[Thomas Dai]

What shots when executed well give you the most thrill & satisfaction and how does this effect your preferences for architecture and conditioning?
Bombed tee-shots?
Deliberate fades and drawers?
Long approach shots?
Greenside shots from evil spots?
Long curling putts?
Poor weather play?
Other?
... and how does this effect your preferences for architecture and conditioning?
Atb

[Daryl David]

Greenside shots from evil spots. Especially if it requires a shot along the ground.

[Duncan Cheslett]

I’m a disciple of Lorne Smith and an advocate of the ground game.


My guilty secret however, is the thrill I get from a well executed flop shot over a green side bunker! 🤣

[Tony_Muldoon]

A tie bteween




a chip that perfectly runs out as planned - particularly if the green is raised and the ball must follow contour. Sometimes you  will be happy if the ball finishes within 4' of the hole.


a perfectly struck aerial shot that rides the wind and finishes within say 10' of the hole.




both require, experience, imagination and execution.   Links golf anyone?

[Peter Pallotta]

TD -
most satisfying to me are long iron-hybrid approaches with the right trajectory that hold their line and hit the green. Which means, in terms of design, that I'm not much concerned with the length of holes -- a long Par 4 is very often more enjoyable and architecturally interesting to me than a short-or-drivable Par 4 -- but I am looking for a premium on playing angles and also allowances/openings for landing the ball short and having it run on. It also explains why I'm no big fan of Par 5s, ie my most satisfying shot is often relegated to a near-meaningless-and-consequence-free lay-up, and why I can do without too many Par 3s too. The Par 70, with one Par 5 and one Par 3 per side, and 14 Par 4s, is my ideal. 

[Greg Smith]

Long curling putts I think.

One might think the biggest thrill might come from executing what you can rarely do well.  When I was younger and a good golfer, I had several different degrees of fade on iron shots, and a somewhat predictable draw if I was "on" that day.  I play/practice much less in my dotage, so that shaping ability is pretty much gone.  It would be a kick to perform a fade approach on demand these days.

But long, curling putts (even though I can still do them very well!) top the list because of the finality of the scoring payoff, I think.

So, I really like golf courses with large, complex greens where putting is a journey all its own.  A course like Olympic Lake with smaller greens and extreme shaping demands would just be my bane.

[Sean_A]

I think well executed recovery shots onto greens does it for me. It's especially cool if I worked the ground well.

Ciao

[David_Tepper]

Not really a thrill, but I do get a lot of satisfaction of a well executed bunker shot, where you can really feel the bounce/sole of the sand wedge bottom out under the ball. I also like the sound of the "thump" the club makes when it strikes the sand properly.

[Ira Fishman]

Getting the right line and distance for an approach shot that requires using the ground. When we played Brora, we had a wonderful caddie who was a Member. On several holes he would give me a number 20-50 yards short of the green with a pretty precise line. I certainly did not execute all of them, but on the ones that I did, the feeling of accomplishment was pronounced.


But the most rewarding shot I witnessed was by my wife on that same round. On 18 we both saw our tee shots trickle off the front of the green down to the bottom of the slope left. Our caddie recommended a lob shot over the bunker to the slope left of the green. I bladed my mine into the practice net. My wife hit a perfect shot that trundled down to within 18 inches.  When we walked into the bar, a Member stopped us to tell my wife that she must have played Brora often.


Ira

[Ally Mcintosh]

Long to Mid-iron approach shots that use the ground or - if in to a strong wind - ones that are punched low and arrow-straight before stopping dead.

[Tommy Williamsen]

Until this year I would have said short shot from iffy lie. Now it is hitting the green from 200 yards.

[John Emerson]

Any shot that is struck “on the screws” with blade irons.......there’s nothing close, except maybe hitting a 90 mph fastball pure on the heart of a bat.  The contact feels effortless and the ball just jumps!  This is one the best feelings in the world.

[Peter Flory]

I get the most inspiration when the architecture makes me want to shape shots to gain an advantage or when the wind requires it.  I typically try to hit dead straight in order to be consistent.  That strategy works for me and limits bad misses, but is a bit boring.  So I like to be tempted or forced to play more like Corey Pavin. 

[Mark Pearce]

Go on then, I'll be the honest one.  I love a high, gentle draw out of the middle of my driver.


