mr.hicksta

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While playing today, one of my drives ended up in the fairway of the previous hole. After hitting my approach shot Mark_UK and I were discussing whether or not my tee shot was a FIR. I honestly didn't know and had operated on the approach if it's in a fairway it's a FIR. As far as putts are concerned, the discussion surrounded whether putting from off the green is still counted as a putt. So what I'm wondering is:

1. If your tee shot ends up in the fairway next to the hole you're playing is it still a FIR?

2. If you're putting from the fringe, does is still count as a putt?

Thanks for educating me :D
 
It does not count as a hit fairway. It also is not a hit fairway if you land short of the green on a par three, even if the grass is cut to fairway length.

A shot taken with your putter from the fringe (or anywhere other than the actual green) is not a putt. If it counted as a putt it would skew your Greens in Regulation stat.
 
FIRs are also overrated. I can hit a tee shot 30 yds off the tee and if it lands in the short grass of the hole I'm playing I'm in the fairway in regulation, even though it was a horrible shot. And I've done it. Probably the most important statistic is Greens In Regulation. The more of those you hit the better your chance for a low score.

See Paula Creamer hit only 4 fairways on her way to a 66 @ the Pure Silk Championship. She was in the first cut or hit otherwise playable drives and was able to have a very high number of GIRs.

I'd rather hit a drive 280 yds in the first or second cut (not US Open length) than 240 yds in the fairway. Honestly I can't hit a drive 280. I'd like to, but that's probably not in the cards. For me it's more like 240 in the first or second cut vs 210 in the fairway.
 
It does not count as a hit fairway. It also is not a hit fairway if you land short of the green on a par three, even if the grass is cut to fairway length.

A shot taken with your putter from the fringe (or anywhere other than the actual green) is not a putt. If it counted as a putt it would skew your Greens in Regulation stat.

Thanks for the clarification!

FIRs are also overrated. I can hit a tee shot 30 yds off the tee and if it lands in the short grass of the hole I'm playing I'm in the fairway in regulation, even though it was a horrible shot. And I've done it. Probably the most important statistic is Greens In Regulation. The more of those you hit the better your chance for a low score.

See Paula Creamer hit only 4 fairways on her way to a 66 @ the Pure Silk Championship. She was in the first cut or hit otherwise playable drives and was able to have a very high number of GIRs.

I'd rather hit a drive 280 yds in the first or second cut (not US Open length) than 240 yds in the fairway. Honestly I can't hit a drive 280. I'd like to, but that's probably not in the cards. For me it's more like 240 in the first or second cut vs 210 in the fairway.

I agree that GIR are more important, but I would also say it's a bit easier to get more GIRs if you're making your approach from the fairway instead of the rough. Now in the first cut the difference is probably negligible, but for me FIRs help show if my accuracy is improving even if there are a few outliers sprinkled in (i.e. the skulled tee shot that goes 120 yards and ends up in the fairway).
 
Game Golf does wrongly count a different fairway as a fairway hit though, or the last time it happened to me it did. Not sure if it still does.
 
Maybe if you aimed for the wrong fairway.....
 
And to be fair the lie is going to be better in the wrong fairway than the correct rough
 
FIR and putts

A putt isn't counted towards your putt total until it's on the green. If you putt from off the green, it's just considered a normal stroke. At least that's always been the belief I have had/been taught.

Edit: just saw Smalls response, but still true.
 
The pga also has the stat GIR + fringe in regulation as well I believe. Not much they don't track.
 
A putt isn't counted towards your putt total until it's on the green. If you putt from off the green, it's just considered a normal stroke. At least that's always been the belief I have had/been taught.

Edit: just saw Smalls response, but still true.

Correct and I have never heard of FIR......
 
And to be fair the lie is going to be better in the wrong fairway than the correct rough
The lie might be but in my neck of the woods, with trees typically separating holes, you're only option is probably to play down the wrong fairway until you get an open shot at the green. Trying to get back onto the proper hole involves a whole lot of factors that typically make double bogey for me a reality.
 
FIRs are also overrated. I can hit a tee shot 30 yds off the tee and if it lands in the short grass of the hole I'm playing I'm in the fairway in regulation, even though it was a horrible shot.
.

Agree and this is why many stats can often be misleading if one wants to use them to gain info about their own play.
 
I tracked FIRs and GIRs for a few months and noticed the number my GIRs are significantly higher when I'm playing from a fairway. Come'on, it's not rocket science...

