LBlack14 That's what I'm saying! I don't really enjoy playing small ball even when I know it's my best shot to score. I know my problem is course management, but I don't particularly care.
I played a round with the club pro a few years back at the course I used to play all through college, just by having him tell me what to hit off the tee, I dropped a 39 on a course that had eaten me alive most of the time (averaged about a 44 on this track, it's a 9 hole course) and it's not as if I was on fire by any means. The problem is it was one of those courses where the first 4 holes are best played with a 200-250 yard, placed, tee shot. 5th is a murderous (for me) par 3, 6th is another hole that requires a fade and controlled distance, neither of which I'm good at, the 7th and 8th are bomb it holes and the 9th is another tricky par 3. Now that I lay it out there, I don't know why I like that course at all...
The first hole was rated in one of the major golf magazines as one of the top (10 I think?) hardest starting holes in the state. It's a miserable sumbitch. Par 5, dog leg left, ponds right, river and massive trees left, a drainage ditch in the prime landing area that narrows the landing area to about 25 yards, can play almost 600 yards from the tips, no real good angle into the green until about 175 yards from the green, so reaching in two is not only risky, but damn near impossible. I have played there not less than 100 times and I don't think I have been on in two more that 2 times. I consider, EVERY par 5 reachable, but I don't even bother trying anymore. It's not just the distance it's the punishment for missing.
From the back the course stretches out to 6900 yards and the greens are some of the toughest putting I have ever encountered. They let the vegetation grow up around the course to toughen it up more, but had to cut it down because the USGA re rated the slope to just under Oak Hill in difficulty. It was brutal for the average hack, which makes up a lot of the business because they charge about $20 for 9 with a cart. Well, I'm rambling. Point of story, I don't like having to over think a course, in there for fun, not work.