You can ruin a good round by trying to pull off that one in a million shot and making a triple bogey. After hitting a shot into trouble you are almost always better off to take a safe route out and play for a bogey. What exactly iscourse management?
Essentially, it means adapting your game to the specific nuances of the course and playing the course in the best way you can to achieve a good score. When does course management start?
Some players will tell you it starts after they have to make a decision on the course. Nothing could be further from the truth. Course management starts before you tee off on the first hole. You should always have a plan for the round you are playing and more importantly you should always have a plan and a target for each and every shot.
One particular area that most all golfers should concentrate on is hitting the ball from 125-150 yards out to the green. By improving your game in this area you’ll give yourself many more chances for birdie and par putts. The key to this aspect of your game is being able to “know” that you can hit the ball onto any green from 150 yards out.
You want to get to the point where you can consistently knock on 8 or 9 irononto the green every time! It may sound difficult if you’re a higher handicap golfer, but it’s really not. 125 -150 yards is very manageable, and most greens are large in size. In addition, hitting 8 and 9 irons are much easier to control than your longer irons.
If you have a tough time swinging these clubs then this is an area where you need to spend some quality practice time on. Once you do get this down, the only part left is distance management. That’s the first key.
The next point is working your game around the 150 yard shot. If you’re on a 550 yard par 5, you know if you hit a decent drive and even if you hit your second shot poorly, leaving you with 135 yards to the green, you know you can now get it on the green with your third shot. So, even though you didn’t hit a great second shot, because you have the 150 yard shot in your bag you’re still putting for birdie. This is what good course management is all about.
It’s amazing what focusing on this part of your game can do for you. You’ll see your golf game differently. Now you’ll know that no matter what kind of trouble you get into off the tee box, all you need to do is get your ball 135-150 yards out and you’ll be fine.
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