How Long?

[kid2]

Ok im looking for some off the wall responses here i know but.....

How long does a hole have to be before you pull the driver?
Outside of danger and other elements outside your control......

We have a few shortish par 4's at our place...Our 1st being 1 at only 320 mtrs.....

If you drive the ball well your 2nd would be a flick of a wedge...
There is OOB down the right(trouble for anyone that cuts a ball....High grass and trees down the left....A fairway that doglegs slightly left to right but is only 30 yards wide between the rough and a deep swale at exactly 150 mtrs from the middle of the green....

There are probably lots of ways to play this...

Im just wondering how many people pull driver on all the holes they can regardless of the danger.

 

[time]

It depends a lot on my second shot.

1. I hit my driver 270 and my 4 iron about 210.
2. My 8 iron accuracy is decent from 150 yards.
3. Therefor if the hole is ~360 (210+150) with danger, then a 4 iron will suffice.

I think most people could hit 320 in two irons, it's just deciding whether long-term you benefit from hitting a longer second shot.

My first hole is 350 yards uphill, and I like the thought of a safe 4 iron instead of slicing one into the bush haha.

 

[G1BB0]

I have dropped driver altogether at the mo. As and when I do carry it then if its fairly open I will use every time off the tee on par 4's. if I need a bit more accuracy then I will go with 4 wood or even hybrid (the 3 wood is dropped for driver)

 

[fundy]

Im one of those who only hits driver when I really feel I have to currently, hit a lot of irons and 3 woods off tees.

Our first is approx 500yds and I very very rarely hit driver there and expect to get up in 2 most times, there again our 3rd is only 420 and I usually hit driver there. Yardage is only part of it as some holes play much longer than their yardage and some much shorter. Another good example is our 6th which plays 420ish off the whites but I rarely hit more than 3 iron off the tee and then a mid iron in.

 

[DaveM]

I will pull the driver out. Every time I can, but only as its the most consistent club in the bag for me. Ok don't hit along way 220 yards or so. But very rarely miss the fairway. If I do its only just rolled into the second cut. every time I get it out. Confident its going straight down the middle. Which is a lot more than I can say for the rest of the clubs in the bag.

 

[Mark_G]

I have started to look a lot more at how I approach holes, deciding when to be cautious and when to play normally. Like Gibbo I am thinking more if I actually need the driver on some holes which I had automatically pulled the driver out on. I hit my rescue club as far as my driver with more accuracy so I would probably leave the driver in the bag for your hole.

 

[HomerJSimpson]

I try to play each hole on its merits especially a course I've not played before of often. As for my own course, a lot of the holes require a drive to be in the best position and 3 wood can actually put you in harder places. I don't look at length of hole to make the decision

 

[Deleted Member 1156]

It's not the distance that determines which club I use, it's how the hole plays. Factors like wind, gradient and where the danger is determine which club I hit. My 3 wood is one of my most consistent clubs so if I can get to the green comfortably in 2 with a 3 wood off the tee then that is how I will usually play the hole.

The average club player can probably save more shots through good course management than bashing balls at the range.

 

[Imurg]

Some of our longer par 4's are unreachable without a driver - or a very good 3 wood followed by an equally good 5 wood - but our shorter holes don't require a "long" shot.
The 6th and the 14th - both about 320-340. Why try and blast a driver 260 to leave a half-wedge when I can hit a hybrid or 4 iron and leave a full wedge instead...much more controlable (for me anyway..)

You also have to take into account how far people hit their driver..
If you've only got 220 with the big dog then on a 360 yard hole it makes sense to use it....
My mate CVG uses driver on every hole bar 2 (par 3's excepted).

 

[Ian_S]

Don't care much how long it is. I pull out the driver when it's a wide fairway.

If there's a good chance I'm not going to end up in knee-deep stuff, then I'll probably pull out the big dog.

If it's tight, the iron comes out.

 

[kid2]

Some of our longer par 4's are unreachable without a driver - or a very good 3 wood followed by an equally good 5 wood - but our shorter holes don't require a "long" shot.
The 6th and the 14th - both about 320-340. Why try and blast a driver 260 to leave a half-wedge when I can hit a hybrid or 4 iron and leave a full wedge instead...much more controlable (for me anyway..)

