Three Things I Learned from Tom Watson

My oldest son read a book about how to play chess once because he wanted to have a plan to win. I’m usually not to successful at chess because even though I know how to play, I haven’t really thought about what I want to do. There are three lessons I learned from the book Tom Watson’s Strategic Golf.  The common thread between them all is to think about what I’m going to do. In the book Tom Watson discusses several game improvement strategies. The three chapters that help me the most are Club Selection and Judging Distance, and Attacking Par 3, Par 4, and Par 5 Holes and Lay Up Like a Pool Player.

“Judging distance and picking the right club for the shot are prerequisites for scoring your best.” – Tom Watson. I don’t struggle too much with judging distance and there are apps for your smart phone now that can actually tell you your distance to the hole. Swing by Swing golf has one that is pretty accurate. Apps like that do eat up your battery though so you have to be selective or bring a charging device. To score well you need to know how far you hit each club under normal conditions. Either keep a journal or record it on an app. Under clubbing when the air is damp, hitting into a strong headwind and shooting at a raised green, are common problems for those of us who are not scratch golfers. In these situations you should go one, maybe two clubs stronger. Choosing where you want the ball to go if you hit it bad may also affect your club choice. Go with what you know you can do.

Learn to think your way strategically around a golf course. To play strategically Tom stresses three dimensions to attacking each whole whether par 3, 4 or 5. You need to understand your personal capabilities, you have to understand the trouble spots of the course, and you need to play every shot with the next shot in mind. I think I fear par three’s more than par fives sometimes because it seems like I need to be so accurate. What Watson’s stresses is that on par 3 holes there is usually a safe part and a fat part of the green. The safe part may be smaller and include a little rough but that is where you want to try to play the ball. Play for the safe part that avoids the water and sand. For par 4’s and par 5’s you should angle for the next shot. Stay away from danger. Give yourself a chance to attach the pin. Remember, this is where it is a thinking man’s game.

Finally, Tom says that laying up to a pro golfer is a science. He uses the illustration of laying up like a pool player. The bottom line is to always plan ahead and leave your self in a good position for the next shot. He gives these four tips for laying up. Lay up to your favorite club. Lay up so you can shoot up the slope of the green. Lay up to a flat lie. Lay up to a full shot. The idea is to give your self the best chance to score.

Learning to think my way around a golf course and plan what I want to do can make a round of golf much more enjoyable. Remembering to choose the right club for the distance, give myself a chance to attach each kind of par and to lay up like a pool player helps me enjoy this wonderful game of golf. I think they can help you too.