'I'm only trying to keep the ball in play'

[Matthew Petersen]

My response would be that a studied appreciation of golf course architecture makes you a better player and, in many cases, makes it easier to "keep it in play."

I was fascinated by GCA from the time I was very young, but never pursued it as a career. Nonetheless, I learned from playing in high school that my interest had benefits for my actual game. I was among the best players at my school but we were in a league with some of the best schools in the state--as a result I was consistently paired in tournaments with players who were, objectively, far better than me. They could hit it farther, spine it more, etc. And yet I consistently held my own playing against many of them. The reason was simple. As befits a teenage male, most of them pulled out driver on every hole and ripped it--only if they were very familiar with a course would strategy off the tee be an idea. It became almost a joke how I was 20 yards shorter with driver than some of them, and yet wouldn't even hit that club off many tees.

Ultimately, execution is paramount, of course. Knowing the best place to be does not guarantee that the player can get his ball there. But you have a better shot if you (a) do understand the best angles and (b) match that to the best of your own abilities.

[Richard Phinney]

Putting the ball in the fairway off the tee is surely the most important objective for any golfer on almost any golf course, whether its a 20 handicapper or Tiger Woods at Carnoustie.   When the wind blows significantly on a fast links course (75% of the time) and there is any kind of rough and gorse then it is the ONLY consideration, and often a thrillilng challenge, especially in any kind of competition.

There are still options of course - the club to use, the kind of shot to hit, the length to strive for - and these are similar for the best and not-so-best golfers.   And I think even the average punter is aware of them.   And I think these are more complex than deciding what side of the fairway to hit it on.

There's a simple dead straight, very exposed short par four along the sea on Lundin links (#3?) , which I played for the first time recently into the teeth of the prevaling gale, and the drive was intimidating and scintillating.  Hit it on the short grass and have a birdie chance even against the wind.   Let it get away from you and who knows what score.

I think sometimes modern architects, perhaps rightly, make a virtue of necessity, providing strategic options off the tee while giving duffers lots of room to hit the short grass.   But if you do that again and again I think you lose some of the good old fashioned terror of the game - the kind that Darwin often writes about.

[Gary Slatter]

I have been playing golf for 60 years and I can honestly say that by only trying to keep the ball in play will give you a lot of birdie opportunities.   All i ask off the tee is to have a second shot from the fairway - of course I can see that one side or the other makes the second easier but I remind myself that the game isn't that precise, so hit the fairway.  It would be nice to assume the average golfer studies the strokesaver and plans their assault on any given hole, but in reality most players use the strokesaver afterthe game to plot their experience.

[Tim Nugent]

Most of these responses seem to focus on the tee shot, arguably one of the hardest shots for higher handicappers.  If you wish to initiate your friend into the architecture of golf, perhaps you should start at the green and work back to the tee -eventually. 

A good way for him to avoid hazards is to aim form them.  Most of us can't ever hit what we are aiming for

[Chris DeNigris]

Strategy varies so dramatically with handicap/skill level that most of us are playing totally reactively rather than proactively. No matter how much we want or try to think our way around the course.

Unless you're a scratch or better most of us make birdie by accident. Except for shorter 5s where we're near or on in 2. Most of the time a GIR is the ultimate goal and whether we're putting from 8 or 28 feet is mostly chance. Pin-seeking is something most of us only fantasize about. As such, anywhere in the fairway or light rough is highly acceptable, regardless of best angle of approach.

We can frequently "over-strategize"....wish I had a nickel for everytime playing it safe got me a double or worse.

It doesn't mean that we can't appreciate the strategy that certain holes present...it's just that often it's not very pertinent to our efforts.

[Ken Moum]

Most of these responses seem to focus on the tee shot, arguably one of the hardest shots for higher handicappers.

Well, the original question specifically mentioned tee shots, and only tee shots.

So that might have tilted the responses a bit.

K

[Tim Nugent]

Ken, my point was if he is only worried about his tee shot, odds are there isn't much you can do.  But if you think getting him to ponder the design, a better place to start would be somewhere where he as a better chance of affecting the outcome of his shot. My tee game is probably my weakest part of my game.  While I can see what I would like to do, I don't place much emphasis on it.  After I get to wherever it landed, now I start looking at the options afforded me, knowing that I CAN do this or that with a high probablity of it happening. The more success with the rest of his game he has, the less important those 14 shots will become.