on that card, it all goes back to approach shots.

 

That is my analysis, too.

 

The way I look at it, that's quite possibly the easiest thing to fix. I know a ton of people talk about working on your short game, and it is great advice - but at the level you are at score wise, I would think it would be much easier to lower your score by getting around the green more FIRST, then work on the short game. I'm assuming you can't practice 8 hours a day, just like the rest of us. So it makes sense to me to spend your limited time where you get the most bang for your buck. And if that scorecard is typical, then you need to hit more greens, first and foremost. When it gets to the point that you are hitting half your greens, or just off of them, consistently, THEN shift more of your time to chipping and putting, etc., from different spots. Maybe I'm in the minority here, I don't know. I know the short game is important, and I don't mean to trivialize it, but if you're only hitting 3 greens a round, you are not going to shoot good scores, I don't care HOW good your short game is.

[avrag]

In my opinion - iron play. You hit 50% of fairways, but only 17% of your greens, and your par 3 scores were way over par, even with the one birdie. The 50% isn't bad, and I'm sure some of your driver misses were probably just in rough, not in trouble. So my advice would be work on your irons, dial them in so that you're hitting more greens. The one thing missing is how bad were your iron misses, whether they were easy up and downs, or what. But to me, on that card, it all goes back to approach shots.

 

That is my analysis, too.

 

Well, yes. But for some people (I'm one of those) the full iron shot from the fairway is the most difficult shot in golf. I don't know why that is, because obviously the first golf shots I ever made were with a 7iron on the range, and most instructors teach beginners that way. But it is still really tough for me to get better in this part of the game. Add to that the fact that most courses in my area have very small greens (compared to typical US resort courses e.g.), improving my GIR would require a lot more pactice than improving my short game. Working on the short game simply helped me realtively quickly to score better. That's why my reply focussed on that.

[avrag]

In my opinion - iron play. You hit 50% of fairways, but only 17% of your greens, and your par 3 scores were way over par, even with the one birdie. The 50% isn't bad, and I'm sure some of your driver misses were probably just in rough, not in trouble. So my advice would be work on your irons, dial them in so that you're hitting more greens. The one thing missing is how bad were your iron misses, whether they were easy up and downs, or what. But to me, on that card, it all goes back to approach shots.

 

That is my analysis, too.

 

The way I look at it, that's quite possibly the easiest thing to fix. I know a ton of people talk about working on your short game, and it is great advice - but at the level you are at score wise, I would think it would be much easier to lower your score by getting around the green more FIRST, then work on the short game. I'm assuming you can't practice 8 hours a day, just like the rest of us. So it makes sense to me to spend your limited time where you get the most bang for your buck. And if that scorecard is typical, then you need to hit more greens, first and foremost. When it gets to the point that you are hitting half your greens, or just off of them, consistently, THEN shift more of your time to chipping and putting, etc., from different spots. Maybe I'm in the minority here, I don't know. I know the short game is important, and I don't mean to trivialize it, but if you're only hitting 3 greens a round, you are not going to shoot good scores, I don't care HOW good your short game is.

 

As I indicated above, the style of the courses you play most regularily also has to do with it. When I remember the rounds I played in different (warm) parts of the US, I was amazed by the size of the greens, and consequently by how many more GIR I hit than I hit back home. So, if you usually play a course where every green is 20 yard wide and 40 yards deep and you still miss them, then improving the full approach shots will help you more. I am faced with reasonably deep but very narrow greens most of the time, so that six or seven yards right or left will usually leave me off the green. That's why I talk about the short game so much.

Added: Just went to Google Earth to make sure. Typical green on my home course is about 12 to 18 yards wide at the widest point and 7 or 8 yards at the narrowest point. That might explain my obsession.

Cheers!

[sksmall]

In my opinion - iron play. You hit 50% of fairways, but only 17% of your greens, and your par 3 scores were way over par, even with the one birdie. The 50% isn't bad, and I'm sure some of your driver misses were probably just in rough, not in trouble. So my advice would be work on your irons, dial them in so that you're hitting more greens. The one thing missing is how bad were your iron misses, whether they were easy up and downs, or what. But to me, on that card, it all goes back to approach shots.

 

That is my analysis, too.

 

Well, yes. But for some people (I'm one of those) the full iron shot from the fairway is the most difficult shot in golf. I don't know why that is, because obviously the first golf shots I ever made were with a 7iron on the range, and most instructors teach beginners that way. But it is still really tough for me to get better in this part of the game. Add to that the fact that most courses in my area have very small greens (compared to typical US resort courses e.g.), improving my GIR would require a lot more pactice than improving my short game. Working on the short game simply helped me realtively quickly to score better. That's why my reply focussed on that.

