Are courses easier for lefties or righties?

[Chuckmcc]

So I was playing today and my ball striking was not entirely there leading to a few more tee shots off the fairway than would typically be normal for me. Consequently I was thinking more about the actual design of the course that I was playing than I normally would. I realized that the course was in fact a little bit less forgiving for me as a left handed golfer because on many of the holes there was either water or dense growth to the left hand side of the fairway. So my question is do you guys think that overall golf course layouts favor lefties or righties?

[MtlJeff]

too many golf courses in the world to say. My home course the worst trouble is mostly on the right. So i think it favors lefties who fade or righties who draw. But all courses are different

[Chuckmcc]

Yeah I understand what you are saying. Maybe a better question would be "Do the courses played on Tour favor lefties or righties?"

[DavePelz4]

Yes.

[MtlJeff]

[quote name='Chuckmcc' timestamp='1389576637' post='8449305']
Yeah I understand what you are saying. Maybe a better question would be "Do the courses played on Tour favor lefties or righties?"
[/quote]

I think the tour courses for the most part favor righty cablinasians

[BrianL99]

[quote name='Chuckmcc' timestamp='1389576637' post='8449305']
Yeah I understand what you are saying. Maybe a better question would be "Do the courses played on Tour favor lefties or righties?"
[/quote]

For years, Jack Nicklaus was accused of building golf courses that favored golfers who hit high fades.

[Stillboard]

I once played a local course where nearly every hole I was teeing off with the ball below my feet as a lefty. Everyone else in the group preferred or didn't mind hitting with the ball above their feet. I wound up just moving my teeshot away to a level surface.

[ocburg17]

I think the green side hazards and overall dimensions/layout of the greens are more important to the left/right golfer bias question.

For a righty, if you miss left, it will likely be longer (club is more closed and thus face is delofted). Miss right and it will likely be short.

Use that to look at the green. Can a righty get away with both misses where a lefty that pulls it right long would end up in a trap that is located in the back right?

[Gutz_it]

I'm a lefty and my miss is right
So your premise is flawed
Righties miss left and right
Lefties miss left and right

Therefore every golf course should at some stage punish a bad tee shot

[WolverineGolfer2016]

I agree with the above statement. Obviously golfers of either hand have the ability/tendency to miss in both directions so it's very difficult to answer this question. While certain courses may favor a left-to-right ball flight over other courses that favor a right-to-left ball flight it really can only be said in that sense rather than favoring a lefty or righty. Well that of course is unless the course manages to put an overhanging tree on the right side of every tee box, which, and by all means if someone has played a course like this, then please contribute to this board.

[Caesar Palache]

golf course A favors a golfer who moves the ball right to left
golf course B favors a golfer who moves the ball left to right

golf course A favors a right handed draw player and left handed fade player
golf course B favors a right handed fade player and left handed draw player


so my conclusion is no, golf courses do not favor rights or lefties. they favor shot shapes.

[golf1931]

Well I am a righty and I hardly ever miss right. My miss is left. Your probably right though, most people slice or at least miss right as righties & left as lefties.

[larrybud]

[quote name='Caesar Palache' timestamp='1389626186' post='8451803']
golf course A favors a golfer who moves the ball right to left
golf course B favors a golfer who moves the ball left to right

golf course A favors a right handed draw player and left handed fade player
golf course B favors a right handed fade player and left handed draw player


so my conclusion is no, golf courses do not favor rights or lefties. they favor shot shapes.
[/quote]

While that's technically true, the vast majority of amateurs slice the ball, and the vast majority are right handed.

However, I'll throw this wrinkle in the mix. On one of my league courses, there's OB left the first 5 holes, very much in play. I used to think this would favor the slicers, but for many in my league, it's really difficult because those guys have big two way misses. So they might pull the ball once every 5 times, but that means on average their knocking one out every time they play those holes. In addition, some have to start the ball so far left that the trees on the left come into play.

[Chuckmcc]

[quote name='larrybud' timestamp='1389672026' post='8456315']
[quote name='Caesar Palache' timestamp='1389626186' post='8451803']
golf course A favors a golfer who moves the ball right to left
golf course B favors a golfer who moves the ball left to right

golf course A favors a right handed draw player and left handed fade player
golf course B favors a right handed fade player and left handed draw player


so my conclusion is no, golf courses do not favor rights or lefties. they favor shot shapes.
[/quote]

While that's technically true, the vast majority of amateurs slice the ball, and the vast majority are right handed.

However, I'll throw this wrinkle in the mix. On one of my league courses, there's OB left the first 5 holes, very much in play. I used to think this would favor the slicers, but for many in my league, it's really difficult because those guys have big two way misses. So they might pull the ball once every 5 times, but that means on average their knocking one out every time they play those holes. In addition, some have to start the ball so far left that the trees on the left come into play.
[/quote]


This kind of hits the nail on the head as to what I was trying to get at. I have to believe when a golf course architect is drawing up blueprints this has to be in the back of his mind and he would either design his course to be more forgiving for the righty slicer intentionally or would design it to punish him. Which would consequently either make the course "harder" or "easier" for your average lefty.

[backtees]

I reviewed the 50-60 strokersavers I „collected“ during the last years from different course I played in the US as well as Europe – and based on these 50-60 examples I “discovered” a pattern looking from tee to green:[list]
[*]More obstacles and hazards on the left side of the fairways
[*]Bunkers left closer to the tee than the ones on the right side of the fairway
[*]More greenside bunkers left
[/list]
For me personally (lefty, HCP 4) this might be an advantage:[list]
[*]My mishit from the tee is a hook or pull so the obstacles and hazards do not come into play that much.
[*]The fairway bunkers left are often between 190 and 210 yards. A distance I can clear carry from the tee.
[*]The greenside bunkers left do not come into play as I prefer a soft fade into the green
[/list]
This of course is a very personal and very subjective point of view based not even on a per mille of course around the world and the way I play the game.

Nevertheless: I definitely discovered more obstacles, hazards, bunkers on the left side - could be a pattern others might have seen, too….??

[jim rockford]

depending on how good a golfer you are the answer may be different.... for lesser golfers, i think depends if course is clockwise or counter. some are both (9 inside another 9 for example) but i think more are clockwise.... for better golfers probably doglegs matter more

higher handicappers problems are generally penalty strokes and duffs/sculls/etc... . and i think slices are predominate miss so where is the out of bounds?.... my rough tally showed more clockwise than counterclockwise courses that i know ... i'm lefty and i do better with RH OB......

i think lower handicappers are affected more by tough doglegs.

is there a reason weir, mickelson and watson (all lefties) have won at masters?... and i remember augusta is terrible course for kaymer cause he only works it one way, but i can't remember which way (i thought draw but that doesn't make sense with lefties doing well as i'd presume they'd fade)

[jim rockford]

yes, it looks like augusta's par 5's favour a lefty cut (righty draw).. and i think fades are easier to hit for most people. i think much much easier to control. and i see elite players saying draws are hard to hit with modern drivers (i may be wrong in that paraphrase though)

anyway to me, it's clock-wise vs. counter assuming OB on the outside side.