How many times have players stood on the tee box of a par-three with water in front of the green and panicked? Too many to count. Instead of fearing the trouble in front of the green, choose a club that will take the trouble out of play no matter what. If faced with a par-three with water in front of the green, try taking a club that will give you 20 yards more than you think you need (provided the same trouble in front of the green is not also behind the green).
When you set up to the ball you know that not only do you not have to kill it to make the green, but you can rest assured that even if you mis-hit it a little you will still be OK. If you are too uncomfortable with that much club, you can tee the ball a little higher than normal to take some slight distance off, but still stick with that club.
PLAYING IT SMART EQUALS BETTER SCORES - Photo by Paul Nasri
Then take a nice aggressive swing, making sure you don't decelerate. You'll find that you will hit more greens, even if you don’t hit it pure, and you’ll stay away from the trouble, resulting in lower scores.
Copley News Service