Play from the fairway. That’s it. The fairway.
Annika Sörenstam won, and won and won by employing one simple strategy: fairways and greens. 72 wins. Gulp! The new crop of bomb and gouge lads like to hit that tee ball as far as they can and will say “I’d rather a 9 iron from 135 than a 7 iron from 170, even if it’s fairway.” We are not them. I’ll explain.
Last summer, on a hot August day, we did some testing. With these base statistics: With a good, full swing, I’ll carry 225-230 and roll out to about 250, we set out.
Location: Bethpage State Park, Black Course. We took four balls on four holes and dropped one at 230 in center fairway. Another at 240 in first cut of rough, on right and the third at 240 left rough, also first cut. The fourth ball I dropped in second cut at 250 (two on left of holes 4 and 6 and two on right of holes 10 and 11). Dropped them…tossed them in. Didn’t place them. I played in from those spots.
Results? The four balls at 240 in right (first cut) rough saw a cumulative +4 over par. One par, two bogeys and a double bogey. The four at 240 in left (first cut) rough saw a cumulative +3 over par. Two pars, a bogey and a double. The four second cut balls at 250 balls saw a cumulative +5 over par with no pars, three bogeys and a double. Finally, the four fairway balls at 230 yielded a +1 over par with three pars and a bogey. AND I only hit the green twice (50%) using the 230 yd drive.
I’ve seen enough. I’m not strong enough to play from deep rough, period. I’m also not skilled enough to stop balls onto greens from the first cut with any consistency. Why? Swing speed. Speed is height, spin and distance. Ask yourself this: would I rather hit a hybrid or 5 iron from fairway and control it or do I want to risk a marginally bad lie in the rough just so I can have a 6 or 7 iron?
Next time you’re practicing on the range, really dial in where you can consistently land the drive where you’re aiming. If that’s 225, it’s good to know. If you’re not having a good day, don’t make it worse by playing from the rough. It’s not just about the grass length either. It’s often a few shots with no “look” at the green. Even if you’re only 140 from hole, muscling a shot out of those lies is perilous! Another humbling stat? We don’t often catch a “flyer” from rough that goes too far! Again, it’s speed. The tour lads can occasionally catch a flyer and the announcer will talk about it. Them. Us. Are you able to swing a 7 iron at 88+mph? Me either. Play from fairways and practice your short game and putting! Older…and smarter.