Golf

The whole playbook on one scannable page — course management, shot selection, scoring math, and the pro frameworks, distilled for the pocket.

Everything worth knowing about playing smarter golf on one page — distilled from tour-data breakdowns and pro coaching into decisions and numbers you can scan on the tee and study at home. Favors decisions over swing mechanics: this is about scoring, not your takeaway.

If you remember one thing

Pick a specific target inside a wide zone, make your stock swing, and aim so both edges of your miss are playable. Decision first, swing second — that's where the strokes are.

Pre-shot routine — every swing, no exceptions

Behind the ball, pick a target + intermediate point. One purposeful practice swing. Step in, set the clubface first, feet second. One look, pull the trigger — no third look. Target ~15–20 seconds from behind-the-ball to swing.

By phase of play

PRE-ROUND

Arrive 30–45 min early — a rushed warm-up is worse than none
Warm up wedges → irons → driver → wedges (feel, power, rhythm)
Circle tucked pins; pre-commit a plan on your 2–3 trouble holes
Greens: a few long lags for speed, then short putts for confidence

TEE

Specific target in the widest part of the landing zone
Stock swing at 75–80% — no steering, no speed manipulation
Tee low (Bullet) for wind/tight, high (Bomb) for carry
65-yd window: ≥ 65 swing free; < 65 club down or pick a side
Aim away from penalty hazards; play the visible fairway

APPROACH

Fat of the green, not the pin; confirm the safe miss side
Never short-side (red zone) — aim at safe "yellow" zones
Front pins club up / land long · back pins land short
Tucked pin → aim 12 ft to the safe side
Use a runout number (slope + descent), not static carry

WEDGES

Distance by backswing length, never by swinging harder/softer
Vertical miss runs ~1.7× the horizontal — guard long/short
Low flight: ball back, steep strike, launch ~50% of loft
Know your carry numbers across swing lengths

SHORT GAME

Lowest-risk option that works
Putt → hybrid-chip → bump-and-run → pitch → flop
Keep it low and slow; stand close, choke down, quiet wrists
Aim for ≥ 50% rollout; land on the green, never the fringe

BUNKERS

Greenside: open face/stance, weight forward, hit 2" behind, accelerate
Fairway: extra club for the lip, grip down, ball-first — stability first
Plugged: close the face, steep attack, expect runout (no spin)

PUTTING

First putt is a lag to a 3-ft circle, not the cup
Read more break — bias high (amateurs under-read)
Read with your feet; pick the apex and aim there
Inside 5 ft: forget the read, start it on the line — target 0 three-putts

BAD LIES

Uphill: higher/shorter — club up, swing with the slope
Downhill: lower/hotter — club down, stay down
Ball above feet: pulls left → aim right, grip down
Below feet: pushes right → aim left, more knee flex
Flyer rough: +1–2 clubs, no spin, expect release

RECOVERY

Boring golf: take your medicine, kill the double bogey
Back in play with a 90%+ shot — no miracle shapes
Needs two miracles? It's a sideways punch-out, every time
Never recover within 3 clubs of fresh trouble

CONDITIONS

Into: club up, smooth tempo, ball back · down: club down only if runout's safe
Cross: aim into it and let it bring the ball back
Cold < 50°F club up · altitude +2% / 1,000 ft
Links: run it, low flight · wind up top is 1.5–2× the ground

PAR 5s

Plan back from a layup you love (full wedge beats an awkward 40)
Go in 2 only if: clean lie, nothing short, 6/10 execution, no green-side hazard
Never lay up to an awkward number
Target zero bogeys on par 5s

RISK / REWARD

80% rule: can't do it 4 of 5 times → EV is negative
Compare expected strokes, not best-case outcomes
Play for the number that keeps the next shot comfortable

HEAD GAME

Commit before the trigger — uncertain? back off and re-commit
One shot at a time; grade on process, not score
Pressure: breathe 4 in / 6 out, conservative target, no card math until 18
Self-talk in nouns — "good lie," never "don't chunk it"

CLUB CHOICE

Driver if the fairway's > 30 yd wide and it won't run through; else fairway wood
Hybrid for height/forgiveness; long iron for low / into-wind / shaping
Gap your wedges tight — that's your scoring zone
Default to forgiveness over shot-shaping

TRACK & PRACTICE

One line per hole: tee / fairway / approach / short / putts
Rolling 10-round averages — ignore single rounds
Practice 60 / 25 / 15: short game · wedge distance · full swing
Fix one leak at a time; strokes hide in approach & around the green

Quick math

Stack the yardage adjustments — they compound. Skipping one leaves you short; missing all three is the difference between a green in regulation and short-sided in the bunker.

