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the obsession over distance vs accuracy

Damaikis said:
It depends on how bad my miss is. Am I just in the rough or in the trees taking penalty strokes? I hit a lot of FWs as it is, and even when I miss I don't often take penalties. I'd give up 3 or 4 FWs per round to add 20 yards if my misses were what they are now.
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From what I understand, simply being consistently in the fairway led to better score reductions across the board. I'd have to agree with that considering that when I shoot well it's because I am hitting my second from the fairway instead of the "elsewhere".
 
Crag Rat said:
I think I need to get a new hybrid!!

whenever I take it for accuracy I tend to dump it deep in the trouble I'm trying to avoid. It's probably mental but as soon as I think about avoiding Trouble then I struggle.
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Completely unrelated in some ways, but I have found it to be a good mental drill that helps me when faced with trouble

When I was learning to ride a motorbike, the instructor always taught us to look at where we wanted to go, not where we wanted to avoid as we would become target-fixated, meaning that if we were heading round a bend we should look around the bend and not at the outside edge of it, otherwise that is where you would end up going and get yourself into trouble

These days, whenever there is trouble on the hole, I am usually able to completely blank it by using the above method to focus on where I want the ball to be going and ignoring the trouble

Of course, this is always easier said than done, but half the battle is not letting the trouble get in your head and mess with your swing
 
My 70 year old grandpa can probably only get his drives to travel 150 yards at best. I outdrive him playing from the white and he plays golds. Since I moved down and closer to him, I haven't been unable to beat him yet at the end of the day. He is ALWAYS dead middle of the fairway. I'd trade my 270+ drive any and everyday to score like he does.
 
I dunno, it's all about balance I guess. Everyone has to weigh the options and choose what they want more. For example, I hit the Amp Cell straighter than anything else, including my Razr Fit, but it comes at a cost of about 25-30 yards in distance. To me that's just not worth it and my Razr Fit keeps me in play just fine. My long iron game is the pits and coming in from 150 from the 2nd cut with my Razr Fit is much better than coming in from 175 in the fairway...but that's just me.
 
I average about 255-260 & right around 50% of FIRs so definitely the latter option. depending on the lie with the 325 yard drive, that would be kind of hard to pass up as well.
 
Bubba long. Swing for the fences.
 
I'll take the 275 & more hit fairways all day long!! I've been through a few drivers in the last few years and none have the accuracy of my old trusty Nike Sumo2 5900. It's not as long of the tee as the others drivers I've used, but it's far more accurate. That's why it stays in the bag!!!
 
Put me down for accuracy...especially ball placement. I've been in the woods too long to know to avoid them.

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Id take 250 and straight all day. Forget trying to work the ball for dog legs, etc. Straight bullets all day long makes me happy.
 
it depends on what kind of course your playing. if you dont have lots of trees ect and can get a clear shot at the green the longer drive is better. if your playing a tight course with woods or lots of water i would dial it back for more accuracy.
 
I think it really depends on your definition of accurate.

If you're only a few yards off the fairway and consider that to be inaccurate but still usually have a somewhat decent line into the green then I'd go distance every single time, but if inaccurate for you is 2 fairways over then it's distance all the way.

Personally I'm fine with giving up a bit of accuracy for distance especially on the course that I play most of the time. It's fairly wide open and the rough isn't all that thick so you can get away with the occasional missed shot
 
Accuracy absolutely. The course I usually play has no rough to speak of but all those 70 year old pines with tons of squirrel holes under them don't allow much of a swing. Several that I occasionally play have thick nasty rough that is tough to get out of.

In all cases the middle of the fairway is a nicer place to be even if you are a few yards shorter.
 
My last round I hit 12 of 14 fairways 1 because I did not know where it was (new course) and the other missed by less than 10yds. I was also hitting the ball long off the tee and with the roll my avg. was 270 with a couple right at 300. But I will still trade fairways for distance any day. Now if I can get my short game down.
 
I with the side that says "how bad is the miss". If the miss is a lost ball or OB or in jail, I'd take the shorter distance with accuracy. But if missing a fairway is just a few yards off to the side with a clear shot, I'll take the distance. I would much rather be 125 in the rough with a clear shot than 175 in the fairway regardless of how far the tee shot is hit. Granted, much of it depends on the course and the rough conditions, but if it's at one of my local courses that I know, I can handle the rough there so give me the distance.
 