 

I completely see what you're saying. Where I'm coming from is that if his misses are wayyy off, then his short game isn't going to save him, no matter how much he works on it. Now, if he's 5 yards either way each time, and that's it, then absolutely work on the short game. But if he's 75 yards short, or pull hook 20 yards left, or blade it 40 yards over the green - that HAS to get better before the scores really come down.

[Ronzo]

It looks a lot like one of my scorecards from 2007 and April/May 2008. You certainly need too many putts, given the (low) number of GIR. Now, this could be because of your putting (the 3 3-putts would also indicate that) or because of your pitching and chipping.

You'll need to analyze this a little more:

Do you need 2 putts on the non-GIR holes because you miss inside 4 feet a lot, or because the first putt is so long that the chances of making it are slim? If the first option is true, your putting needs some serious work. AND (that's always a good thing to say on this forum ;) ) a new putter might help. No kidding, I got rid of those missed short ones by getting a Sabertooth and practicing them a little more, which knocked about 4 strokes off my average scores immediately. But that's just one option.

 

I got rid of most missed short putts and poor lag putting when I found my Rife Barbados. I've dropped my index by over 10 strokes in 10 months; almost five strokes of that drop is the improvement in my putting. I'm confident from 8 feet and in now. Average putts per round drops now with nearly every round I post.

 

If the second option is true (first putt is a long one, despite missing the green in regulation), then chipping and pitching is the key.

Again, two possibilities: Do you leave your chips and pitches a long way from the hole, because you just do not hit them like planned or are you faced with a lot of near impossible short shots, because your lie is so bad or because you have no green to work with?

 

If my lie is reasonable and there are no obstructions, I putt almost every chip and bump-and-run all I can with my 5 hybrid from 50 yards and in from the fairway to an unguarded green. That tactic has helped, where the opportunity exists.

 

In the first case, it's just a matter of practicing chipping and pitching a lot. From a lot of different lies, a lot of different shots. High and checking, low and running, and so on. Have an instructor put you through the basics of each kind of shot or read the Utley book or the Pelz book (or both, like I did :shout: ) and practice practice, practice. Play games as you do, imagine a TV commentator in your head, do everything to make it fun.

If, on the other hand, you are always faced with very difficult up and downs, then it is about your course management. This is what the previous poster was talking about. 80s and 90s shooters leave themselves in impossible places (I should know).

Try the following: Play a few rounds on your regular course without ever trying to hit a GIR. Instead, by thinking from the hole backwards find the spots near the greens, from where you'll have the easiest, straight forward up and down tries. If the course is not crowded, try to play 3 or 4 balls from these spots to different spots on the green, where the most common hole locations are. It will help you to learn, where the "safe misses" on your home course are around the greens and you'll also gain self confidence, because you will see, that you can actually hit it close from there. Now, when you play for real again, like in club competitions, try to use your "miss tendencies", so that if you hit a bad shot, it will end up in one of those safe spots around the greens.

 

I'm trying very hard to get my index to a 14. That was my goal when I restarted golf seriously in January 2008. My approach shot misses are so egregious that I either get into the impossible situations that you describe, or hit it in the water or OB. I try to remain focused, and to avoid trying a heroic shot. When I do, I pay dearly for that arrogance, lol. Please understand that I am in the fairway over 50% of the time on par 4's and par 5's; these egregious misses are from the best of positions! That makes it even more difficult to swallow. When I hit a green, I have usually made a very good shot. I get some lucky misses, but when I hit the approach shot as I should, the results are usually good.

 

As some who see me post have seen, I have a severe knee injury with nerve damage in my right leg that affects my balance. I have to further manage my misses by hitting to the flattest lie I can get. If a miss finds a steep slope, I'm sometimes unable to do a thing -- although I'll try, usually failing miserably. But it's still infinitely better than not playing.

 

And have fun!

 

I do! :)

 

It's more fun when I play better, though.

[avrag]

In my opinion - iron play. You hit 50% of fairways, but only 17% of your greens, and your par 3 scores were way over par, even with the one birdie. The 50% isn't bad, and I'm sure some of your driver misses were probably just in rough, not in trouble. So my advice would be work on your irons, dial them in so that you're hitting more greens. The one thing missing is how bad were your iron misses, whether they were easy up and downs, or what. But to me, on that card, it all goes back to approach shots.

 

That is my analysis, too.

