How good do you have to be?

[igrowgrass]

People on this website obviously talk alot about strategy and what is the best way to play a hole to achieve the lowest possible score.  It seems most people on this site are better players below 8 handicap.  My question is at what point based on your handicap does strategy not matter because you should just worry about hitting fairways and greens, not what side of the fairway to play from?  
Does a 15 handicapper really need to worry about the strategy of a hole when he/she really doesn't have an idea as to where the ball is going to go once it leaves the clubface?
I'm not trying to imply that those people can't enjoy architecture, but do they really need to think about it when they are playing golf?

[Jason McNamara]

Sean -

Perhaps there's a greater "wow!" factor when the 15-hcp player puts together a couple shots exactly as intended?  Or the 20-/25-hcp golfer... I don't know if you can nail down a specific hcp number.

I would think the payoff could be even bigger for the higher-hcp golfer who appreciates architecture.

(Of course it depends somewhat on what facets of the game make that person a 15. ...)

[Patrick_Mucci]

Sean,

If they want to become better golfers, every golfer has to worry about or consider strategy.

It knows NO handicap limitation.

And, doesn't great architecture provide this challenge for all golfers ?

[C. Squier]

Golf is less about where to hit it and more about where NOT to hit it.  

That said, there are few golfers who hit a wild hook on one shot and then a wild slice on the next....and keep that pattern up all 18.  So it is very possible for a golfer to "guess" what is coming next.  Never aim at something where the dreaded straight ball will get you in trouble and try to avoid short siding yourself.  Those 2 bits of advice can be employed by any hdcp to help scores drop.  The difficult part for anyone is to stay focused throughout the round to remember those concepts.  Its way too easy to just rear back and swat.

CPS

[Dan Herrmann]

My wife Laura is about a 20 and loves golf course architecture (of course, she doesn't have much of a choice).  It's great watching her game because the ground plays a much bigger factor than it does for a better player.  Things like speed slots play a much larger factor in her game.

I've been able to "see" more architecuture by watching her play and comparing it to my game (10-ish).   She needs to roll the ball up to the green much more than I do, for example.

[Richard Boult]

as someone who only recently started playing, I've been everything from a 16 to a 4 in the past 2 years.  I've found that strategy and course management were just as important at 16 as 4. The biggest difference is at 4 I can be more aggressive and offensive, where at 16 I was (or should have been) more defensive - as someone else mentioned, it's more about where NOT to hit it.  With that in mind, I enjoy courses that provide ample fairways where most golfers can keep it in play, but where a better golfer can take the more aggressive line, which might be bordered by hazards. There's still a "best" way to play the hole, but what's best for a 16 might be different than what's best for a 4.

[Richard Boult]

after playing a lot of rounds w/ higher handicappers who play weekly/regularly, I've found that most of them strike the ball pretty well and even have great short games. They just don't keep their focus for an entire 18 holes and record a few too many blow-up holes.  I see a LOT of 12-16 handicappers who look like they could be single digit handicappers if they could play just a little more frequently.  I find these golfers play a course with the same strategy I do, and are just as aggressive as I am.  They just hit a really bad shot every so often that cost them a double bogie or more.