SHOTS ELECTION AND COURSE MANAGEMENT: BECOMING A THINKING PLAYER

SHOTS ELECTION AND COURSE MANAGEMENT:  BECOMING A THINKING PLAYER

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Effective course management is essential if you are to use your skills to shoot low numbers on the links.  In this step you will learn how to plan the best strategy to play each hole.  When combined with the skills you developed in Steps 3 through 10, you will have the best chance to become a great golfer.  Good course management allows you to apply your skills to go from the tee to the green in the fewest number of strokes, no matter what the situation-narrow fairways, dog-legs, deep traps, water hazards, and so forth.  This step helps you develop your game strategy by presenting a three-step approach (AIP: assess, identify, and plot) to course management.
 
Why Is Course Management Important?
Can you imagine a coach preparing for a game without a game plan?  Just as a coach matches players’ strengths against the weaknesses of the other team, you must match up your skills with the golf course’s characteristics. Your ability to analyze the strengths and weaknesses of a hole, along with the knowledge of your current golf ability, helps you develop a strategy for course management by carefully analyzing each hole and selecting your best route to the green.  Through course management, you match your strengths as a player against the weaknesses of each hole you play.  This is “percentage golf” and is important in becoming a consistent player because it puts you in control of your game.
 
How to Select Shots and Manage the Course
Course management is the real challenge in golf.  Many golfers are good practice players because there are no consequences.  The conditions in practice remain the same, and it is easy not to have to make many decisions.  To become a good player, though, you must learn to think yourself around the course.  Use the AIP course-management strategy:  assess your current strengths and weakness as a player, identify the strengths and weaknesses of the specific golf hole you are about to play, and plan the best strategy by plotting a route to the green, given these considerations.
The first step in course management is to assess your own strengths and weaknesses as a player.  When you practice and play, use the drills that were presented with each step to help you in this assessment.  How close do you come to the Success Goals?  When you use the charts to record your ball flights, do you have any biases in your shots?  For example, do you tend to hit more balls to the right or left of your target with your irons or woods?  Do you tend to hit more chip shots long, short, or on target?  Step 12: The 19th Hole, provides a systematic way to develop an awareness of your strengths and weaknesses, and plan for progress.
The second step in effective course management is to identify the strengths and weaknesses of each hole.  The tough things about a hole are referred to as the hole’s strengths.  Strengths include such things as the hazards (water and sand), out-of-bounds areas, small fairways and greens, dog-legs, and high roughs.  Most holes have specific strengths that were designed by the golf course architect to give the golfer trough.  On the other hand, there are weaknesses in most holes, which should tell you where to aim.  For example, find the widest part of the fairway, aim away from the hazards, look for an opening to the green where there are no traps, find the largest part of the green to aim at rather than always aiming at the flag (see Figure 11.1).
   The identification of a hole’s strengths and weaknesses can often take place from the tee.  Carefully look at the entire hole.  Where are the weaknesses of the hole?  Where are the strengths?  Are there any distinguishable yardage markers?  For some holes, you may not be able to see the entire hole from the tee.  Often the scorecard has a printed layout of the course with yardage marked, or one of your playing partners may be familiar with the course. 
   The third step is to compare your strengths to the weaknesses of the hole and plot a path or route to the green.  For example, standing on the tee, look first at both the strengths and weaknesses of the hole.  If you see a sand trap on the right side, you probably want to select a landing area on the left side of the fairway.  By determining a good strategy, you avoid the trouble built into the course and take advantage of the good landing areas.  This strategy will then dictate the clubs you choose to hit (see Figure 11.2).
(Figure 11.1  Potential trouble areas determine the strengths of a hole, ranging from few trouble areas to many trouble areas.)
 
COURSE MANAGEMENT:  ASSESS, IDENTIFY, AND PLOT
 
Assess Your Strengths
1. Control of ball direction           
2. Ball trajectory per club           
3. Distance hit per club          
4. Ball curvature tendencies (slice and hook)          
5. Psychological characteristics and mental control            
6. Tension control            
7. Concentration            
 
Identify Hole’s Strengths and Weaknesses
1. Hazards (water/sand)           
2. Out-of-bounds          
3. Tight fairway          
4. Small green          
5. Narrow opening to green            
6. High rough          
7. Trees and shrubs            
 
Plot a Route
1. Locate safe landing areas, as opposed to hazards or other trouble          
2. Consider width of fairway (tight or open)           
3. Consider location and height of rough          
4. Find opening to green (free of hazards)          
5. Select appropriate clubs
  a. Lie of ball    
  b. Trajectory of desired shot     
  c. Distance ball must travel     
 