 

Well, yes. But for some people (I'm one of those) the full iron shot from the fairway is the most difficult shot in golf. I don't know why that is, because obviously the first golf shots I ever made were with a 7iron on the range, and most instructors teach beginners that way. But it is still really tough for me to get better in this part of the game. Add to that the fact that most courses in my area have very small greens (compared to typical US resort courses e.g.), improving my GIR would require a lot more pactice than improving my short game. Working on the short game simply helped me realtively quickly to score better. That's why my reply focussed on that.

 

I completely see what you're saying. Where I'm coming from is that if his misses are wayyy off, then his short game isn't going to save him, no matter how much he works on it. Now, if he's 5 yards either way each time, and that's it, then absolutely work on the short game. But if he's 75 yards short, or pull hook 20 yards left, or blade it 40 yards over the green - that HAS to get better before the scores really come down.

 

Absolutely correct. If the third shots on par 4s do not even fall in the "short game" category, then the iron play is to blame.

[Ronzo]

Id also add a line for Up-and-down saves, Approach shots, and a line for your 2nd shot on par 5s.

 

The oobgolf site is what I use, and I've asked them to add exactly those things. Hey, guys, please listen! Thanks.

[Ronzo]

Absolutely correct. If the third shots on par 4s do not even fall in the "short game" category, then the iron play is to blame.

 

That's me! Typical miss leaves me either 15-20 yards to either side of the pin or is a cold top/thin hit.

 

On the plus side, my distance control is good. When I don't top it or blade it.

 

My typical good short iron shot is taking a lot of divot and hitting down HARD on the ball. It results in a high ball flight and a fair amount of spin, usually hop and stop. I don't back up shots a lot, but my best short iron shots are darts. Anything with a 7 iron is chancy, a 6 iron is 50-50, and a hybrid can be either brilliant or an utter disaster. No real in-between. This eliminates all shots where my balance was affected. Can't help those much. No proprioception from 4" above the right knee down. Can't dorsiflex to maintain balance. I balance by clenching my right toes.

[Ronzo]

Thank you all for your comments and helpfulness. Please, keep 'em coming! :)

[avrag]

This eliminates all shots where my balance was affected. Can't help those much. No proprioception from 4" above the right knee down. Can't dorsiflex to maintain balance. I balance by clenching my right toes.

 

Wow. Knowing that now, you could help me out, I think.

How do you manage to drive it so straight, when you have this problem?

[Ronzo]

This eliminates all shots where my balance was affected. Can't help those much. No proprioception from 4" above the right knee down. Can't dorsiflex to maintain balance. I balance by clenching my right toes.

 

Wow. Knowing that now, you could help me out, I think.

How do you manage to drive it so straight, when you have this problem?

 

1. I have to swing within myself. I lost 40 yards off my tee shot after my knee dislocation. In order for me to get it out there, I have to take a slow backswing and concentrate on good contact.
   
2. I have to get my (considerable, unfortunately) weight on my right side with a stable knee very early.
   
3. I can't slide my hips forward on the downswing, as I did before my injury. That alone improved my accuracy significantly.
   
4. I got fitted for my driver well. Even before I knew what knowledge this site had to offer, I understood the concept of low dispersion and I knew I needed a higher ball flight. The Moveable Weight Technology on my TM 425 helped me tailor my ballflight to minimize left-to-right movement, and take the right side out of play for the most part. When you see a miss right on my card, it's usually a 5 yard baby fade, not a slice. I try to hit a baby draw most of the time, and I aim at the right edge of the fairway for the most part.
   
5. I try to release passively. I'm all over the planet when I try to square the clubface with my hands or wrists. When I go right despite my best efforts, it's frustrating to me; I adjust by strengthening my grip. I made just that adjustment the day I posted that score; the back 9 was a higher percentage of fairways hit. That's an emergency fix, though. When I get the fade, I know I'm not doing this...
   
6. Drop the right elbow into the slot, and turn. That's my primary swing thought on the tee. I probably think too much over an iron shot. When I shot a relatively low round a couple of weeks ago, I'd watched Bagger Vance the night before, and the character saying, "Don't hold nothin' back!" was banging around inside my head, excluding most everything else.
   

I hope this helps. It's just what I try to do.

[avrag]

I hope this helps. It's just what I try to do.

 

Thank you. Some very good points.

[Ronzo]

I hope this helps. It's just what I try to do.

 

Thank you. Some very good points.

 

You're welcome. You and the other posters on this thread have been very helpful and non-judgmental, and I appreciate that a lot. :)

[wilwin]

As a 90s shooter and only playing about 2-3 times a month right now, I have a tough time with distances. I don't know why, but I am always scared hitting past the green and what usually happens is I am come up short. Of course, I am probably not factoring the wind or other environmental conditions enough in my shot.

