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Conflict Amongst the Trees.

Johneli

Johneli

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You've pushed or pulled your tee shot...makes no difference....you're still in the trees. Twenty foot opening twenty five yards ahead. Can even see the pin. Have to keep it low but if you miss the opening the ball could ricochette anywhere. A well-played shot through the opening could net you the green.

Do you chip it out onto the fairway or do you throw caution to the wind and go for the opening?

(No other qualifications such as good round going or not.... risk taker or smart?) :D

 
Play it smart.. I'd say 80% of the time, the shot will fail and I'll be worse off than I was before.
 
It really depends for me. I have done both and did both this last weekend. Its a gut feeling for me. Also depends how far to the pin.
 
Johneli said:
You've pushed or pulled your tee shot...makes no difference....you're still in the trees. Twenty foot opening twenty five yards ahead. Can even see the pin. Have to keep it low but if you miss the opening the ball could ricochette anywhere. A well-played shot through the opening could net you the green.

Do you chip it out onto the fairway or do you throw caution to the wind and go for the opening?

(No other qualifications such as good round going or not.... risk taker or smart?) :D
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Well your last sentence qualifies the answer. It's impossible to say what I would do unless I knew the circumstances. If the round is shot and all of this is happening on the 17th hole then sure, why not go for the opening?
But if this happens on the fourth hole after I've parred the first three, I think chip out might be in order.

I like risky shots as a rule, but not foolish shots. If I think I can get through an opening in the trees and the downside isn't a game changer, then yes, I'd go for it. But if the ricochet has a good chance of dumping the ball in the water or deeper into woods and having no shot at all, then once again, discretion is the better part of valor.


-JP
 
JPsuff said:
Well your last sentence qualifies the answer. It's impossible to say what I would do unless I knew the circumstances. If the round is shot and all of this is happening on the 17th hole then sure, why not go for the opening?
But if this happens on the fourth hole after I've parred the first three, I think chip out might be in order.

I like risky shots as a rule, but not foolish shots. If I think I can get through an opening in the trees and the downside isn't a game changer, then yes, I'd go for it. But if the ricochet has a good chance of dumping the ball in the water or deeper into woods and having no shot at all, then once again, discretion is the better part of valor.


-JP
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Just to demonstrate how "tongue in cheek" that last sentence was.....I would probably go for the opening because I don't want to have to look back and say "what if?" Not very smart, but very honest.
 
For me it depends on other issues as well.Have I performed this shot before.What were the results of that attempt?
Where are the bunkers on this hole? Does it require a low draw or a low cut? Low cut I'll go for it knowing I can keep it low and then get it to raise up a bit to hopefully stop.(all depends on yardage,required club) If it's a low draw,then I'll punch low towards green ,but leave me with a simple chip/pitch shot.

If I feel either one is too risky thein I'll take the medicene and chip out to the fairway.
 
Given the two options, my first pick would be to just chip out into the fairway. A 20' opening, 75 yards away is pretty risky for most amateurs. More than likely at 75 yards away, there is probably height issues with that shot. Of course there have been times I have taken the 2nd best shot out of a tough situation just to see if I can pull it off. :clapp:
 
JB said:
It really depends for me. I have done both and did both this last weekend. Its a gut feeling for me. Also depends how far to the pin.
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+1 - I agree with the guy feel too but I also need to see the shot before I hit it. If not, I'll chip it back into the fairway and play for bogey. :banghead:
 
Play it safe.....the rule of "trees are 90% air" never seems to hold true when you want it to
 
I have done both, but I would probably go for it in that situation because I have that particular shot in my game....I had to have because I used to spend so much time in there.

I like low punches and given no other factors, like OB or a pond in too tight, I would try it on.
 
It's a shot that I've taken and succeeded with many times. I only try it if I have a reasonable lie, but in that case I take my driver and however much of a swing as it seems should be necessary for the distance involved. I can hit my driver from tight lies and from light or fluffy lies in the rough. Hitting through a 20 foot opening from 25 yards away isn't that difficult. I may not put in on the green, but I can usually get into chipping range.

If it's a deep lie, then I'm going to take the safe route and do what I can to get back in play.
 
I have lived in the trees so this one is easy for me. 20' opening at 25 feet...piece of cake. I use a 3 wood for this shot and can punch it a good 100 yards 2 feet off the ground. I can punch though 4' if the trees are closer. I ain't bragging. I'm good at this because I practiced it a lot because I'm such a hack.
 
This was actually in the August 2009 issue of Golf Magazine in the "Private Lessons" section. Good advice, but I don't know that I'd follow it all the time. Although I am getting better at taking my medicine and getting it back in play safely.

Riskrewardfromwoods-1.jpg
 
All depends on how i'm playing that day, in the past I would always go for it & usually would screw it up. This year though I have been playing the safe shot & just putting it back in the fairway allowing an easy chip to the green. So far has worked a lot better.
 
I played a risky punch today with a bunker infront of me, I punched it, it rimmed around the lip of the bunker and shot the ball towards the hole, I had a 1 inch tap in for par. Usually though I always take the risk. Unless it is insanely stupid.
 
thanks1974 said:
Play it safe.....the rule of "trees are 90% air" never seems to hold true when you want it to
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I agree! I want to know how this calculation was made. As golfers we float around this 90% air comment and I have never seen the data to back it up.
 
mchepp said:
I agree! I want to know how this calculation was made. As golfers we float around this 90% air comment and I have never seen the data to back it up.
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That may well be accurate, but the part my ball usually finds is 100% WOOD!!!
 
C-Tech said:
That may well be accurate, but the part my ball usually finds is 100% WOOD!!!
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I have sometimes aimed at the tree instead of around the tree.
 
Play it smart . Go for the fairway not the green. Now that being said I'd try and hit through the trees.That's just the way I roll.
 
Smallville said:
I have sometimes aimed at the tree instead of around the tree.
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For a somewhat similar reason I always run towards the flagstick when someone yells "FORE".
 
mchepp said:
For a somewhat similar reason I always run towards the flagstick when someone yells "FORE".
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If the opportunity ever presents itself, I will do exactly that! That's funny right there!
 
20' opening at 25 yards? I'd go for the punch between the trees. The only two times I wouldn't go for it in that case is a bunker or hazard between my ball and the green or very low hanging limbs.
 
I would probably go for it, as long as I could get a swing on the ball. Of course that is exactly the kind of thing that keeps my scores so high.
 
[threadjack]

Every time I see this thread title, I start hearing "The Trees" by Rush in my head.

[/threadjack]
 
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