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Strategy: The short/driveable par 4

This is easy for me to answer because for me there is no such animal as a driveable Par 4. On a short par 4, I may use something other than a driver for position, but I am never under the illusion that I can get there off the tee. Heck, sometimes I have to attack a long Par 3 as if it were a short Par 4.
 
Two options. Bombs away or layup before any trouble with hybrid. At sub 300 yards it is probably 3.9 strokes on average. Not enough risk/reward to push one way or the other. Comes down to how the day is going. Who tees off first. Obviously this is a disappointing bogie, possibly a disappointing par depending on your wedge shot. If you are landing this green & sticking it. Good on you!!

One time proposition on the final hole for the match.... hybrid to avoid a bad break in the rough or sand. Not sexy but most of the time it will be a par for a tie & a playoff.
 
no difference in strategy regardless of playing stroke or match. it's a layup. assuming i'm playing the tips, i'd hit 4h off the tee looking to get 205-220. aim at the bunker complex on the right and look for a little draw. sw or lw into the green, depending on how it "feels" when i'm standing over the ball. hopefully get it close enough to roll in a bird.
 
I'd hit driver here about 95% of the time.
 
Go for it every single time,make my short game do the talking

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With the updated graphic in the first post that changes my mind. Actually have a very similar hole on a course we played Sunday.

I went 6i followed by knock down AW to about 12 feet behind the hole and missed the birdie. So no...not driving for it in this scenario.
 
I go for it every time sand is not really trouble in my mind if it was protected by water that changes my mind

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If I am feeling real good then I will think driver and go for it however most times I will go heavenwood, hybrid, long iron and just trust my short game.


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Depends on how I have hit my driver during the round AND what the match score is.

If I am down, driver.
If I am up, lay up.
Even? If I have been hitting my driver well, I will stick with it. If not, lay up.
 
It all depends on how I've been hitting the driver that day. More than likely I'm going for it. If my driver has been off, I'm pulling 3w and getting it within a very short wedge shot to the green and try to get up and down for birdie.
 
I could probably get there with a big swing... but that would probably put me on the left side, beneath those trees, in the thick rough.

So... 5 iron which would leave me about 90 yards... and I'd then thin a gap wedge into the pond behind the green. I'd drop and hit a wedge deep onto the green and then three-putt for a triple when I probably would have hit my driver onto the front edge and two-putted for a birdie.

Which means I'll go to the bar after the round and tell everybody about the birdie I should have had instead of the triple I ended up with.

Yep... that sounds about right.
 
Didn't come all this way to lay up...
 
With 'magical distance' to reach it, I would first want to know the elevation difference between the tee and the green and the contours on and around the green. That's likely to affect where a miss ends up and holding green vs. roll-out into the water.

Assuming level elevations, I would probably go for it with a high trajectory favoring the front right side of the green. If I was striking poorly, I might lay up left & a bit short of the 50 yard fairway bunker as a bad mishit on the drive might end up there. More inclination to lay up with poor striking day in match play.
 
In a match it would depend on the circumstance. If I'm down or even, go big or go home and pull out the driver. If I'm ahead it would depend how much I am up. 1 up, lay up. 2 up, go for it.
 
I'm hitting an 8 iron off the tee, that should leave with with a gap wedge or PW in, which is my happy place.
 
220 to 240 I'll go for it. So if I'm on the gold tee I'll be aiming left side of the green for a fade. I'm going to need some roll, meaning hard fairway.

I don't think I can reach it from the black and white tees, so if the bunkers are in play, lay up.

In a game during New Year's Eve, I drove to 220 and the ball plugged 5 yards short of the green and rolled back a yard. The par was still good, considering the other guys went OB.
 
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Strategy: The short/driveable par 4

I couldn't make it on the green anyways if we are not playing the golf tees. so I would lay up to around 100 yards and try to hit a wedge close.


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If I was playing with my buddies and hitting the ball reasonably well, go for it just for fun. Even from 291 at least I'll have a short to mid wedge shot in if I hit a pretty good one. Match play there's way more that I'll consider. Laying up to a number is a serious option, but it depends on how I'm playing and hitting certain clubs that day.
 
Ricky_davis13 said:
With no danger, why wouldn't you go for it? The worst you could do is have a short pitch or maybe a putt from the fringe if you miss the green, which can be a pretty high percentage shot. I say go for it all day
Click to expand...

I agree. Go, all day, everyday.
 
I'm pulling driver 9/10 times. The only real hazard for me I see is leaving it out to the right and catching the cart path. Then it seems like it would be a struggle to score from there.


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4 wood, and then a halfish wedge shot.

Jack
 
No chance of me driving it. I go 5 wood, LW, tap in for birdie.

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At AS, or tied in stroke, im going to hit right up to the first bunker. While i could potentially carry the first bunker, its such a small landing area, just not worth it. Ill let my wedge and putter win it.

~Rock

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No such thing as a drivable par 4 for me so driver off the tee every time.
 
No more driveable par 4's for me anymore. I'd hit whatever club would leave me 100 yards.
 
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