 

Last time I played, on a Par 5, I tried to set up my 3rd shot and hit a 4 iron so I would be about a full PW away. Instead I hit a bad shot and left myself 150 yards away.

 

Would you say a high handicapper should always hit his longest possible club rather than the course management game? A bad shot with a 3 wood will still roll and go farther than hitting a bad iron shot that will still leave you farther from the hole.

[avrag]

I hope this helps. It's just what I try to do.

 

Thank you. Some very good points.

 

You're welcome. You and the other posters on this thread have been very helpful and non-judgmental, and I appreciate that a lot. :)

 

I score just a little better than you do, and I have only started to do so in the past six months, and that is with two healthy knees, so there could be no reason to be judgmental. I only joined the discussion because your scorecard reminded me so much of my own from a year back. I keep stats very much the same way you do, but without a software.

Besides, in this particular forum (the Swing forum, that is) I have found that everybody is really great. There is a way of communicating and exchanging ideas here, that is just so refreshingly civilized, polite and helpful, that I enjoy being part of it immensely.

Don't forget to keep everybody updated.

[Ronzo]

IMO, a bad shot with a 3 wood will roll and go further offline, leaving you in worse trouble. But I suck, so please take what I say with a grain of salt.

[Ronzo]

I score just a little better than you do, and I have only started to do so in the past six months, and that is with two healthy knees, so there could be no reason to be judgmental. I only joined the discussion because your scorecard reminded me so much of my own from a year back. I keep stats very much the same way you do, but without a software.

Besides, in this particular forum (the Swing forum, that is) I have found that everybody is really great. There is a way of communicating and exchanging ideas here, that is just so refreshingly civilized, polite and helpful, that I enjoy being part of it immensely.

Don't forget to keep everybody updated.

 

It's a real pleasure meeting you here. Thanks again for all the help.

 

I find www.oobgolf incredibly helpful in keeping stats. It's completely free -- no membership charge at all. I suggest you give it a go.

[tburchell]

Would you say a high handicapper should always hit his longest possible club rather than the course management game? A bad shot with a 3 wood will still roll and go farther than hitting a bad iron shot that will still leave you farther from the hole.

 

I think course management is still the smart thing to do. Hitting the longest possible club because mis-hits will travel further sounds like resigning to failure.

[avrag]

Would you say a high handicapper should always hit his longest possible club rather than the course management game? A bad shot with a 3 wood will still roll and go farther than hitting a bad iron shot that will still leave you farther from the hole.

 

I think course management is still the smart thing to do. Hitting the longest possible club because mis-hits will travel further sounds like resigning to failure.

 

I'd say "game and course management". Which shots would make sense in the particular situation? (For second shots on par 5s and long par 4s there is always more than one option for a high handicapper). Which clubs would you have to hit for those shots? Then choose the club with the highest success rate. In my particular case that would mean hit the 3wood on the par five, because I hit more good shots with a 3wood off the fairway than with a 4iron. But course management, to me, also means thinking about where my typical miss will leave me. On a par 3 of 185 yards over water (there is one of those at my home course), I lay up to a bail-out area to the side of the water hazard. The length of the hole would mean 4iron or 21°hybrid for me, depending on the wind conditions. A fairway wood would surely be too long, and the mishits with the long iron or the hybrid would be wet. Whereas the six iron to the bail-out area short and left of the green (and left of the water hazard) has almost a 100% chance of ending up where I want it and leaving me an easy pitch to the green.

[Kumabjorn]

I noticed that Ronzo used Driver on all par 4 and 5 holes. I have no idea how narrow or wide the fairways you play are. But a few years ago I had an epiphany. My son was 7 at the time, wasn't really allowed out on the course, but I promised him that if he could play the short hole course (6 par 3 holes, longest 125 yrds) in level 4s I'd take him out on the course.

 

He did it so we went out on the back nine at around 7 pm, hardly anyone on the course at that time. In order not to discourage him I decided to not use anything more than a 6I, otherwise he might need three or four shots just to reach my ball. Well, I went around in 3 over par. I was a 18 hcp at the time. Hadn't played anywhere close to that before, so I came to realize the value of not loosing balls, playing from the wrong fairway etc. Since then all my practice has been focused on accuracy, even when I hit full drives.

[One_Putt_Blunder]

Would you say a high handicapper should always hit his longest possible club rather than the course management game? A bad shot with a 3 wood will still roll and go farther than hitting a bad iron shot that will still leave you farther from the hole.