Oh, and hitting a really good low utility/3 wood approach into the wind on the 9th at Elie, which leaves me waiting until I get within 50 yards of the green to see if it has fallen down the slope to the green with a birdie chance, or left me with a tricky little downhill chip/pitch and left double bogey in play.

[Jeff Schley]

Purely struck long irons with height. My long irons usually have a lower trajectory unless I hit them pure (maybe 1x a round it seems). I really get a charge out of that when you have to carry a hazard to a protected green with a long iron and you actually pull it off. A second would be a crushed drive where you actually aim for it to go.

[Thomas Dai]

There is no right answer, but so far, with some having mentioned more than one preference, the indictions are  -


Around the green inc bunkers - 5 - DT, SA, TM, DC, DD
Long putting - 1 - GS
Long approach shots - 6 - AMc, IF, MP, PP, TM, JS,
Over a certain distance - 1 - TW
Shaping shots & strike quality - 1 - JE, PF,
Tee shots - 2 - MP, JS


If I've allocated initials to an inappropriate category, and other categories can exist as well should folks wish, then I imagine I will be advised accordingly.
atb

[Mark_Fine]

Any shot well executed that was fearful. If the shot lacks interest, likely the architecture does as well. 

[Jeff_Brauer]

Snark answer - I'll let you know when I hit one.


Real answer, I'll go with the longer bump and run chip shot and any curved shot, executed to just the right degree to get close to the pin.


The short game shot appreciation comes from going to the Pelz short game clinic, learning their technique, and realizing that it wasn't a fluke and could be repeated with some consistency.  Two nights ago, the wife wanted to go to the driving range, and I walked over to the chipping area to work on my "7 to 5" chip swing and distance control, mostly because my short game had been terrible lately.  It was a pleasant hour plus to work on the short game.


Snark answer no. 2 - A shot of Jack Daniels for me.....

[Niall C]

I'm with Mark, it's the pleasure you get from a well struck drive. Watching the ball for the first 250 yards as it's still rising. Of course these days with my eyesight I can't really focus on the remaining 80 yards but it's still nice to know it's out there. And if you believe that pish let me tell you about my bunker shots that I like to land beyond the pin and then spin back into the hole.


Niall

[MCirba]

To me, nothing feels better than a flushed long-iron that holds it's head, lands with some brakes, and then rolls out along the intended line.   I still carry a 3-iron, and if I didn't become addicted to my 60 degree wedge for bunker and flop shots, I'd carry a 2-iron, as well.    Success, or not, with these clubs is the true barometer of how well I'm swinging on any given day.

[Bill Seitz]

20-40 yard pitch from a tight lie that takes one or two hops and stops dead.  You know when you hit it exactly what it's going to do, but everyone in your group watches in horror as the ball is in flight, assuming you just nuked one 20 yards past the hole.  Then it just grabs, and maybe trickles a couple more inches. 


Alternatively, a shot played to a backstop or side hill that takes the slope, and comes back to hole and settles within a few feet, whether played through the air or along the ground.  Even better if you have to aim well away from the pin.  We get a lot of these at my home club and they never get old.

[Joe Melchiors]

I'd probably agree with Bill if I could hit that shot... 


I'm with many others here and had a rare one yesterday.  Longer shots into the wind that require a really well struck ball with a lower trajectory to have any hope of reaching the green.

[JReese]

I really enjoy the par 3 with a R-L or L-R sloping green that calls for an extra club to keep the ball low, allowing the slope to feed the ball close to the hole....aka the Redan.  Definitely easier to achieve when the greens are firm.

[Thomas Dai]

So how does the tally look now?

Around the green inc bunkers - 8 - moi, DT, SA, TM, DC, DD, JB, BS,
Long putting - 1 - GS
Long approach shots - 9 - AMcI, IF, MP, PP, TM, JS, MC, JM, JR,
Over a certain distance - 1 - TW
Shaping shots & strike quality - 2 - JE, PF,
General challenge - 1 - MF
Tee shots - 3 - MP, JS, NC,

As before, if I've allocated initials to an inappropriate category, and other categories can exist as well should folks wish, then advise accordingly. One each preferred, two max.
atb

[Lou_Duran]

It used to be punching a shot from behind a tree and hooking it 45° onto the green.  Too weak to do that now, so any time I hit a green in regulation with a well-struck iron is thrilling.  The occasional drive that has me hitting last is also satisfying, but I can't remember the last time that this has happened.

[Tags:]

Tags:

[Tags:]

Tags:

Call to undefined function theme_linktree()