Course Management - Can you be too cautious?

[One Planer]

A few days ago I got to thinking about why my handicap has stagnated of late.

Over the competitions I've played so far this season, I've had one reduction, thee 0.1's and a buffer. On each occasion I missed buffer, I missed by a single shot.

As a result my handicap has remained stagnant.

This got me thinking about how I manage myself around the course.

Last night I went to the course for 9 holes after work and, on reflection, I'm far too cautious on certain holes.

Typical example is our third. It's a 'nothing' Par 4 that is a shade under 300 yards. OOB tight left with an orchard at the end of the OOB. The driving area narrows just past this, but there is run out area to the left after the orchard.

Usually I'll hit a 6 iron into the landing area next to the orchard. This usually leave me a gap/pitching wedge to the green. Quite sensible eh? So why do I always bogey the hole

Last night I took a 3 wood, hit my usual draw out to the right taking the OOB out of play before drawing back. If anything I over did the amount of draw ending up on the left portion of the fairway and around 40 yards short of the green. Pitch on, two putts, walk off with par.

There are other similar examples too.

Our second hole has a fairway bunker, with quite a steep face, in a popular landing area in the fairway. Normally I'll take a 3 wood as to come up short leaving approximately 165-170 yards to the middle of the green.

Last night I took driver. As it transpires I can actually carry the bunker, quite comfortably, leaving circa 130 to the middle.

On both the occasions listed above, I scored better than I usually do.

There were other selections that were trialled which also bore fruit, but I feel it a little un-necessary to list everything .

My understanding of course management, is that you take a club that puts you into a good position to score while minimising and/or removing risk.

As per my original question. Within reason, can you be too cautious when making your choice of shot and how you manage your way around the course?

 

[dufferman]

I started taking 3 wood on our 1st instead of driver, as I'd started with a 7 (par 4) once or twice. Still managed to make 7 on a number of occasions with the 3 wood, now back to taking driver and back to pars & bogey's.

Changing up how you play the hole can help to keep it fresh, but taking the short club option isn't always of as big a benefit on some holes.

 

[Paul77]

The way I play on really quiet days on the course, is that I plays those shots that I often leave in the bag. Can I green with the driver? Should I play it short for a better shot in? What happens if I go left or right fo ra change? I'm still getting used to my course right enough. My aunty plays off 13, and when I played alongside her on her course a few months ago she was taking 3 shots to get to par 4 greens and taking a 5 on most holes. She pars a lot of par 3's and gets some birdies but can't understand why she's not coming down. I just said at the time it was because she's not hitting her GIR to give herself at least half a chance.

 

[SwingsitlikeHogan]

Can you be too cautious? - depends on what you are trying to achieve for a hole and your round.

 

[duncan mackie]

G - the real question must be " why do you bogey the hole from 100 yds...?"

If the answer is that the green is set up so that play from the natural landing area has hidden complexities then you might need to analyse these and aim for a more beneficial/precise target. Alternatively you may be targeting the wrong part of the green from there (to any pin) - in which case the answer to your question may be that caution isn't only from the tee or for long approaches!
The final issue is to scary to contemplate - needing more effective practice from you favorite yardages...

 

[AmandaJR]

Maybe it's a case that you're playing such holes how you think they should be played rather than playing them to suit your game?

The first hole you mention sounds like you need to be working on accuracy with a gap wedge! The other then yes - some might lay up to the bunker but if it's an easy clear then it's driver all day.

Try two rounds of 18 holes where you play one VERY cautiously and one where you play VERY aggressively and see what the scores are?

 

[woody69]

Surely good course management is finding the right balance of when to hold back and when to go for it. If you are regularly bogeying or worse a hole because of your passive approach, then I'd suggest that is equally as bad course management when you try to execute the 1 in 10 shot to get on the green out the rough, through and over the trees from 180 yards etc.

 

[bluewolf]

For the 2 situations outlined above, the first is nothing to do with Course Management, more to do with how you play from 120 yards and in. The second is apparently not knowing how far you can hit your Driver.

Course management is knowing when to be aggressive, and when to be cautious. If the bunker needed a "better than average" drive to carry, then you'd have a decision to make. For the first situation, Course management would only seem relevant to the approach. The Pin position decides the aggressive/cautious shot..

 

[garyinderry]

Why not have have a round of super aggressive golf.

See what that brings.

 

[Slicer30]

Playing cautious would get me round in handicap or thereabouts, being more aggressive produces more pars but also more blobs!

Best score of the year has come with the cautious approach so will stick to that for the next month(try to anyway)

 

[SwingsitlikeHogan]

Further thoughts on this and I realise that we have a hole on which I can be too cautious.

