Hole distances how do you read them?

["Richard"]

for example, the first hole at stonebridge (west 1). Its 384yrds from the tees I would play. Does that mean from the tee box in a direct line to the green (is it front or middle?) is 384 yards? Or does it mean its 184yrds to the blue stake and then from there its another 200? 234 to the white marker and then another 150yrds from there? Its strange I've never thought of asking about this before and its never even corssed my mind while playing a dog leg (that I can remember). Because if its 384 straight then how would I know how far it is to the blue stake? or the white stake? which club to use to play my shot off the tee?

[Kilroy]

Usually doglegs are measured along the center of the fairway. The yardage markers in the fairway are measured directly to the center of the green.

[leftylucas]

Hey thotho, many players, when looking at a hole will do the opposite of what you have mentioned. They will take the yardage but from the pin back. If they have a favorite yardage, i.e. 135 yds for me, they will take the club(s) & strokes that will get them to that yardage. For Stonebridge W1, a driver to the 135 marker would require a risky shot for me over the water. I would prefer clubing down to let's say 150 yds and take my 7 iron to the elevated green. Course knowledge has a lot to do with deciding which club I will take off the tee and what I want to have left into the green, not simply the yardage.

The most important decision for me after that is to decide which club to take once I have arrived at the desired yardage, if I am lucky enough to have succeeded in getting there. Again I may be at the desired yardage but the wind and pin placement and where my ball has ended up in relation to the above all affect my choice.

Its sounds really stupid but its pretty cool, one can mimick PS2 Tiger Woods 2006, its great to practice course management. You are given all of the information at each hole and a flyby of the hole shows the pin placement, wind, hazards, yardage etc... Once you get in the habit of looking at holes this way it is a great way to get a game plan together which I am convinced leads to good decisions on the course and hopefully better scores. Once you are committed to a club and where to hit it, half the battle is over. Now its all up to us to execute!!! Not always the way we want but hey, that's why we play after all.

[Pinshark]

I dont know about measurments nut West #1 Stonebridge is for sure a driver POW!

[shovellover]

Hey thotho, many players, when looking at a hole will do the opposite of what you have mentioned. They will take the yardage but from the pin back. If they have a favorite yardage, i.e. 135 yds for me, they will take the club(s) & strokes that will get them to that yardage. For Stonebridge W1, a driver to the 135 marker would require a risky shot for me over the water. I would prefer clubing down to let's say 150 yds and take my 7 iron to the elevated green. Course knowledge has a lot to do with deciding which club I will take off the tee and what I want to have left into the green, not simply the yardage.

The most important decision for me after that is to decide which club to take once I have arrived at the desired yardage, if I am lucky enough to have succeeded in getting there. Again I may be at the desired yardage but the wind and pin placement and where my ball has ended up in relation to the above all affect my choice.

Its sounds really stupid but its pretty cool, one can mimick PS2 Tiger Woods 2006, its great to practice course management. You are given all of the information at each hole and a flyby of the hole shows the pin placement, wind, hazards, yardage etc... Once you get in the habit of looking at holes this way it is a great way to get a game plan together which I am convinced leads to good decisions on the course and hopefully better scores. Once you are committed to a club and where to hit it, half the battle is over. Now its all up to us to execute!!! Not always the way we want but hey, that's why we play after all.

See, but the problem with mimicking TW is on there i routinely fire at pins 290+ yds away with a 1i & spin it.

I just pick a good spot to be in the fw & fire away. That doesn't always mean hitting a driver on par5's. For an amazing stretch of golf last summer, i was hitting 2i off the tee on half the par5's i played. Parred a bunch of them, birdied a few, & took a big number out of the equation.

As for yardages, i gave up last year & bought a yardage book for my home course. When you're standing in the fw on a dogleg & the 100yd marker is on some weird angle to the green, you never know if it's going short or over the green.

[leftylucas]

Sorry, I did not mean to mimick TW himself, I meant to mimick the golf management approach of the PS2 game itself. When you play you are given all the conditions (wind, fairway) a flyby of the hole, yardage and pin posiiton. That gives me a good mental picture of how to approach the hole.

[shovellover]

I was just messing with you, man.

I'm a big backer of intelligent course management. I don't think i'll be winning any LD contests anytime soon, so to maximize my advantages, i have to think my way around a course.

This is where being a really good wedge player comes into being. Same with putting. Also, i think my aquisition of a 7wd is really gonna help my GIR stats. Plus, when going for the green in 3 or 4 on a par5 is a realistic possibility, you need to know if you can hit that little 50 yarder or not.

[4jag]

I shake my head whenever anyone who hits more then 225yrds pulls out the driver on Stonebridge W1 (or any hole before #5 for that matter). Driver brings fescue, water and OB right and left in to play. Even a "great" drive over the far end of the pond for long hitters brings the f/w bunker into play and/or leaves a tricky half wedge to green. There is no reward for the risk.