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Do you enjoy scrambles/Any tips for scrambles

I'm not a huge fan because I don't get to play my game and I am presented with shots that I would not normally play.

Example - A buddy drives the ball 300+ consistently and goes after par 5s with his long irons frequently. This type play is not how I approach a golf course and I struggle to match that playing style. My conservative methodology doesn't really translate to the "go for broke" style of a scramble.
 
Everything has pretty much been covered. I play in two or three a year to support different charities. The best one of the year is the prossional association for my industry. It has turned into a 2.5 day event at a beautiful resort. Scramble is on Monday, but now most go in Saturday afternoon and hang out with quick 18 or 9. Sunday just about eveyone plays 18 holes then a big reception that night, followed by the scramble on Monday.

This year we won with a 57 and it was 100$ straight up. Our team consisted of a two guys who play to about a 5, one guy that is a 12 and myself at 17. We all litteraly played great that day. Seems like we had at least 3 balls on the green every hole to choose from. One of our guys it off the planet. He drove one green at 320 yards and was greenside bunker on another one that was 310, and to top it off he holed out his wedge from the bunker. And the 12 HC is not a great putter usually, but that day he couldn't miss.

Winning was a bonus, we go to have fun knowing the odds are slim that we'll win. But it's usually a fun day on the course and usually followed by some very good food :)
 
TheHeez said:
I'm not a huge fan because I don't get to play my game and I am presented with shots that I would not normally play.

Example - A buddy drives the ball 300+ consistently and goes after par 5s with his long irons frequently. This type play is not how I approach a golf course and I struggle to match that playing style. My conservative methodology doesn't really translate to the "go for broke" style of a scramble.
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I'm the same type player as you. But in the scramble I just posted above this. Many times I was the one to go ahead and get us in play on those par 5's and let the other 3 take a shot at the green. One of my "just get it in play shots" ended up being the best 6 iron I've ever hit and ended up only 30 yards off the green. We used it to get up and down for birdie. So everyone does have a chance to contribute.
 
If every one is honest they are fun when you see the groupe in front of you just blatently cheating they suck

Just go out and have fun don't worry about winning if you do it is icing on the cake
 
We played in a scramble last year and the group in front of us placed the longest drive pin out of anyone's reach. We sat there and watched them tee off too as the fairways were parallel to each other. All the balls came up a good 50 yds short of where they placed the pin and not only that, they all went right or left in the rough (you had to be in the fairway to count). A member of our group informed us prior to starting the round that this "cheating group" would do this on the long drive hole. And gosh darn he was right. He informed the pro but I'm unsure what the outcome was as I left shortly after returning to the clubhouse.

But as someone said, if everyone is playing fair (which is hard to tell in a scramble) they're a blast!
 
Usually they're for charity, and the prizes aren't that expensive in the ones that I play in, so I try to ignore the cheating and just try to have a good time on the course with no pressure and not worrying about hitting some loose shots.

I did play in one where I hit closest to the pin to about 8", and we had to pass that hole when we were finished, and I looked and the closest marker was about 14" away. Come to find out, the marker was in someone's line and they moved it and forgot to replace it and I was the closest of the day. After I saw that the guy that hit it to 14" was about 16 years old, I told the organizers to let him have it and not say anything about the marker being moved. It made the kid feel good and he got a dozen golf balls that would have went in my shag bag anyways.

The best score we have posted was a legitimate 59, and we had a former Mini-Tour player, two single digit handicappers and me on the team. We had the lowest cumulative score, but lost the overall to a group that shot 63, but had one scratch golfer, a 20ish handicap and two females with 36 handicaps on their team, so their net was lower than ours.
 
Unless it's a close friend or someone I haven't spent time with in a while I won't play in scrambles and then I keep my opinion of the event to myself. I like to play golf and scrambles feel like I'm playing a game of HORSE. If they are for charity I'll just stroke the check and save myself the misery.
 
The easiest way to have the most fun in scrambles is to not worry about what anyone else is doing. I've never seen anyone (except my own team) cheat during one. That's because I've never looked. If you think about it, the average scramble, at least in my area, is 50 or 60 dollars. That includes the round of golf, cart, dinner, usually a t-shirt or something and often a chance at door prizes. So if someone cheats and wins, what are they really cheating you out of?

By the way, I played in a monthly work one yesterday and we came in 3 over par, and that was with a little bit of cheating. When the top three teams shoot a 58 and two 60's, it doesn't matter what we do out there as long as we don't cheat when there is a chance of a skin or on a closest to the pin hole. So we are ethical cheaters.:alien:
 
So we had the scramble yesterday, and it was a blast! I ended up with a good group of guys, and we all played pretty well. It was a lot of fun going over a strategy of what to do from shot to shot. Gained some different insight to things.

We didn't have a lot of times where we had multiple shots to choose from, but it seemed we always had one guy come through with a good shot. We ended up posting an 8 under 64. That tied us for third place. We only had 2 holes where we screwed up, and they were in a row. Those cost us 2nd place and $75, but what can you do. The first place team posted a 60.

I parked one a foot from the hole from 140 out, and chipped one in for eagle. Those were pretty fun, and were the highlight of my day individually.
 
Those were two GREAT shots! Congrats on the 3rd place win. Glad you had fun. That's what it's about.
 
I play in a scramble every Sunday. Honestly, it's hit and miss for me. I find that I am more focused when playing my own ball. In a scramble I catch myself trying to hit shots I would not normally try to hit, simply because there is little risk. Scrambles are usually a putting contest.
 
