Golf Tips: Play One Shot Ahead

Here's a great bit of advice I received from a buddy this past week on playing strategy.  The concept is to "play one shot ahead."  What does that mean?  Simply put, you must consider where you want to play your NEXT shot from before hitting the current shot, rather than perhaps hitting the current shot as far as possible or picking the wrong club.   Let's look at two scenarios. Par-4 Imagine we are playing a short par-4 like the 16th at my home course.  This is a hole which is around 360 yards. From the tee to around 110 yards out the hole is flat.  From 110 to the hole is a large drop in elevation.  A tee shot with a long iron or perhaps a hybrid would put the ball right on the flat part at 115-120 yards out.  In general, a 120 yard shot from a flat lie isn't extremely difficult.  If one were to play a driver or fairway wood on that tee though, the 2nd shot would end up on a severe downslope.  Hitting a 90 yard shot from a downslope is much more difficult that a 120 yard shot from flat ground.  Planning the 2nd shot at 115-120 yards dictates the best club from the tee, a long iron or hybrid. Par-5  A par-5 I play often has a sever slope in the middle of the green which goes away from the player.  The green is essentially two individual greens separated by a large change in elevation.  If the pin is on the front, long shots which hit the middle of the green go to the back and leave a near impossible two-putt.  Conversely shots which stay on the front of the green are nearly impossible to two-putt from when the pin is in the back. Knowing this information is very important when planning the 2nd shot of this par-5.  It is much better to have a full wedge, say 100 yards from the green.  This is because with a full wedge we can put some spin on the ball and get it to stop on the proper level.  If we played an over-aggressive 2nd shot, the 3rd should would be a short 40 yard pitch or chip which is nearly impossible to judge properly. Conclusion Next time you play a round of golf, think about where you want your NEXT shot to be played from and that will dictate what club and type of shot to play for the current shot.