   Your club selection is based on the position or lie of the ball, the trajectory of the shot, and the desired distance to your target or landing area.  Each of these aspects is important to the golfer, and are sometimes referred to as the LTD process:  the lie of the ball, the needed trajectory, and the desired distance.  The lie of the ball is determined by its position in the sand, grass, divot, or on a bare spot.  For example, is the ball on the top of the grass or sand or resting in a divot, buried in the sand, or on a hill?  The lie can also be influenced by the height or texture of the grass.
   Ideal shot trajectory is a matter of how high or low you wish to hit the shot.  Is the normal trajectory for a particular club adequate?  Are there trees or shrubs to go over?  Do you need to stop the ball quickly?
   The distance is determined by how far you wish to hit this shot and the next shot.  It is important to remember that it is not always necessary to hit the ball as far as you possibly can.  Sometimes you wish to hit a controlled, shorter distance in order to be in a good position to hit your next shot.  For example, if there is a water hazard in from of the green and you are 190 yards away, you may wish to hit short of the water and then h it your next shot onto the green.
   Your club selection ultimately must depend on all three elements of LTD-lie, trajectory, and distance.  For example, a wood is not recommended from high grass, yet the distance might naturally call for that club.  In such a case, an iron might become the preferred club because of the grassy conditions.
 
COURSE MANAGEMENT SUCCESS STOPPERS
Many of the problems in course management come from not taking the time to make good decisions.  Outstanding golfers allow themselves time to analyze the situation and match each hole’s demands with their skills.  They use the AIP strategy of assessing, identifying, and plotting.
 
 
ERROR
CORRECTION

1. Ball generally lands short of green when you use 4-iron.
1. Take “one more club” than you think; that is, if you believe you should hit with a 4-iron, choose a 5-wood or 3-iron.

2. Tee shots usually miss fairway.
2. Tee off with a 5-wood or long iron.

3. When you try to hook ball around dog-leg, ball ends up in woods.
3. Play for middle of fairway, particularly if you tend to slice.

4. When there is a lateral water hazard on hole, ball always seems to land there.
4. Use tension control to feel level-3 grip.  Be sure to use routine and focus on the good landing areas rather than being distracted by water.

COURSE MANAGEMENT
DRILLS
 
1. Imaginary Hole Drill
It is important to be able to match your strengths and weaknesses with those of a golf hole.  To begin practicing this skill, imagine that you are on the first tec of a golf course, though you’re actually on a practice tee.  Determine the desired landing area in an open space.  Use the obstacles or flags in the field to represent “trouble” on the hole.  Select the safe landing areas and then actually hit a shot toward each one.
 
2. Alternate Strategies
   In your mind, create an imaginary hole.  Imagine that each obstacle in your practice field is a hazard or trouble spot on a real hole.  For example, pretend that the area between two flags or cones is really a lake.  Find a landing area away from that “water hazard.”
   Pretend you are three different golfers, with different characteristic strengths and weaknesses.  As each golfer, determine a different strategy for playing the hole.  Identify the safe landing area, and choose the club to be used for your first shot.  As golfer#1, assume that you are a long hitter with a good short game.  What landing area would you choose, and what club would you hit?  As golfer#2, assume that you hit short and tend to slice the ball.  Golfer#3 is really you.  Describe yourself and determine your preferred route.
 
3. Listing Strength and Weaknesses Drill
   Given the sample of three golf holes (see Figures a-c under the Success Goal), identify the strengths and weaknesses of the holes.   Write a brief description of each and mark their locations on the diagram.  Mark each hole’s strengths as s1, and s3; indicate the locations of the weaknesses as w1, w2, w3 (see example hole).
 
4. Managing an Entire Hole Drill
   When you plan a strategy for a given hole, you must match your strengths as a golfer with the weakness of the hole.  Identify your preferred landing area for each shot by marking and X over the spot.  Indicate the club you should use to hit the ball from that location by placing a symbol adjacent to the X (e.g., 4i = 4-iron; 3w = 3-wood; pw = pitching wedge).  See the example hole below.
 
5. Managing a Round Drill
   Ultimately, the task in golf is to plot your strategy for a round of golf.  Get the course diagram from a local or famous course layout, and determine how you would ideally play each hole, given your strengths and weaknesses.  Lay out the shots you would make on each hole.  Mark an X on the landing area and indicate the club you should hit from each location.  If possible, actually play the course and keep track of your planned strategy compared to what actually happens.
 
COURSE MANAGEMENT SUCCESS SUMMARY
   In determining your ability to match your skills(strengths) against the weaknesses of a golf hole, use the 3-step AIP approach; assess, identify, and plot your best path to the green for each hole.  When you actually play a round, plan the strategy for the entire round, and before teeing off on each hole, check it.  If your plan needs to be changed after any shot, do so- but always stop to replan and refocus before hitting the next shot.  Use the checklist in Figure 11.2 to be sure you are carefully planning.  Place a check on the line for each element you consider when you attempt to determine your strategy for each hole.