Medal/strokeplay strategy

[mikee247]

Ok chaps its my first medal round of the season on Saturday. It normally I would imagine this brings thoughts of dread to many and after a long winter of Stableford and "blobs" saving the pain of making a 7 or 8... Its time for me to think differently about course management and how I approach the course. My aim is to get back down to single figures this season and Im starting to find some form which I hope will contribute to that.
I play a v long course when in the summer lots of rough appears, fast greens and its a tough one to get under par on any time of the year. So... I'm interested in peoples individual approach to stroke play and what strategy's work for them and how they manage the course in this format both mentally and physically!!! Cheers for your comments in advance

 

[Val]

Percentage golf, if you can make the shot most of the time then go for it but if it comes off less than a thrid of the time then you weigh up where you are likely to miss to ensure no worse than bogey golf.

Thats the theory I suppose.

 

[jimbob.someroo]

Course strategy is one of the things I really need to improve this year if I want to get down seriously.

However, on the occasions I've played well in medals, I've forgotten about my score. I've not played deliberately aggressive or conservative. If I think I can make the shot, I'll take it on - if I don't, I'll lay up.

Try not to think about which holes you're 'supposed' to bogey/par and just try and play a normal game. Playing off 10, there's every chance that you can make birdies when you least expect. I had a bit of a mare on Saturday but birdied 17 & 18 to save going up 0.1.

 

[Hobbit]

Don't turn a mistake into a disaster. If you think you can just about squeeze the 5 wood 200yds out of a scruffy lie in the rough you'll probably turn a bogey into a double at least. Take the medicine and you'll be surprised how many more pars you'll make.

Don't foget the obligatory Mars bar and drink to keep energy levels up.

 

[SwingsitlikeHogan]

1. Play the shot you have the best chance of playing well
2. Play the shot that will give you the easiest next shot

Tommy Armour - 1954

 

[mikee247]

Good stuff here chaps :thup: Im sure this will help many over the next few months...

Im a confidence player so if I think I can make the shot Ill go for it. I can normallly hit my irons well and my putter is going good at the mo. I struggle from 100 in and thats when demons appear on my shoulder and try getting in my head....

 

[CMAC]

never follow a bad shot with another bad shot!

do this and banish 7's and 8's from the card

 

[49neil]

first medal of 2013 for me on saturday. top 50 make the cut into round 2 on sunday.... that's my target (and an associated handicap cut as well)

 

[mikee247]

Do you do that every month? Thats the club championship format for us with winners over net and gross scores but of course strokeplay for the two days. Hard two put to decent medal scores together consecuetivily

 

[HawkeyeMS]

Why would you play it any different to stableford? At the end of the day, you're trying to get it round in as few shots as possible no matter what the format.

Having said that, one thing to bare in mind is that SIs are irrelevent in medal so ignore them. You should be starting every hole aiming for Par but re-evaluate that target after every shot. If you have to play for bogey then so be it, don't try to make miracle pars that could turn into doubles or trebles because off of 10 they will kill you.

And finally, the thing that most people forget, if you do have a bad hole, remember that for handicap purposes it is rounded down to a Nett Double bogey so if you play the rest of the holes well, you can still buffer or even get cut.

 

[SwingsitlikeHogan]

Good stuff here chaps :thup: Im sure this will help many over the next few months...

Im a confidence player so if I think I can make the shot Ill go for it.

Which you will appreciate is rather counter to what Tommy Armour suggests. You get confidence by playing a shot well - whatever that shot is - hence his 1st maxim. Making a shot is not the same as playing a shot well.

 

[Foxholer]

Why would you play it any different to stableford? At the end of the day, you're trying to get it round in as few shots as possible no matter what the format.
.
.
And finally, the thing that most people forget, if you do have a bad hole, remember that for handicap purposes it is rounded down to a Nett Double bogey so if you play the rest of the holes well, you can still buffer or even get cut.

Indeed, the only difference between Strokeplay and Stableford is how aggressive the 'putt for a point' should be if it's tricky - there's no point being a wimp in Stableford.

