3 On-Course Strategy Hacks that Lowered My Handicap Instantly

1. When in Doubt… Hit Driver
You have permission to trust the big stick

We were always told to hit take the driver out of play when the hole gets tighter or when you absolutely need to hit the fairway, but is that truly optimal? Not entirely. According to Shot Scope data, the average 2 handicap golfer hits the fairway with a driver 60% of the time, but when they drop down to 3 wood they hit it 61% of the time - basically identical!  Dropping down to a 3 wood means you are choosing to hit a club that has a smaller face, making it significantly harder to hit consistently, not to mention it’s unlikely you practice your 3 wood as frequently as you’re driver. In other words, you are choosing to add ~20 yards extra to your approach shot, which also forces you to hit first into the green against your competition. Wouldn’t it be nice to see all 3 of your competitors shots before you make a decision about what club to hit or what part of the green to aim at?

The only logical time to hit less than driver on a hole is when you are trying to hit it a specific distance to avoid big trouble that’s further down the hole (e.g. there is a large punishing bunker or water hazard through the fairway and driver is too much). 

Plain and simple: If you aren’t trying to avoid a hazard that crosses the fairway and believe a 3-wood in the short grass beats a driver in the rough, you are better off hitting driver virtually every time!

Here’s more on that from Decade’s Scott Fawcett…

2. Play to Your Tendencies, and Avoid Hazards at All Costs
The rough isn’t as punishing as you think… hazards are WAY worse

You’ve got a long par 4, there’s water up the entire left hand side and nothing but rough on the right. You’ve been fighting a nasty hook, and you start shaking in your Footjoys, knowing that you are one closed-clubface away from pulling another Supersoft out of your bag. As fate would have it, your ball starts straight, takes a left turn, and lands in the middle of that pond.  

What could we have done different here? First, know your tendencies. And second, focus on tee box alignment. Picking the correct place on the tee box is a huge piece of strategy that a lot of players overlook. In this scenario, since there is water on the left hand side of the hole and you can miss WAY right in the rough, tee your ball up on the left hand side of the box, aim at the right edge of the fairway and pull the trigger! If you draw it, you’re in the middle. If you happen to hit the straight ball, you’re in the rough. Either way, you’re dry! 

For pretty much all handicaps, the rough isn’t nearly as punitive as you might think. Sure, it’s a different story for Tour Pros playing out of 5” U.S. Open jungle grass, but check out this chart showing the average strokes lost hitting in the rough vs. fairway across amateur handicaps:

PRO TIP: Lower scores are achieved not by making more birdies, but by avoiding big numbers. Avoiding penalties and lost balls is the surest way to drop your score. Here’s a challenge - play your next round and simply try to just focus on not losing a single ball. 

3. Red vs. Green Light Pin Locations
Know when to be Conservative vs. Aggressive in your approach

It’s always fun watching the guys on tv hitting an approach shot to a pin that is tucked behind a bunker with water on the back side, but most amateurs are naive here. The pros are NOT aiming directly at the hole… they often simply luck into a good miss. Listen to Tiger talking HERE about how many pins he fires at in a round.

@golf_manual

Tiger’s Tips for picking a taget 🎯⛳️ #tigerwoods #golf #golflesson #golfer

Pin placements are designed to be strategic, so firing directly at flags will only equate to more missed greens and a lot more pressure on your short game to bail you out. Yes, there are hole locations that allow for a more aggressive shot, but being able to decipher the difference between a good opportunity and a “take your medicine” situation will greatly lower your scores. A good approach to help you with this is the “Red vs. Green Light” pin system, as detailed below:

• Red Light Pins: These are hole locations that, quite frankly, should be avoided at all costs. Any pin that is close to the edge of the green, a front pin just beyond a hazard, or any hole location that is surrounded by slopes should be aimed away from in order prioritize simply hitting the green. So aim for the fat side of the green, and let your 20 foot putt be the hero shot that gets you the birdie, not your approach.

• Green Light Pins: Naturally, these are hole locations that you are drooling over while standing in the fairway - any pin in the center of the green, a pin that is at the bottom of a slope, or a green with no trouble is anywhere in sight. If you are fortunate to find these opportunities - FIRE AWAY!

PRO TIP: In the video linked above, Tiger mentioned only firing at perhaps 1 flag in a pro round. Keep in mind, the courses they play are designed to be difficult. So unless you’re playing Sawgrass a day after the Players, you probably have a few more chances to be aggressive than the pros. And if it’s a Matchplay event (instead of Stroke play), the strategy changes entirely. The key here is knowing which situation is which. Here’s another helpful video.

TODAY’S TRIVIA
Answer to Win a Rypstick Speed Training & Radar Package
(1 winner chosen on 3/31/25 across all February trivia entries, 1,000 correct respondents minimum)

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