Condition	Rule of thumb
Into wind	+1 club / 10 mph (~1% per mph)
Helping wind	~0.5% per mph (helps less than it hurts)
Cold	−~1% carry per 10°F below 70°F
Heat (> 85°F)	+2 to 5 yds
Altitude	+~2% carry per 1,000 ft
Uphill / downhill	+1 yd / 3 ft up · −1 yd / 3 ft down
Flyer (rough)	+1–2 clubs, no spin, expect release
Late round (16+)	−2 to −5 yds (fatigue)

Worked example — 150 yd, 50°F, 8 mph into, 15 ft uphill → +3 (cold) +12 (wind) +5 (rise) = play the 170 club, not the 150.

Chip carry-to-rollout on a firm green — land it on the green and let it run:

Club	Carry : roll
8-iron	1 : 2
PW	1 : 1
54°	2 : 1
58°	2.5 : 1
60°	3 : 1

The wedge matrix

Your single biggest scoring zone. Dial distance with backswing length at constant tempo — never by swinging harder or softer. Measure carry for each cell (PW + four wedges) and you own ~20 known numbers from roughly 30–130 yds.

Swing	Feel	Carry vs. full
Full	Full shoulder turn, balanced finish	100%
3/4	"9 to 3" — forearm to forearm	~80–85%
1/2	Hip to hip	~60–65%
Pitch	Knee to knee, low finish	~40–45%

Know your numbers

Use rolling 5–10-round averages — never react to a single round. The stat furthest below your target range is your biggest scoring opportunity; work there first.

Stat	10-handicap	5-handicap
GIR %	30–40%	45–55%
Fairways hit %	40–50%	50–60%
Putts per round	32–34	30–32
Up-and-down %	30–40%	45–55%
Sand save %	20–30%	35–45%
Penalty strokes	< 2	< 1
3-putts	< 2	< 1

Find your leak, in order (earlier items cost the most strokes) — fix one per 4–6 weeks:

Penalties > 2/round → a tee-shot decision problem. Cheapest strokes to recover.
3-putts > 2/round → lag speed. Practice long putts, not short ones.
GIR below range → approach distance control. Drill ¾ wedges + mid-iron dispersion.
Up-and-down < 30% → short-game technique. Hours here pay off fast.
Fairways < 40% → driver accuracy. Club down off the tee more often.

Practice budget — scale the hours, keep the ratio: 60% short game + putting · 25% wedge distance · 15% full swing. Run 70% random / 30% block reps so it transfers to the course.

Risk in strokes

The math behind every "go vs. lay up." Compare expected strokes, not best-case outcomes — bad misses cost more than great shots gain, which is why the boring play usually wins.

Situation	Strokes to hole out
150 yd approach from fairway	3.0
150 yd approach from rough	3.3
100 yd approach from fairway	2.8
Greenside bunker, 10 yd	2.5
Green, 30 ft putt	2.0
Green, 10 ft putt	1.6
Green, 3 ft putt	1.05

Mid-round fixes

When a pattern emerges, try the simplest fix first — don't rebuild your swing on the 12th hole, and never run two swing thoughts at once.

Symptom	First fix
Slice / block right	Strengthen the lead-hand grip
Hook / pull left	Weaken the grip; slow the tempo
Thin contact	Ball position 1 forward; stay in posture
Chunked shots	Ball 1 back; feel weight forward at impact
Shanks	Stand 1" farther from the ball; grip down ½"
Lost distance	Finish with belt buckle to target; smoother, not harder
Wedges coming up short	Commit to a fuller follow-through
Short putts pushed/pulled	Soften grip pressure; eyes over the ball

The pros' four zeros — protect these and good scores take care of themselves

0 double bogeys · 0 bogeys from inside 150 yards · 0 three-putts · 0 bogeys on par 5s. Aggressive swing, conservative target — pin-high beats pin-accurate.