Short dog-leg right par 4 with bunkers on the inside of the dog-leg and overhanging tree on left. Play a 5i from tee into the dog-leg and you will be left with a lob wedge - simple. But you risk a push that will put you in the bunkers or pull and you are under the tree with no pitch shot. So play a 7i off the tee - takes the tree and bunkers out of play and you have a wedge or 9i max to the green. But anywhere right of centre of fairway and your line to the green is blocked by a stance of very high trees inside the dog-leg and your situation is worse than if you were under the tree or in a bunker.

So what appears to be a simple risk reduction strategy to play short with the 7i actually increases risk of a bogey and indeed makes a double bogey quite likely.

The problem is the fear of what might happen - when there is in fact not a lot to be fearful of.

 

[walliams8]

G - the real question must be " why do you bogey the hole from 100 yds...?"

If the answer is that the green is set up so that play from the natural landing area has hidden complexities then you might need to analyse these and aim for a more beneficial/precise target. Alternatively you may be targeting the wrong part of the green from there (to any pin) - in which case the answer to your question may be that caution isn't only from the tee or for long approaches!
The final issue is to scary to contemplate - needing more effective practice from you favorite yardages...

This

 

[Foxholer]

...
As per my original question. Within reason, can you be too cautious when making your choice of shot and how you manage your way around the course?

Yes!

But it's up to you to find out where being too cautious actually is!

Playing those holes more aggressively in medals might be a good idea - and the fact that you have a card in your pocket might also mean it' a bad until you get confidence in playing them more aggressively!

Only you can really work that out - but don't get obsessed about otherwise the whole game is likely to fall apart with analysis paralysis!!!

 

[NWJocko]

In general yes you can be too cautious, I was last year (first year at new place)

However, course management is about playing to your strengths as much as anything else, if you're struggling from 120 yards with a wedge I'd improve that really. Otherwise make sure you lay further back!!

I struggled with pitching but has improved a lot this year, main improvement in my game that's taken 2 shots off my handicap.

Gives you more options for "course management" aswell, I.e laying up on oar 5's confident that par will be the worst you'll score etc

If you can comfortably carry the bunkers with an average drive then that's not really a question, if it was 2/3 out of 10 you could carry them then it becomes more a course management question imo

 

[Curls]

The problem is that you can strategise how you should play a hole, and then on the day muck that up too! We are handicap golfers, sure an iron off a tee followed by approach and two putts sounds doable but we can make a mess of that at any point as well, 3 putt, pulled approach, pushed tee shot, there's any number of ways we can mess up the "safe play". So is taking driver always the answer?! Nope. But you have to play the strategy that on that day, given how you are playing, given the wind and course conditions, best suits. What that is can't always be decided in your armchair. The wind oftens gets up at our s and we have to have at least two ways of playing some holes, not just clubbing for wind, but the strategy that works given the course, and the way youre playing.

 

[Snelly]

Can I green with the driver? .

What is this supposed to mean? Are you American or is your hobby butchering the Queens English?



Back to the OP, yes you can be too cautious. If you can carry trouble off the tee, be it bunker, corner or rough then do it unless a good shot disadvantages you. No point being a 5 iron away if you can be a 9 iron away with relative ease.

Back yourself to hit a good shot. Otherwise you are just a big girls blouse.

 

[Curls]

What is this supposed to mean? Are you American or is your hobby butchering the Queens English?



Back to the OP, yes you can be too cautious. If you can carry trouble off the tee, be it bunker, corner or rough then do it unless a good shot disadvantages you. No point being a 5 iron away if you can be a 9 iron away with relative ease.

Back yourself to hit a good shot. Otherwise you are just a big girls blouse.

Hey man, quit blousing, the kids just cautionizing.

MASH POTATOE

 

[Spear-Chucker]

Yes, OP.

Play what you are confident to hit but don't be afraid to take a small risk for a decent gain. It's all risk and reward and understanding where to force things a little and have a little fun. This from one of the most boring golfers ever as well...

Good point raised by someone else about understanding why a relatively easy hole was causing problems

 

[garyinderry]

I would say the fact you play everything with a big draw could be the reason you are missing greens from 100yards.

I have over active hands and can miss from 100 as easily as 150.


Both of us need to work on hitting it straighter.

 

[Deleted member 1147]

Yes, you can be too cautious.

I recently played a knock-out match against the 8 time Derbyshire amateur champion. Having lost on the 16th and we played the last 2 holes and chatted about the game we'd just played.
He said that in his opinion I was too negative and should attack more than I do.
Having been a +4 handicapper in his youth, and off scratch now, he knows what he's talking about (in terms of getting the ball around the course properly) and I intend to take on board what he said.