Course Management 101: Playing Boldly
By Jack Moorehouse
A single decision often determines who wins or loses PGA championships. Make the wrong decision and it can cost you. It can also be a painful golf lesson. Make the right decision, however, and you can find yourself slipping on a green jacket at Augusta, not to mention collecting a whole lot of money. That's why great professional golfers carefully weigh every option before hitting. A slight mistake can cost them a championship and a sizeable purse.
Weekend golfers seldom face on-course decisions with consequences like those of the pros. A bad decision here or there may cost them several strokes, but it won't cost them a championship and thousands of dollars in prize money. Nevertheless, weekend golfers also need to learn to weigh on-course decisions carefully. The additional strokes generated by bad decisions hurt one's scores and boost golf handicaps. If you're serious about driving that handicap down, you must learn to make good on-course decisions.
One of the more common decisions weekend golfers face is whether to play boldly or lay-up on long par 5s. In golf discretion is often the better part of valor. So most amateurs are better off playing the hole conservatively, rather than aggressively. But sometimes the situation dictates otherwise. How do you know when? Examining an on-course decision made by Argentina's Roberta de Vicenzo during the final round of the 1967 British Open proves instructional.
The Situation
The 1967 British Open took place at the Royal Liverpool, Holyoke, England. De Vicenzo arrived at the 16th hole, a long par 5, leading Jack Nicklaus by three strokes. Nicklaus was at the height of his game and was playing well. Playing in front of de Vicenzo, he had just birdied the hole, exerting pressure on the Argentinean. De Vicenzo was faced with a critical decision—play this dangerous par 5 safely or try for a birdie to maintain his lead.
The 16th hole at Royal Liverpool is no walk in the park. A practice tee dominates the hole. One corner of the tee, which runs along most of the length of the 16th hole, protrudes onto the fairway. A low wall marks the practice tee and out-of-bounds. Two bunkers on the left also threaten the drive, with three others guarding the green. Only a long drive down the right will put the green in range.
Playing the Hole
The safe way to play the hole is to play right of the fairway bunker, and lay-up on the second shot far left of the practice tee, leaving a pitch shot to the green. Two deep bunkers to the right of the green threaten any attempt to play the second shot across the practice tee, which in any case involves considerable carry. Given this situation, the decision to play aggressively must be made on the tee.
De Vicenzo was an excellent ballstriker and a prodigious driver of the ball, so reaching the green in two was well within his capabilities. He was also a shrewd strategist. He decided to attack, knowing full well that he would have to flirt with the out-of-bounds to give himself any chance of making a birdie.
The Argentinean started badly. He pushed the ball a little too close to the wall that marked the out-of-bounds and the practice tee. But his 3-wood into the green was perfectly struck. It flew over the wall carrying all the trouble and settled onto the heart of the green. Two putts gave him the birdie, snuffing out any chance Nicklaus had of overtaking him. It was de Vicenzo's only major victory.
What We Can Learn
De Vicenzo's strategy was a classic example of playing the bold shot in a tight situation. He knew the shot was risky and that if he misplayed his drive it would cost him strokes and, perhaps, the championship. But he knew the shot was well within his capabilities, so opted to play boldly, protecting his lead and providing us with a highly instructive golf lesson.
The danger for amateur players is playing boldly when chances of success are marginal or when the shot is well beyond their capabilities. Being aggressive when you need to pull off a miracle shot you've never made before is not smart golf. Make enough bad decisions and your scores and golf handicap will balloon. In golf discretion is often the better part of valor.
Jack Moorehouse is the author of the best-selling book "How To Break 80 And Shoot Like The Pros." He is NOT a golf pro, rather a working man that has helped thousands of golfers from all seven continents lower their handicap immediately. He has a free weekly newsletter with the latest golf tips, golf lessons and golf instruction.
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