You also have to take into account how far people hit their driver..
If you've only got 220 with the big dog then on a 360 yard hole it makes sense to use it....
My mate CVG uses driver on every hole bar 2 (par 3's excepted).

A good drive for me Murg would carry maybe about 240mtrs give or take.....
I carry the 3 wood about 205mtrs and my 20 degree Hybrid about 180-185....Thats in still conditions....

Our longest Par 4 is 410 mtrs all the rest ranging from 320 being the shortest up to that.....

What would you recommend playing on those given the distances i hit my woods above.

 

[duncan mackie]

A good drive for me Murg would carry maybe about 240mtrs give or take.....
I carry the 3 wood about 205mtrs and my 20 degree Hybrid about 180-185....Thats in still conditions....

Our longest Par 4 is 410 mtrs all the rest ranging from 320 being the shortest up to that.....

What would you recommend playing on those given the distances i hit my woods above.

sorry but you have this completely the wrong way round

you don't take a driver because you need the distance to get up to the hole in 2 shots - you take it because it's the most appropriate club given the target landing area and, as Homer has said, because it puts you in the right position for your next shot.

this will normally mean different clubs for different players on the same hole, unless there is a fairway 200 yds wide and no hazards anywhere on the hole......

it's not about length it's about taking hazards out of play by either playing short or over them, or optimum lines on doglegs etc

 

[SocketRocket]

sorry but you have this completely the wrong way round

you don't take a driver because you need the distance to get up to the hole in 2 shots - you take it because it's the most appropriate club given the target landing area and, as Homer has said, because it puts you in the right position for your next shot.

this will normally mean different clubs for different players on the same hole, unless there is a fairway 200 yds wide and no hazards anywhere on the hole......

it's not about length it's about taking hazards out of play by either playing short or over them, or optimum lines on doglegs etc

Good post.

It's a good idea to plan from the green backwards and select clubs that will get you in the best positions.

 

[Evesdad]

My driver comes out in our first and doesn't come out again until the sixth. The second is a long dogleg par 4 which I play prob over conservatively with hybrid, pw, 52 then hopefully putter. There is also a ditch 80 yards short of the green. The 4th is another dog leg par 5 which I play hybrid, hybrid, 7i. 5th is par 4 again hybrid, 9i. It all depends what is infront of you not just the length.

 

[RGDave]

I don't do off the wall.

I'll be out with the driver on every par 4 or 5 unless there's a good reason not too.

Reasons include.

Running out of fairway (even I have to think about this on dog-legs).

Trees too high for a non-shaped shot.

Only draws will do.

Instant death for going more than 10 yards right.

- - - -

It's an easy life when you only hit it 230....and straight.....

 

[Region3]

sorry but you have this completely the wrong way round

you don't take a driver because you need the distance to get up to the hole in 2 shots - you take it because it's the most appropriate club given the target landing area and, as Homer has said, because it puts you in the right position for your next shot.

this will normally mean different clubs for different players on the same hole, unless there is a fairway 200 yds wide and no hazards anywhere on the hole......

it's not about length it's about taking hazards out of play by either playing short or over them, or optimum lines on doglegs etc

This is me too. I don't feel that NOT taking driver gives me any better chance of hitting the ball straight, so it's all about how far I want to the ball to go.

If danger doesn't dictate being short I will get as close as I can to every green. I've never been one for leaving a certain distance or not wanting a half shot.

 

[One Planer]

My local track is stupidly tight, but then It's only a small course.

I only "need" to take driver on 4 holes, as the rest of the time, even on the middle length, ar 4's I'm better served with an iron off the tee, just to keep it in the fairway.

Even on the 4 holes I "need" to take driver I'll often take a long iron to keep it on the short stuff and play a longer approach with my second.

I could take driver on more holes for sure, but, like I said, I'm better served taking an iron/fairway wood as there is generally something stopping me pulling the driver (OOB, Hazard etc)

 

[Whee]

Like most Desert golf courses, ours is quite open, ie; no tight tee shots through an alleyway of trees.

I've used driver on 14 of our 18 holes in a round before, the other 3 being par 3's that play anything from 120-190 yards.

Personally i'm more confident of going for the aggressive line on the par 4's with the driver, than trying to play safe and probably still nobbing it...