Handicap is a Stableford metric. I know a low capper who had a (genuine) 13 on a hole in a Strokeplay comp and still got cut!

 

[mikee247]

fair comment although Im desperately trying not to think to much over the ball and before which has been helping! A couple of trigger thoughts at the most and then commit

 

[mikee247]

Indeed, the only difference between Strokeplay and Stableford is how aggressive the 'putt for a point' should be if it's tricky - there's no point being a wimp in Stableford.

Handicap is a Stableford metric. I know a low capper who had a (genuine) 13 on a hole in a Strokeplay comp and still got cut!

Well this is exactly what I need to work out.... I have religiously treated Stableford differently from medal..Im a lot more aggressive and attack pins and play riskier shots purely because If I make a birdie it could mean 3/4 points.. In medal I need to be more defensive as I have to protect a score and avoid doubles and trebles and keep the ball in play.
My best ever round to win a strokeplay board comp was 4 years ago when I shot 74 off the whites I played in a bubble all the way round and just stayed out of trouble the best I could and sunk some putts but it was different to how I play a stableford comp....mmmm food for thought

 

[Roops]

Bob Rotella sums this up nicely in one of his books. "Conservative Strategy and Cocky Swing", not the other way around. I think everyone would help themselves by trying to disassociate a Medal round from being any different to just going out and playing. As soon as you start to tag it with the "Important round coming up" label, the old grey matter starts going into overdrive and all sorts of weird stuff starts occurring. I know it's easier said than done, but just playing golf and parking all the what if's etc I think is the key, but is no easy matter.

 

[SwingsitlikeHogan]

Don't dwell on what has been; don't worry about what might be - just now do what can be done.

 

[mikee247]

Im coming to the conclusion once again that my mental approach to this game is key in order to get low. I have Dr Bob on the bedside table so he might get an updated thumbing over the next couple of days.

 

[EuanRoss]

I tend to treat every round as a stableford as its the key to getting handicap cut. I do have a habit of being too conservative on the last couple of holes at our place though. I have a pre-defined strategy for playing my home course that pretty much doesn't change. I always hit iron off the tee at 8 and quite often at 17 but usually only if I'm on a score.

I also find it useful to set little targets, like playing the next 3 holes in level par. I always say that for 11 and 12 at our place, 9 is a good total as they are 2 long par 4's. we also have a tough start so +2 after 2 is no disaster.

 

[HawkeyeMS]

Indeed, the only difference between Strokeplay and Stableford is how aggressive the 'putt for a point' should be if it's tricky - there's no point being a wimp in Stableford.

Handicap is a Stableford metric. I know a low capper who had a (genuine) 13 on a hole in a Strokeplay comp and still got cut!

Well this is exactly what I need to work out.... I have religiously treated Stableford differently from medal..Im a lot more aggressive and attack pins and play riskier shots purely because If I make a birdie it could mean 3/4 points.. In medal I need to be more defensive as I have to protect a score and avoid doubles and trebles and keep the ball in play.
My best ever round to win a strokeplay board comp was 4 years ago when I shot 74 off the whites I played in a bubble all the way round and just stayed out of trouble the best I could and sunk some putts but it was different to how I play a stableford comp....mmmm food for thought

I don't see the difference between s'ford and medal as far as your approach to the game goes. Take as few shots as you can and the points will look after themselves is my theory. I treat every round as if it were a medal and try to shoot the lowest score I can. I don't understand why you would take a risk in stableford that you wouldn't in medal and I don't understand the theory about being more aggressive with the "putt for a point" in stableford. I always try to hole every putt no matter what it is, why would you treat the same putt differently in a s'ford compared to a medal?

I dunno, maybe it's just me but surely it's better to have the same mentality on the course every time you go out? Changing the way you play because of the format just seems a bit daft to me.

 

[Bucket92]

And finally, the thing that most people forget, if you do have a bad hole, remember that for handicap purposes it is rounded down to a Nett Double bogey so if you play the rest of the holes well, you can still buffer or even get cut.

I completely forgot this! How stupid am I? Cheers for reminding me of this Hawkeye!