Making Par (Birdie) the Hard Way

I've certainly done things the hard way multiple times. The most recent one I remember is a shorter, 290 yard par 4. I pull driver, I was only about 150 yards off line, in the rough to the right. Took some shorter iron, quasi-shanked it. Had to hit a flop shot over some bushes, flew the green by about 10 yards. Then proceeded to chip in for par.

That was easy.

~Rock
 
I've had a handful of bladed iron shots that ended up within ten feet of the pin. 7 or 8 years ago I shot a PB which included a yanked iron shot on a part 3 that rattled around in a tree and dropped a foot from the cup.

I guess the one that comes to mind was a downhill par 4 that played about 400 yards. I had a pretty good round going at the time. I pulled my tee shot slightly left of the fairway and thought I was safe. As I got closer I was unpleasantly surprised to find a 10ft wide pond right in my landing zone, which of course wasn't visible from the tee. I dropped behind the pond and had about 170 yards with a couple fairly large trees in front of me. I hit a 7 iron over the trees and landed it on the fringe about 30 feet from the hole. The putt broke about 3 feet left but I drained it dead center. I let out a big "YES!", which is the only time I've ever verbally celebrated. Of course, a few holes later on the 18th I topped my tee shot into the water and took a triple, haha!
 
The best "hard-way" par I ever saw was at a guy's weekend round at Greystone in Sauk Center, MN. The 17th hole 110 yard par-3 has water short, and slew/swamp left and long left. Pin was back left.

My buddy tees up his wedge, pops that sucker straight up into the air and it lands about 5 inches from his tee. He grabs his sand wedge and sticks his second shot about as close to the pin as his first shot was to the tee. I think we all got par on the hole, but his was definately more difficult than ours.
 
This thread is great. Reading all of these stories is pretty entertaining. I can't think of anything for me right now though, maybe I have blocked them out of my memory...
 
A couple weeks ago I teed off with a hybrid to play it safe. I quit on my swing and topped it half way down the hill. Keep the same hybo in my hand thinned one low that sliced through the trees I thought it was gone but it landed in a clearing 30 yards off the green. Chipped up and drained it for a birdie.
 
Actually had one yesterday.

390 yard hole that doglegs left with water on the left so unless you hit it really far you aren't cutting the corner much. Hit a perfect drive to 150 yard marker and instead of grabbing my 7 iron like I meant to I grabbed my PW and hit it well but of course left myself a good 40 yards short of the green. Thin my chip a little bit but it checks up on the ridge in front of the green and rolls to a couple of feet where I tap in for par. :doh:
 
There is a long par 3 at my home course that you could hit anything from 5 iron to 3 wood depending on the tee and wind. On this day it played around 195, I hit a 5 iron and topped the heck out of it, leaving myself with like 115 yards in, nothing like a layup on a par 3, then I proceed to stick my wedge to about an inch for a tap in par, nothing like taking the hard way in!
 
I had the same type of thing last week. I was playing a really nice course that is out of my everyday price range. A vendor took me. I was playing the blues (6700yds) First hole was a 390 yard par4, 3H, topped to the ladies tees. 7iron layup to 100yds, topped a SW which rolled to the green and 10ft out drained the putt for par. 2nd hole flat to 290 yards and then maybe a 100 foot drop to the hole, playing about 420 total. Topped a 3w to 260 out. Hit an iron which ended up about 30yds short, mediocre pitch to 25ft, drained the putt, Even after 2.
 
I had one like this Sunday morning. About 160 over a pond that has a series of stone stepped smaller ponds in front of the green. I hit it a bit fat and thankfully my ball hit one of the stone steps and bounced forward, and just to the left of the green in some short rough. I chipped to within 3 feet of the pin, and rolled in my par putt. Not pretty, but it worked.


I had another one the previous time I played a round (back on July 3rd) on a par 5 where my tee shot went long and right and landed in a waste area. From there I hit a hybrid that did not clear a mound with some trees on it. From there another hybrid to about 75 yards from the pin in the middle of the fairway. Hit a wedge like I never hit a wedge to within a couple of feet. And rolled in a par putt.

It's those few great shots a round that keeps bringing me back out (I'm a sucker and maybe a masochist).
 
I had one earlier this year that had me fuming and then laughing and smiling.

The hole is a 440 yard Par 4 that slightly doglegs to the left. It was playing down wind and I hit a beautiful little draw right down the middle of the fairway. I was left with about 130 yards to the middle of the green and the pin was playing back left so I figured I was right around 140 to pin high. Around the green are a lot of hills and mounds and no real trouble to speak of. My "plan" for the 2nd shot was starting it in the middle of the green and then draw it back towards the flag, and well that didn't work at all as I completely pull-hooked it into the mounds left of the green short-siding myself.

