Par 3 problems

[louise_a]

these are killing my scores at the moment, last week 1 under handicap in medal after 17, triple bogey 6 on the last, today's medal on the back nine

3 par 4s, parred them all
3 par 5s, 2 pars and a bogey
3 par 3s 2 double bogeys and a triple bogey.

Is it a mental thing? I don't know but its doing my head in at the moment.

If anyone has any suggestions I would be more than happy to hear them.

 

[User101]

You are not alone, if most people parred the par 3s on their course they will likely have a good score.

In May I had 4 qualifiers, I was 12 over for those 4 rounds, I was 9 over for the par threes on these rounds.

 

[Imurg]

If it is a mental thing, try thinking of them as a par 4 but you've already hit a decent drive....
I think a lot of people go pin hunting on par 3s....middle of the green, hell - anywhere on it - and 2 putts isn't a bad score on any par 3
Almost ignore the flag. Aim for the green.

 

[Slab]

Agree with replies so far

They definitively are the key to a solid score, for my handicap level anyway (for the pros its all about shooting well under on the par 5's but many pros hover around par on the 3's over the 4 days)

For me 6 on a par 5 is usually fine (so no panic even if its 4 to the green) but I feel an added pressure on the tee for par 3's when I really shouldn't because two to the green would be ok if I had to accept that. However many par 3's aren't designed in such a way as to have a safe '2 to the green' option (any decent ones anyway) so I feel it needs to get on in one

If I had a 2nd or 3rd shot from say 150m out on longer holes how many times would I get it on the green, the answer's, not often enough but for the most part its designed to have folk miss the green facing a bit of bother but not fatal
Par 3 at 150m and suddenly I expect to get on the green every time and the trouble is often much worse on short holes and closer to the green. Might not be the same for everyone but I think 3's are the toughest holes on the course (& it seems that way for the pros too)

But on the good days I clear my head and relax enough to swing freely and the results speak for themselves

Pros consider par 5's as their best chance of a good score yet as AM's I'm sure I'm not alone in mistakenly thinking its the 3's and that's part of the problem, we should be playing for 3 or 4 instead of mentally chasing 2-3 resulting in 5-6

 

[bobmac]

The trouble at most par 3s is at the front
Try and hit the back of the green, so hit at least one club more, maybe two.

 

[User101]

Another thing about par 3s is, the ain't any shorter than they were 3 months ago, unlike the 4s and 5s just now.

 

[SGC001]

Any chance it could be conditions at the moment.
Its been a while since i played your place but i'm sure 2 or 3 par 3s sloped down from back to front and required carries to get there making running in awkward and missing long in firm conditions more likely.
It could be you're trying to get too cute and get it too close with present conditions (scrap this idea if your greens are taking full approach shots).

 

[Marshy77]

I have problems too, hardly ever hit the green with my tee shot. The only way I would hit the green is if the Par 3 is around 150-170 yards, tee the ball slightly higher, use my G10 19" and feel like I'm hitting it with a 3/4 swing and just aim to get it anywhere on the green.

 

[louise_a]

Some very good comments thanks, in honesty I am not greedy on par 3s anywhere around the green is ok but as I don't get shots on any of them maybe I try a bit too hard.

 

[Robster59]

Par 3's are designed to be tricky so generally you get penalised more around the green for a miss as well. Or at least you do at ours on the two short ones.
I think the comment about playing it as your approach shot from a Par 4 or Par 5 is a good mental approach. Of course it also depends on the length of the hole. Our Par 3's are 148, 202, 214 & 123 yards (and believe me if you walk away with a bogey on the 214 you're happy with it).

 

[jim8flog]

Expectations too high?

Where I play the par 3s are some of the hardest holes on the course they are ranked SI 3,5,7 and 13 in difficulty ( do not be fooled by your own SIs if they are set for match play).

Miss the green on the shortest at just 130 and you are more likely to score a double than a single because of the difficulty.

Without seeing the holes the first thing is to set your aim at finding the middle of the green and ignoring flags. As others have said if the trouble is all at the front of the green revise that to middle to back of the green.

 

[hors limite]

For what it's worth, I find that too many par 3s are longer than they should be.For many average golfers something heading towards 200 yards has them reaching for the big stick. Maybe it's a trick of selective memory but when I set out to play golf many years ago, there seemed to be many more shortish 3s with small greens and trouble if you didn't hit them.

 

[Norrin Radd]

my course has six [6] yeah six short holes,and they are not easy holes at all they measure 222.164,179,177,249 and 187. if you were to play to par on them you will have had one hell of a round of golf.none of them would be classed as easy holes and the length of them makes hitting the green in one very difficult,especially the 200 plus ones. im more than happy to play them in four or five over and know that i have done well to do so.par threes are tricky and not always as straight forward as we think.

 

[Orikoru]

What are you doing wrong? Just poor irons off the tee?

Par 3s are normally the best holes for me. My shorter irons are usually more consistent than anything else. It's the long par 4s that I make a mess off.

 

[jamielaing]

I tend to try and play to 4s in general however this is because I hate par 3s. Problem being, if I am happy with a 4 on each of them I've used 4 shots of my handicap on 4 holes. Having 1/2 shots left leaves me needing a great round on the rest of the course and probably a good few birdies.

For me it's mental. They are tough if you miss but my mind is definitely causing me problems.

 

[ademac]

Could it be a course management issue?

When I play the par 3's at my local I always aim at the portion of green that is closest to the safest place to miss, I find it better than going for the middle of the green.
For instance. There is a 208yd to centre of green, roughly185front, 220 back of green hole where I play.
I know the safest place to miss is short right, anything long or left and you will be reloading on the tee or have to face a very tough bunker shot into a green that slopes away from you.
So I take a 185yd club for that day and aim at the right side of the green to avoid most of the trouble and rely on my chipping and putting to make a good score. I cant remember the last time I had worse than a bogey on the hole.
I rarely go after a flag unless I am having a very strong round.

 

[Dan2501]

I had an interesting round last weekend on the par 3's - played 3 of them awfully. First one I pulled my tee shot slightly left - 10 yards from the green at most, hit the red tee marker on the 5th tee and it shot it 40 yards over a small set of trees leaving me an impossible chip - made 5. Then on the 6th I hit it in the bunker short right - took me two to get out (rubbish first bunker shot) - made 6. 4th I went long left into another bunker but it was lying where I couldn't get a stance, left it in, shot it across, made 5.

I shot 14 over. +7 for the first three par 3's, +7 for the other 15 holes including a birdie and an eagle. Frustrating to say the least.