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ALWAYS PLAY FOR YOUR LOWEST POSSIBLE SCORE
 This
sounds so obvious but with a little thought it is possible
to reduce your scores.
To achieve
your lowest score you need to forget all about the par of the
course and the par for each hole.
In a medal
or stableford competition the par is actually irrelevant as
the objective is to produce your lowest possible gross score
on each hole.
A
perfect example of why you need to ignore the par would be
the following scenario:
Standing
on the tee you are faced with a hole playing into the wind
and the card says it is a par 4 of 435 yards. A par 4 to most
people requires 2 shots onto the green followed by 2 putts.
In reality very few golfers would be capable of reaching the
green in 2 shots but the card says it is a par 4 so out of
the bag comes the driver and off the ball goes into the trees
etc.
A
more sensible approach would be to look at the length of the
hole, check the hazards and wind direction and then formulate
how to produce your best score on the hole. Into the wind
you must produce LESS clubhead speed as the faster the clubhead
is travelling the greater sidespin will be produced and the
wind will exaggerate the sidespin and the ball travel further
off line.
So
use less club e.g. a club with more loft, and swing SLOWER
so you will increase the chances of being on the fairway.
Then you can use the same principle for the second shot and
you should then be somewhere near the green and still on the
fairway. A simple short shot will put you on the green and
a 4 or 5 will be on your card rather than a 6 or 7.
The
next hole could be a par 4 of 275 yards with the wind behind.
Your
approach to this hole will still be to produce the lowest
score but the circumstances have now changed.
Assuming
the hole has no major hazards and the entrance to the green
is clear you can select a driver or a club with approximately
15 degrees of loft and swing FASTER as any sidespin will
largely be negated by the following wind. A reasonably struck
shot could now be on or near the green and a 3 or 4 on your
card.
In
matchplay the par of each hole is also irrelevant as you are
playing against you opponent and not to the par of the hole.
For
example, assuming
there are no shots involved (i.e. your handicaps are the same)
and your opponent hits his or her ball out of bounds on a
straight forward hole of 370 yards then you need to ensure
your first shot is somewhere on the fairway by using less
club to reduce the sidespin. The chances are that you will
make at least a 5 from the fairway but your opponent will
need to play two exceptionally good shots to make a 6. So
by ignoring the par you have won the hole. Winning a hole
with a 7 is the same result as winning a hole with a 2 even
though a 2 will feel inevitably better.
You
could arrive at the last hole with your opponent having hit
a superb second shot over a lake to within 6" of the
hole. Now you have no choice but to attempt a shot you
may not normally attempt to match your opponents score.
Always
play for the lowest score and be realistic.
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