At this point I've already got birdie on the mind and decide to try a pretty stupid really high flop shot. Took a decent sized swing at it and my club basically goes underneath the ball and the ball only moves forward about half the distance to the green (about 2 yards). I was kinda fuming that I'd made such a mess out of a perfect tee shot, I decided to give the flop another try. It was honestly one of my best short-game shots of the year. It bounced twice on the green and then rolled about a foot right into the cup.

I was so embarrassed of how I played the hole that all I could do was laugh with my playing partners.
 
Had a good one yesterday. Easiest hole on the course for our league. I usually hit a 5W to ~100yds as my tee shot... So I tee it up, and proceed to hit the weakest popup fade I've ever seen into the adjacent fairway. Laser the elevated pin at 163. Decide to go with my 7I (160 club) as the wind is with me and the green slopes front to back, with a tucked back pin. Proceed to land it 5 feet from the back of the green where it bounces off and down the hill on the backside. Short-sided with the corner of a bunker in play I grab my 58 and drop the ball 10 inches from a pin that's sitting on a green at my eye-level. One putt par. LOL. Too bad it was only good enough to halve the hole...
 
Last season playing with a buddy of mine was playing really well, come up on a longish Par 4, about 435. Sitting really good, slip on my drive and pop it up to center field. About 240 in, hit a low running hybrid that scoots up the neck of the green to about 6" inches for birdie...took a skin with that one as well.
 
I made a few this weekend in my District Amateur Championship. The first was day 2, 2nd hole, 540yd par 5, I hit my drive in great position. I left myself 240 to the stick, uphill dogleg to the left, the pin was on the left side of the green tucked behind some trees about 5 paces from the back edge. I line up the 3w and proceed to block it and cut it about 40 yards left of the green deep into the trees. I drop a provisional and hit the same club to about 3ft from the hole. I looked at my playing partners and made a nice subtle threat to both of them if they even thought about going into the trees to look for my first ball lol (we're all friends anyways so they knew I was kidding). Tapped in my 3 footer for par. The other that comes to mind was my 17th hole on the 3rd day. 310yd dogleg left with lots of room to bail out to the right off the tee. I was playing a fade all day long (I'm a lefty) so I aimed at the treeline giving myself about 300yds in case I hit it straight and promptly hit my first hook of the day into the thick brush on the right. I found my ball in a thorn bush and hacked it out into the rough about 70 yds from the green. I lined up my 3rd still picking thorns out of my left hand (ouch) and hit it about 10 ft past the pin giving myself a slider to the left for an improbable 4. I picked a spot 3 feet almost straight right of my ball and did the stroke and pray and somehow my ball found the bottom of the cup. Ended up finishing 5th overall by one shot, thanks to those and a few other clutch par putts.
 
Once on a short par 3 I hit 8 iron and hit the stick. The ball unfortunately bounced off the green to the right, into a bunker. I proceeded to blade my bunker shot over the green into a swamp. I found the ball, and even though it was fully submerged (maybe half an inch under the surface), I took off my shoes and socks and had a go at it. Hit a Haas-esque shot out of the water, except mine went in for par. Made me laugh.
 
I have witnessed two incredible pars in the last year or so.
One, playing with a group of guys on a par 3 over water. Guy plunks his tee shot, reloads and holes out from 178. Hole in 1...Except it was a 3.
Two, playing with Buckjob in AC. Par 4, 380 yards. He topped his drive and then topped his 2nd shot. Then hit a 265 yard 2 hybrid to the green for his third and made a 30 foot putt to save par.

i was gonna say that had to be my best par ever...... one of the things with my distance is even if i get in trouble off the tee i can usually still get myself back on track with a bad shot. but if i hit 2 bad shots on a hole its usually a miracle to make a par. That one was quite the miracle.
 
I had one earlier this year that had me fuming and then laughing and smiling.

The hole is a 440 yard Par 4 that slightly doglegs to the left. It was playing down wind and I hit a beautiful little draw right down the middle of the fairway. I was left with about 130 yards to the middle of the green and the pin was playing back left so I figured I was right around 140 to pin high. Around the green are a lot of hills and mounds and no real trouble to speak of. My "plan" for the 2nd shot was starting it in the middle of the green and then draw it back towards the flag, and well that didn't work at all as I completely pull-hooked it into the mounds left of the green short-siding myself.