 

I think course management is still the smart thing to do. Hitting the longest possible club because mis-hits will travel further sounds like resigning to failure.

 

I'd say "game and course management". Which shots would make sense in the particular situation? (For second shots on par 5s and long par 4s there is always more than one option for a high handicapper). Which clubs would you have to hit for those shots? Then choose the club with the highest success rate. In my particular case that would mean hit the 3wood on the par five, because I hit more good shots with a 3wood off the fairway than with a 4iron. But course management, to me, also means thinking about where my typical miss will leave me. On a par 3 of 185 yards over water (there is one of those at my home course), I lay up to a bail-out area to the side of the water hazard. The length of the hole would mean 4iron or 21°hybrid for me, depending on the wind conditions. A fairway wood would surely be too long, and the mishits with the long iron or the hybrid would be wet. Whereas the six iron to the bail-out area short and left of the green (and left of the water hazard) has almost a 100% chance of ending up where I want it and leaving me an easy pitch to the green.

 

Play the longest club that keeps the biggest amount of trouble out of play. What I meen by this is if you have a hole that has ob/water etc, 15 yards right of the fairway and you can hit a 30 yard slice with the driver but dont slice your 3 wood or hybrid/long iron that much use one of the later off the tee. If the hole is wide open and slicing or hooking one into another fairway with the driver will still keep the ball hittable and in play then use the driver for the extra distance. Heck everynow and then you get a better approach angle from the wrong fairway :D . Even if you sacrafice yardage off the tee if you can get it close to the green on the 2nd you would at least have a go at par.

 

Keep your surroundings in mind and find a target zone that gives you the biggest margin of error,and use the club that gets you to that point.

 

Like Avraq said about the 6 iron and the par 3, he may not have a consistant chance at birdie, but has a much more realistic shot at par now vs being in the water and hitting 3 on the drop or re tee.

[Ronzo]

I noticed that Ronzo used Driver on all par 4 and 5 holes. I have no idea how narrow or wide the fairways you play are. But a few years ago I had an epiphany. My son was 7 at the time, wasn't really allowed out on the course, but I promised him that if he could play the short hole course (6 par 3 holes, longest 125 yrds) in level 4s I'd take him out on the course.

 

He did it so we went out on the back nine at around 7 pm, hardly anyone on the course at that time. In order not to discourage him I decided to not use anything more than a 6I, otherwise he might need three or four shots just to reach my ball. Well, I went around in 3 over par. I was a 18 hcp at the time. Hadn't played anywhere close to that before, so I came to realize the value of not loosing balls, playing from the wrong fairway etc. Since then all my practice has been focused on accuracy, even when I hit full drives.

 

As you see from my card, I hit over 50% of the fairways -- actually 59% overall for the last 13 months, 56.5 rounds. My misses with the driver usually aren't terrible, unless I lose it behind a tree. (Fortunately, a rare occurrence.) Double bogey or worse usually happens something like this:

 

Par 4: Drive in the fairway 225 yards on a 375 yard hole. 6 iron yanked 20 yards left of the green pin high, in 5 inch deep bermuda rough. Leave the pitch short of the green in 2.5 inch Bermuda or a greenside bunker. Chip or sand shot to 10 feet. Miss putt off the left or right lip on the high side of the cup 1-2 feet past the hole. Tap in for double.

 

Par 5: 500 yards. Drive in the fairway or first cut of rough (shown as a miss) 210-235 yards. I want to be 100 yards out to hit PW. Hit 4 or 5 hybrid to get there, hit it thin or topped 75 yards in the fairway to 175-200 yards out. Smart play would be to just hit wedge to either 75 or 100 yards (my SW and PW best control distances), but I'm not that smart because of the frustration and I hit 3 hybrid. Come over the top and smother the shot 25 yards out in the deep left rough. Blade the pitch 15 yards over the back of the green. Pitch 10 feet; 2 putts for a 7.

 

Par 3: 170 yards. 5 hybrid hit off the toe into a water hazard. Drop, 30 yards out. Chunk the pitch. Rehit pitch to six feet. Lip the putt out, tap in for a 6.

 

Kumabjorn, I'm not hitting driver into terrible positions; I'm hitting my second shot into terrible positions. If I hit two good shots in a row, I'm looking at par. Three in a row gets me a birdie, typically. But hitting three good shots in a row is like winning a third hand in a row at blackjack. If you do it, you're usually off to the races. Most times, the third attempt knocks you back to starting the betting progression all over again.