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I'd love to be long and accurate, but I'm OK with my 240/250 average drives while hitting 85% of the fairways. Todays marketing has everyone chasing distance, but I don't buy into the hype and I chase accuracy.
 
Hell I'd enjoy being short and accurate :D
 
RoundersRob said:
At the end of the program, the group that worked on their short game improved their scores by an average of about 2 shots per round. The group that worked on accuracy was nearly double that, at 3.5 shots per round but they also found that they had sacrificed an average of 30 or more yards off the tee.
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Exactly why I answered "tee shot" on the most important part of your game thread.

I'll take the loss of 30 yds all day long. My tee shots have been killing my game.
 
C-Mac13 you say this but how many times do you hit something besides a driver off the tee?
Not picking on you but most say this and then only hit Driver off the tee. I say this because my handicap dropped 2 points last summer and I was only using a strong 3-wood off the tee. What I found out was that even though I was shorter off the tee, even if I had been longer it doesn't help me that much. What I mean by that is I can't reach the par 5's in two no matter what club I hit off the tee and it also forces me to think my way through a hole as I tend to plan where I want to be for my next shot more than if I just hit a driver and tried to hit it as far as I can. If being longer does help you hit those par 5's in two then by all means consider when the risk is worth it. That wasn't the only thing that helped my handicap, for me the mashie hybrids and the confidence I have in them actually was a great help also. Hope this helps.
 
Like they've always said, they award the trophy to the winner on the final green not the fairway. It doesn't matter how far you hit it, but how many strokes it takes you to pick your ball out of the hole. Accuracy > Distance without accuracy.
 
I think a lot of players put to much emphasis on hitting fairways. Most of the courses us amateurs play don't have US Open rough. Being in the rough doesn't penalize a tee shot as much as being behind a tree or in a lake. I'm a 6hcp and I rarely hit more than 4 or 5 fairways in a round, but I keep the ball in play. On the tee I never think fairway, all I think is "give yourself a good look at the green". I can think of 5 holes off the top of my head where I intentionally hit off the fairway because it gives me a better angle at the green. I'm not saying everyone should start hitting their tee shots in the rough, just that It's all about playing to your strengths. The tee shot is like any other shot in that you want to play a shot that puts you in the best position for your next shot. I've always been able to hit my driver relatively straight so I use it on almost every par 4 and par 5. If there's water or OB in my driver landing zone then I'll hit 3 wood or long iron but only if I know I'm in danger of throwing away strokes. Anyone who's played long enough should know their game to the point where they can do the same. But I never understood the player who takes their driver out of the bag and just plays 3 woods off the tee. If you can hit a 3 wood, you should be able to hit a driver. It's a very similar swing... sorry I'm rambling.

I guess my point is that I feel there's a fine line between the importance of accuracy and distance. You can't throw one away for the other. Accuracy and distance both come with finding the right clubs/shafts and most of all practice. If you have 14 clubs in your bag, you should be comfortable with every one of them.
 
majBC said:
C-Mac13 you say this but how many times do you hit something besides a driver off the tee?
Not picking on you but most say this and then only hit Driver off the tee. I say this because my handicap dropped 2 points last summer and I was only using a strong 3-wood off the tee. What I found out was that even though I was shorter off the tee, even if I had been longer it doesn't help me that much. What I mean by that is I can't reach the par 5's in two no matter what club I hit off the tee and it also forces me to think my way through a hole as I tend to plan where I want to be for my next shot more than if I just hit a driver and tried to hit it as far as I can. If being longer does help you hit those par 5's in two then by all means consider when the risk is worth it. That wasn't the only thing that helped my handicap, for me the mashie hybrids and the confidence I have in them actually was a great help also. Hope this helps.
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Quite frequently actually. I use my 3w or 5w most of the time. I have just got in this funk that I'm trying to get out of. I play a lot of non-muni courses so most holes are OB left or right. I think one of my problems was I was playing too small of a grip. I just changed them and had a good range session last night. I have got two tournaments this weekend so we'll see how it goes.
 
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