Stroke Saver: Don’t Get Into More Trouble Than You Need To

I always love watching those videos where the guy takes off his shoes and socks, rolls up his pants and wades out into the water to try and hit an impossible wedge back to the fairway to save a shot. They make me laugh and cry at the same time. That quest for immortality often costs us 5 or 6 strokes a round and most people don’t even realize it. To put it in more simplistic terms, if we hit a tee shot out into the woods, too many times we try to move the ball forward from there to set up the next shot instead of just punching it out. That shot ends up catching another tree and now we are facing an even harder out from the woods on our third shot. Par is basically out the window and a bogey would end up being a great score at that point. It’s the avalanche of strokes that leads to those 6’s, 7’s and 8’s that plague most amateur’s cards.

The first step in avoiding these huge numbers is to stay out of trouble. Given that golf is golf though, it’s not always the easiest thing to do. There are a few things you can do to limit your bonus strokes though, and here they are:

• Always use the drop area when you hit the ball in the water. Don’t try to hit the shot again because you know you can. If you drive it into the lake, take the distance with the penalty and move up to where it went in. This will save you a full shot catching up to where you are.
  
• If you hit into the trees, don’t be afraid to play the ball sideways or backwards to escape. Losing 5 yards on your next shot vs. staying trapped in the trees is a small price to pay for a good third shot. If you can still get to the green, you’ve taken double bogey out of play and brought par back to the table.
  
• Don’t ever, ever, ever, perform a golf shot that requires you to remove your shirt, shoes or socks. When you see the guy on TV do this, it makes a $10k to $20k difference in his placing. For you, it’s a bet that may involve a beer. Instead of trying the impossible and losing another shot to your competitors, do the smart thing and drop a ball. Lying two dry is much better than lying 4 wet.
  
• Probably the biggest tip that there is regarding trouble spots on any course is knowing the local rules. Every course has them, and most of the time they are posted. But let’s say that there is a lake on 15 and you hit it in there right from the tee box. You walk up to the point of entry and drop your ball. You failed to see that there was a drop area 50 yards from the green that is for ALL shots that entered the water hazard because you didn’t know the local rules. Many courses set these up to avoid issues and speed up play. Knowing this can save you hitting a second ball in the water and will move you closer to the hole for your third shot.
  
• Finally, and this one isn’t as much of a avoiding trouble as it is avoiding frustration, if you feel that your ball may have gone OB, make sure to announce you are hitting a provisional ball. Drop where you are and hit a second ball. This can be done in any circumstance where you would be facing a stroke and distance penalty. It will save you time and frustration if you arrive at your ball to find it out of play.

Golf is hard enough to play well without having to deal with water, bad lies and poor decision making. When you make your way on to the course again, think about the strokes you have wasted getting out of trouble and look for an easier out. Even if it costs you an extra stroke, the safe play often wins. Remember, we aren’t tour pro’s playing for a million bucks, we’re just some regular guys looking to beat our buddy (or ourselves) during a relaxing round. Playing it safe makes sense for us.