BiMGuy
LIV Bot, (But Not As Big As Mel) ?
There are two different aspects to this advice.
1) Hit a 'safer' club off the tee instead of always choosing driver, because this will result in fewer lost balls and more fairways hit. That makes sense to everyone, I'm sure.
2) Hit a lower club off the tee to ensure you are not too close to the green for your second shot. And/or do the same with your second shot if necessary. This approach deliberately leaves a longer distance because it's one that 'feels' good.
The problem with the second aspect is that it completely goes against all the evidence from thousands of rounds of golf using Arccos and Shot Scope. All of the evidence suggests that being closer to the green lowers the score, and this is especially true as handicaps go up. It is due to this evidence that the shift in golf has moved towards trying to improve distance as well as other aspects of the game, instead of what has always been the emphasis on simply accepting your distance and working on the approach shots and short game.
I suspect that if you're teaching this approach and it's working for your clients, then it's simply about them keeping the ball in play more, rather than using longer clubs into the green because they are more confident with them.
I think you slightly contradict yourself there. The stats show that being closer to the green after your tee shot is better (as long as you are in play) for shooting lower scores. And that most of us are no more accurate with a 3 wood or long iron than a driver. If you are then I would suggest you are using the wrong driver.
So all you are doing is giving up distance and removing any possibility of hitting the green in regulation. Then of course, you hit it into the rough/trees with the “safe” club anyway, so you’ve now given up distance and are still in trouble.
Hitting a shorter club for safety just doesn’t work if you want to shoot lower scores. It’s old fashioned thinking.
If a player can’t hit driver well. That should be their priority in my opinion. Having to get up and down for bogie or double gets tiring real quick.