Last year, because my GIR numbers were nowhere near where I know they need to be for me to go low, I spent a lot of time working on my approach game. My approach game improved but my GIR's did not.

Now I'm working on FIR numbers. However, my emphasis isn't on my driver, regardless of that being the culprit of my low FIR numbers over the past year. I'm bringing into play other clubs off the tee, basically what I need to hit that'll leave me between 100 & 150.

And yes, FIRs only count when your ball comes to rest in the fairway of the hole you're playing.
And yes, Putts only count when you're putting on the putting surface/green.
 
FIRs are also overrated. I can hit a tee shot 30 yds off the tee and if it lands in the short grass of the hole I'm playing I'm in the fairway in regulation, even though it was a horrible shot. And I've done it. Probably the most important statistic is Greens In Regulation. The more of those you hit the better your chance for a low score.

For me, FIRs are not overrated, they are directly related to a higher number of GIRs. However, when I'm keeping my stats, I won't count a short miss-hit as a FIR even if the location of where the ball has come to rest is on the fairway. Same is true when I'm tracking GIRs; if I miss-hit a ball but get "lucky" by the ball stopping on the green, it's not a GIR on my stat card.
 
"Putts" does not mean strokes you take with your putter. You could use a driver on the green and it is considered a putt.
 
I may just miss the fairway, but if I put my drive in a good spot and it was the shot I wanted to hit, I mark it as a FIR. I only count putts on the green and not chutts.
 
There is the occasion where I slice the ball and it miraculously bounces from the trees onto the fairway and I DO NOT count this as a FIR. Tracking stats is a way for me to track my progress, counting that situation as a FIR would skew my ACTUAL results.
 
"Putts" does not mean strokes you take with your putter. You could use a driver on the green and it is considered a putt.

yes technically, and not that anyone would do this anyway but if one wished to gain info from a stat pertaining to their putter use then he shouldn't count that as a putt. It doesnt offer telling info for how well/poorly one is using the putter
 
Lexi Thompson used her putter to a short pin from off the green during the last tournament. It was considered a chip, not a putt. Anything off the green surface is not considered a putt.

Also if you hit an errant approach shot and it hits a tree and ricochets onto the green it still counts as a GIR. Think about how many times you've hit a shot that was on target that hit a thin branch and it got deflected out of bounds - it was otherwise a perfect shot, yet it counts as out of bounds. Why shouldn't you count that as a well struck perfect shot? See? It balances out.

You hit your tee shot into the tall grass. Then pushed your approach shot but it hit the top lip of the bunker just right and rolled onto the green, saving you from hacking your way out of that hell hole. You drain your putt for a birdie. Do you count it? Heck yes.
 
Lexi Thompson used her putter to a short pin from off the green during the last tournament. It was considered a chip, not a putt. Anything off the green surface is not considered a putt.

Also if you hit an errant approach shot and it hits a tree and ricochets onto the green it still counts as a GIR. Think about how many times you've hit a shot that was on target that hit a thin branch and it got deflected out of bounds - it was otherwise a perfect shot, yet it counts as out of bounds. Why shouldn't you count that as a well struck perfect shot? See? It balances out.

You hit your tee shot into the tall grass. Then pushed your approach shot but it hit the top lip of the bunker just right and rolled onto the green, saving you from hacking your way out of that hell hole. You drain your putt for a birdie. Do you count it? Heck yes.

I agree. A GIR is GIR.
 
I tracked FIRs and GIRs for a few months and noticed the number my GIRs are significantly higher when I'm playing from a fairway. Come'on, it's not rocket science...

Last year, because my GIR numbers were nowhere near where I know they need to be for me to go low, I spent a lot of time working on my approach game. My approach game improved but my GIR's did not.



Now I'm working on FIR numbers. However, my emphasis isn't on my driver, regardless of that being the culprit of my low FIR numbers over the past year. I'm bringing into play other clubs off the tee, basically what I need to hit that'll leave me between 100 & 150.

And yes, FIRs only count when your ball comes to rest in the fairway of the hole you're playing.
And yes, Putts only count when you're putting on the putting surface/green.
Yeah my GIR is way better from the fairway. Think 63% ish to 41% ish when I miss
 
Bubba was asked about his 2 fairways hit and he kind of laughed and said, "I'm not worried about fairways. I'm trying to get the right angle."
 
Not sure about the exact lay out of the course but I have played plenty of holes where the left rough is better than the right half of the fairway assuming you aren't behind a tree. That said he sounded like a prick the way he answered but maybe that is because I am not a Bubba fan.
 
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