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Neo glad you had fun and got set up with a good group.

Congrats on the great shots and on the 3rd place!
 
Erky said:
I play in a scramble every Sunday. Honstly, it's hit and miss for me. I find that I am more focused when playing my own ball. In a scramble I catch myself trying to hit shots I would not normally try to hit, simply because there is little risk. Scrambles are usually a putting contest.
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That's the whole point of scrambles, to have fun and play differently than you would if you were playing your own ball.

Glad you had fun Neoga.
 
Have fun, enjoy the company of the foursome you are in and enjoy the scramble. Like many said, there are unfortunately others that are more gifted with the pencil and you will undoubtedly be scratching your head saying, "The foursome that drank the entire round shot a -12 on the day ? " :)

Play your game and don't try to be the hero on every shot. More often than not, that tactic never goes well and I have seen grown men pouting halfway through scrambles. That isn't pretty.
 
Kobey said:
That's the whole point of scrambles, to have fun and play differently than you would if you were playing your own ball.

Glad you had fun Neoga.
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I agree. It was nice when someone before me put a good shot out there. It gave me a chance to try things I normally don't that I could add to my game. Just one instance was on a dog leg left. One guy put a decent short drive out there, so I went ahead and attempted to draw it around the dog leg. On the hole setup, I would generally not try that in a normal round. So it was cool to give it a shot; though it didn't go well :act-up:
 
neoga34 said:
I agree. It was nice when someone before me put a good shot out there. It gave me a chance to try things I normally don't that I could add to my game. Just one instance was on a dog leg left. One guy put a decent short drive out there, so I went ahead and attempted to draw it around the dog leg. On the hole setup, I would generally not try that in a normal round. So it was cool to give it a shot; though it didn't go well :act-up:
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The most fun are the "over the trees" shots on doglegs. The only problem is I try those in my regular rounds too.
 
great shots, and great job!!!

sounds like you got the best out of scrambles!!!
 
I love playing scrambles. Here are some guidelines I like to use and have been pretty successful with them.

1. Straightest hitter (fairway finder) goes first. Get a safe one in the fairway, even if you have them use a fairway wood or longer iron.
2. Biggest hitter goes last, after you have a decent one in the fairway.
3. Last 2 putters can NEVER be short on their attempts.
4. Best putter goes last.
5. Relax and have fun !

Good luck and enjoy it !
 
Drumdog said:
I love playing scrambles. Here are some guidelines I like to use and have been pretty successful with them.

1. Straightest hitter (fairway finder) goes first. Get a safe one in the fairway, even if you have them use a fairway wood or longer iron.
2. Biggest hitter goes last, after you have a decent one in the fairway.
3. Last 2 putters can NEVER be short on their attempts.
4. Best putter goes last.
5. Relax and have fun !

Good luck and enjoy it !
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I like those guidelines.

Played in a scramble tournament Sunday sponsored by Milkbone to benefit Guide Dogs of America. It's my 4th year doing it and always a fun time. We won the first two years, no luck the last two.

I enjoy the more laid back feel of the scramble for a change.
 
My favorite tourney in our area is the Powder River Invitational. It's an oilfield scramble. It's a two day four person scramble. Tee off Friday morning and usually drinking beer by 8:00 am. They have garbage cans full of beer on each hole. About every 3-4 holes they have food on the hole. Brats, breakfast sandwiches, hamburgers. It's a very slow moving tourney but you never complain about the pace of play. There's always something going on and beer to drink. After the first night they have a huge Calcutta and more drinks. You can always buy half of your team if you don't want to spend a couple of grand on yourself. The next morning is usually a little rough because of the amount of alcohol consumed the previous day but if you get back on the horse you'll be ok. After the round they have a huge dinner and give away a ton of great prizes. The whole thing is top notch and full of great people. If you've never played in an oilfield scramble you're really missing out.
 
HoselRocket104 said:
My favorite tourney in our area is the Powder River Invitational. It's an oilfield scramble. It's a two day four person scramble. Tee off Friday morning and usually drinking beer by 8:00 am. They have garbage cans full of beer on each hole. About every 3-4 holes they have food on the hole. Brats, breakfast sandwiches, hamburgers. It's a very slow moving tourney but you never complain about the pace of play. There's always something going on and beer to drink. After the first night they have a huge Calcutta and more drinks. You can always buy half of your team if you don't want to spend a couple of grand on yourself. The next morning is usually a little rough because of the amount of alcohol consumed the previous day but if you get back on the horse you'll be ok. After the round they have a huge dinner and give away a ton of great prizes. The whole thing is top notch and full of great people. If you've never played in an oilfield scramble you're really missing out.
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That sounds like a good party! With a little bit of golf on the side... After yesterday I am intrigued to now keep a look out for scrambles going on in the area. It was a lot of fun.
 
neoga34 said:
That sounds like a good party! With a little bit of golf on the side... After yesterday I am intrigued to now keep a look out for scrambles going on in the area. It was a lot of fun.
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It's a hell of a party. They also require that each player in your group get in 3 or 4 drives per round. This makes it interesting if you have a high handicapper that struggles with the driver. I've played from some crazy places on the course just to get in a players drive. It also keeps it "more" fair so you can't have the same person hitting all the drives.
 
The Blackpowder Shootout is this weekend at Powder Horn, that is a great tournament!!! two man best ball, match play, 5 matches...
 
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