One on-course strategy mistake we make that leads to way more bogeys and other than pars is to hit a shot and miss the green on the short side.
Hitting a shot short-sided is when you miss the green on the side of the green on which the pin is located, leaving you with a very difficult chip in long grass and no green to work with, a monstrous task.
For example, if the pin is on the left side of the green and you miss the green to the left, you’ve short-sided yourself and made life more difficult. You have less green area with which to work when chipping the ball and rolling it toward its target.
Such a situation means you will have to be able to hit a high shot that lands very softly or land the ball in the rough and calculate correctly the number of bounces it will take to trickle onto the green and finish close to the pin. Both shots require high skill, are super risky and have a low percentage of success, likely adding an extra shot or two to your score.
Playing strategy against the short side takes place in the fairway and is based on the shape of your shot. Let’s say you’re staring at a pin located on the right side of the green and your ball curves from left to right. If you were taking dead aim at the pin and your ball curves to the right, there will be no space on the green for the ball to stop rolling and it’ll end up in the rough. You’ll be left in a sticky situation.
This player needs to aim at the fat part of the green and leave extra room for the curvature. By playing away from the short side, you’ll be aiming at the side of the green with the most putting surface. You’ll ultimately have more room for error.
If you’re playing away from the short side and hit the side of green with more space on it, for most of us, a longer putt is easier than a delicate chip or pitch shot.
What if you still don’t hit the green? If you’re playing smart and still miss the wider area of the green, you’ll be left with a chip shot that offers more green to utilize and more space to get the ball to stop rolling near the pin.
Play smart: Don’t be short-sighted and short-side yourself when trying to hit a green. It can have monstrous results on your score.
This wraps up another season of Amen Corner. Special thanks for the positive responses from readers. I’m grateful to have the opportunity to share fun golf tidbits. Have a great rest of the golf season. Practice, practice, practice and we’ll see you next year!
Peter Harris is the director of Golf at the Fore-U Golf Center in West Lebanon. His column appears in the weekly Recreation page during the golf season.