Playing safe and game plans.

JT77

JT77

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Is it worth it?
Do u take a 3/4i off the tee to play safe? What if your safe shot fails and you hit a bad one into trees or water?
Are you better just banging driver down there and if it goes bad sure your 100 further than if you hit an iron.

The reason I ask is I don't have a plan I play what feels right at the time. On sat I was +6 on 18 tee so took 3i to play safe, it's a par 5 so thought play safe on in three and walk in happy. Anyway I shoved it right into trees and took 11. My prov was hit with driver and left me 216 to pin. Should I just have banged driver and took consequences :)
 
Safe needs to be safe, so take the appropriate club for that. If a 3 iron off the tee isn't your safe shot, why take it.
I play safe from a lot of tee's to give myself the best chance of scoring a birdie. (closer does not always mean higher % of birdie chances)
I think your example is different. You had the extra pressure of being below handicap and they may well have changed your game plan for the hole. What would your normal play be? Any real dangers for hitting that shot?
 
There is a difference between a bad shot and a bad strategy. A bad shot is a bad shot regardless and will likely spoil your chances of making par. A bad strategy is one which doesn't take into account the bad shot, should it happen. If you normally hit a bad shot under pressure anyway, then you need to consider which option will likely have the least collateral damage. Sometimes - yes, the driver is the best option. Your mistake was to calculate getting on in 3 shots from the tee... what you should've done was to calculate getting on in three shots backwards from the green. Three 8-irons would likely be just as safe if this was your strategy for par.
 
I hit my three iron well, it's usually good off the tee
Our 18 is a 550 par 5 I hit a good ball but three 8 irons isn't making it I'm afraid.
Patrick I thought about hybrid but my 3i is usually safer off the tee.
If I hit wayward with my driver still into trees say, I could pitch out and be 70 yards farther up than if I miss with a 3i. So is it worth just hitting driver?

Excluding my mess is there a call for playing less safe golf? Do handicap golfers need a strategy or are we just being sold the idea?
Does anyone actually use a game plan and if so does it genuinely help and does it change through your round?
 
Last edited:
JT77 said:
I hit my three iron well, it's usually good off the tee
Our 18 is a 550 par 5 I hit a good ball but three 8 irons isn't making it I'm afraid.
Patrick I thought about hybrid but my 3i is usually safer off the tee.

Excluding my mess is there a call for playing less safe golf? Do handicap golfers need a strategy or are we just being sold the idea?
Does anyone actually use a game plan and if so does it genuinely help and does it change through your round?
Click to expand...

I have a go to club if in doubt, but if your 3 iron is that, its just a bad shot. though i would go with driver at 550 myself.
 
I usually do Patrick but was a medal and I was protecting thinking par was a good shout. 3i would have left me between 300-350 depending on run with wind behind and firm fairways. So I figured 3i4i 8/9/pw two putts and ta very much :)
 
The 8th on our course is a stroke index one mutha of a hole, when i play with the lads i take a driver, when i play a comp off the whites i play it as a par five. Five iron seven iron wedge two putts, three points ta, take it and move on.
 
This season my deliberate attitude has been to be more aggressive over shot selection and it's paid off. Nothing crazy but if I know I can make a shot then I go for it. Last weeks club champs and tee shot a bit too far on our 13th second time around - so a huge flipping tree just in my way. I could have laid up or taken the chance of taking the green on if I could just miss the tree (too close to go up and over). Kept thinking a blow up hole could cost me BUT my game-plan is to go for shots. Went for it and made it - 3 putted but that was the story of my rounds!
 
Billythefish said:
The 8th on our course is a stroke index one mutha of a hole, when i play with the lads i take a driver, when i play a comp off the whites i play it as a par five. Five iron seven iron wedge two putts, three points ta, take it and move on.
Click to expand...


22 hcp and can safely play a 'mutha' par five with mid irons and wedge - surely should be single figures?
 
ICC at the weekend, on the range i wasnt to happy with how i was hitting the driver, 3w was a bit strong on the draw (nothing some pratice cant fix) so i took 5 iron of the tee everytime, scored well, if i hit one in the trees then it was only 200 yards of the tee and not far in, if i hit driver it would have been further in, so better the 5 iron, for me anyway, everyone is different
 
A lot of this depends on how you drive the ball imho, if youre a good driver of the ball, pull your driver and hit your normal shot. If like me for the last few years youve driven the ball at best inconsistently and at worst horrifically then you have to be more aware of the options available to you, which means by default there are times where I revert to iron off the tee, can be a 3 iron, on one of our short par 4s can be as little as 8 iron. Last mth when +2 gross thru 17 I played our 535yd par 5 last as 5 iron, 7 iron wedge. Gave myself a 10 footer for birdie too lol, just didnt feel confident hitting driving over the trees on the dog leg
 
At the moment, taking the driver can lead to more trouble even though you're further down the hole.
Our 18th is 430 yards and today was slightly downwind.
I played 2 balls - first with the driver, then with the 4 iron.
Pushed the driver a touch and then it kicked and nearly made the thick rough.
Pulled a 6 iron left of the green, chipped on and 2 putted
The 4 iron was hit sweetly and rolled out to well over 220 yards, middle of the fairway.
GPS told me I had 205 to the middle of the green - slapped the 6 again and the ball finished short and right.
Pitch on and sink the 6 footer for par...

Might be using the 4 iron next time!

The real rough is easily reachable with a poorish drive, it needs a horrific shot with the 4 iron to reach it.
If I was driving well I'd still use the driver but if I wasn't then a 4 iron will do the job.
 
Safe play or smart play , I played Dudsbury on friday in a comp , its 6904 yards course with lots of water and bunkers in play , the 5th hole is a par 4 at 454 yards slight dog leg left , wide fairway with 2 deep bunkers at 230 on left and about 235 on right , behind the bunkers the fairway runs a ditch at and angle and its 250 at one point and 260 at other , take your driver and you must avoid the bunkers as it cost you a shot maybe 2 , if you carry it or hit between the bunkers you then have a chance to run into the ditch unless you carry that as well , so i elected to play safe and hit 5 wood of the tee leaving just short of the bunkers and 225 to the green open at the front , that club took the bunkers and water out of play and i hit a 2 rescue pin high and made my 4 net 3 , that to me is safe and smart play , if you have a good score and a wide fairway and you hit a short club to protect your score thats not safe play , well 3 iron is not a easy club to hit , better off with a rescue club or even a 5 iron , everytime you play and you have a tight tee shot or tee shot you dont like you must have a go too club , mine is a 5 wood as i know what i can do with it and i am confident about hitting it ................................EYG
 
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