At this point I've already got birdie on the mind and decide to try a pretty stupid really high flop shot. Took a decent sized swing at it and my club basically goes underneath the ball and the ball only moves forward about half the distance to the green (about 2 yards). I was kinda fuming that I'd made such a mess out of a perfect tee shot, I decided to give the flop another try. It was honestly one of my best short-game shots of the year. It bounced twice on the green and then rolled about a foot right into the cup.

I was so embarrassed of how I played the hole that all I could do was laugh with my playing partners.
Great drives always hurt the worst if you feel like they were wasted, but even as you saw here, there's more than one way to get the ball into the cup!
 
The one that stands out for me was in a scramble earlier this year, we started on a longer par three, 180ish. I was the last to go and we have no shots on the green, I proceed to hook my five iron. I put my head down and start back to the cart saying well let's get up and down for par. At which point my buddies start laughing and I look up to see my ball five feet from the pin, it had hit a tree and bounced right towards the flag. We made the birdie and were off and running.
 
Gotta love the member's bounce fairband.
 
A couple of weeks ago, I tee of on the 10th at my local 300m par 4 up a hole with no sight of the green, ball hits a tree and drops straight down by the base of it, I get up to it and have no shot for my stance as im right handed, I had to play lefthanded with the back of my 3 iron just to punch it onto the fairway, proceed to hit my 50m pitch shot just onto the front of the green with about a 4m putt, but the flag positioned on a slight hill, so im thinking just get it close for the bogey next thing a hit a great putt and it turns just at the end and drops in for par, I was so happy any body had thought id had a birdie.
 
517 yd, par 5. Blocked my tee shot dead right into the adjoining fairway, like center of the fairway, lol. I decided to advance the ball as much as possible but get it back into the correct fairway if at all possible so I hit a low punch with a 5 iron. That actually worked out pretty decent, back into the center of my fairway but still 200+ out. Hit a 3 hybrid that I managed to push right again into more tree trouble but now I'm 50 yards from the green. No chance of going over the trees so it will have to be another punch shot, took out the 5 iron again punched it between two trees and rolled it up onto the green and left myself a 5 footer for par. That was the best putt I had all day too.

Easy par
 
A little short game magic. I like it MO
 
There is a super long Par 5 on my home course, I've never gotten home in two, and really wouldn't try to, but on this occasion with a back wind I thought what the heck I'll swing for the fences, I toped my drive and barely got it back to the fairway. A popped up second with a 3 wood that was just stupid, thank goodness I actually advanced it. And for some reason I thought I'd start playing smart, but even that ended with a very chucky iron shot. Then I have like 205 out and hit the best 5 iron I've ever hit in my life, stuck it on the green about an inch from the pin for a tap in par.
 
Hawkster I had 2 today that you were interesting. Both on par 5's and both times ended up halving the hole in our little match.

First one was on the 2nd hole. Hole started out well, hit a nice drive and layed up with my hybrid. My next shot hit the middle of the green and took a little slop that left me 25-30 feet away for birdie. I know it's not interesting enough yet to be considered the hard way right? Well I thought so too, so I decided to hit my putt as hard as I could and blew it off the green, which was 15-18 feet past the hole. So with the ball off the green, in the middle of the fringe, I drained the come backer for a nice 5.

This next one was on I think the 16th. Similar start to the hole, ok drive and a layup to the middle of the fairway that left me 145 to the pin. The wind was blowing in a times and then would seemingly stop. Decided to take 1 more club but wasn't really sold on that decision. Ended up pushing the shot out to the right, it hit the cart path and shot directly to the right, towards the tall weeds. We get up to the ball and it's just past where the weeds are, but it's sitting in a trench that looks like it's used for the utility carts. To make things better, I'm short sided and there is a tree about halfway to the green that prevents me from going high. Take a GW and hit it in to the side hill rough, the ball jumps up and forward and rolls out to 6 feet. Was able to walk up and make a little breaker to save my 5.
 
On the first hole of a two man best ball yesterday I managed a par the hard way. The hole is a short par 4 that is OB all down the right. I tried to hit a little draw off the tee and ended up dead hooking it to the left. My second shot was blocked by a bush but I was able to advance it to within 100 yards and get back into the fairway. My third saved me when I hit a gap wedge to 4 feet and then made the putt. It was an adventure to start but got me rolling the right direction.
 
best birdie was a long par 5, perfect drive, top the second, top the third and drain the fourth from 210+ yards, all over water.
 
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