[glopomcyte]

Here are some pics I took with some buddies that played with me a couple weeks ago.....will help get an understanding how tight it is in the spring/summer when the trees are green:

Hole 13, Par 4, Appx 360 yards


Hole 12, Par 4, Approx 430 yards


Hole 17, Par 4, Approx 370 yards


Hole 9, Par 4, Approx 400 yards


Hole 5, Par 3, Approx 185 yards

[FuXA8nQM]

In the past year and a half I've started to add more variety to what I tee off with - I find myself only hitting the driver 4 or 5 times in certain rounds these days. I tee off with my 3-wood a lot, my 5-wood a lot, sometimes an iron if necessary.

At a local course nearby we have a really interesting hole that brings this debate into play and I love to see how people play it. From the tips, you can lay-up about 220 yards to the end of the fairway. After that, the fairway ends and you dip into a giant grass basin. So, you're still fine and still in play if you blast it into the basin but you're hitting from the rough and uphill to the green (no more fairway on the hole - just the green that is surrounded by some woods). A lot of people that I play with elect to blast a driver down into the basin and attempt to take their chances from there. I, every single time, hit a comfortable lay-up shot down to the end of the fairway. Leaves me with about 130 yards to the pin. I just about always score a birdie or par on this hole. Most everyone I see that hits driver and puts it down in the basin ends up carding a 4 at best, usually a 5 or a 6. Really neat hole - you can't go left off of the tee or you'll end up in the woods. You can't go right or you're stuck dead behind a giant tree and you'll just have to pitch it back into the fairway. So, your only options off of the tee are either a nice, safe, straight lay-up shot or a blast of a drive. I just love holes like this that really make a golfer think.

[Theateetetuig]

@Nate, Holes 13 and 17 seem like 3w off the tee holes. But hole number 9 looks like a BLAST THE DRIVER OVER THE DOGLEG kind of hole.

[ZZipZZipe]

@Nate, Holes 13 and 17 seem like 3w off the tee holes. But hole number 9 looks like a BLAST THE DRIVER OVER THE DOGLEG kind of hole.

I agree with you on this one Snap (although I could even go 18 deg hybrid on #17 just to get into better position for that dogleg). #9 looks like a draw hitters paradise. I can't even tell where the fairway is on #12.

[FuXA8nQM]

I was thinking the same thing on twelve, haha. Examined it for a while. Thought it was over the water at first but the tee box doesn't seem to indicate that. So, I'd guess it'd be more to the left in that picture.

[RayFairhurst]

I'm a member of a golf course out in McKinney, TX called Eldorado Country Club. It's a short course compared to today's courses and measures out to about 6,700 yards from the back tees but usually plays 50-75 yards shorter because some tee's are usually up. Par 3's are pretty tuff out there (175, 185 and 195 yards) and the 3 par 5's you can really only reach 1, maybe 2, with a very good drive placed just in the right spot. The par 4's are much shorter but usually a dog leg or some water on one side or the other. It is a pretty tight course with trees on every hole and each green has a pretty good slope on it.

I consider myself a pretty long hitter. On a tight course that sometimes gets me in trouble. BUT, when the long sticks are going well, it leaves me 50-75 yard 2nd shots into the par 4's.

My question is - Would you play this short track with tight fairways with 3 woods and irons off the tee's or would you play away with the driver and take what it gave you?

Given how I'm pretty darn lazy when I play, I'd probably hit a lot of 3-irons and rescues/3-woods off the tees and try to give myself 100-140 yard approaches. The rest is hard to say without knowledge of the rough, how easy the greens are to hold, doglegs etc etc.

Edit: OK, based on those pics.

13: Iron towards thin tree on right side of the fairway. Should leave PW/9-iron.
12: Driver I think, depends on if the water/dogleg can be carried/cut.
17: Iron/3W, depends on how far it is to the dogleg and what's beyond.
9: Driver.
5: Looks like a 6-iron.

[ZZipZZipe]

I was thinking the same thing on twelve, haha. Examined it for a while. Thought it was over the water at first but the tee box doesn't seem to indicate that. So, I'd guess it'd be more to the left in that picture.

I thought that as well at first glance but upon further inspection it could be one of those risk/reward holes. Bail out with iron to the left (probably why the tee boxes are pointed that way) then approach across water or bomb away across water with sand as a penalty if you're not accurate. Could be wrong though.

[rengerts]

I like to keep the ball in play as much as possible so hybrids from the tee. Much prefer to hit a full shot into a green than a half shot.

[ballingham]

@Nate, Holes 13 and 17 seem like 3w off the tee holes. But hole number 9 looks like a BLAST THE DRIVER OVER THE DOGLEG kind of hole.

Those do look like some tight fairways. I have to agree with Snap Hook on those decisions.
Of course, if I'm really feeling it, I may hit driver on any of the par 4's.

[glopomcyte]

I was thinking the same thing on twelve, haha. Examined it for a while. Thought it was over the water at first but the tee box doesn't seem to indicate that. So, I'd guess it'd be more to the left in that picture.

Yea, it is to the left, you have to hit something far enought to get past those 3 trees by the water and the fairway opens up some the further down you get.