By ED TRAVIS
Even veteran players who have played this maddening game for years need a reminder of the basic truths about better scoring that can go a long way to making our rounds more fun.
One that comes to mind is the unreasoned desire to hit drives farther. Obviously at least in part it’s an ego thing and often an inordinate amount of time is spent on attempting swing changes and indulging in the quest to find the magic driver. Putting aside the money factor, trying to add another five or ten yards off the tee can be frustrating and detrimental to enjoying a round. Possibly it’s one of those things that is worthwhile but the difference between a gorilla drive in the rough or a hazard and a shorter tee shot in the fairway is stark. Shorter is both less expensive and more satisfying at the 19th hole when the wagers are collected rather than paid.
Putting is another part of the game where a similar analysis can be applied as is evidenced by an ever-growing inventory of putters in the garage as new flat sticks find their way into the bag. A wise old pro told me is using a putter that looks good at address, feels good and we have confidence in is the secret to being a successful putter. Making that judgement is not a mystery, only a little time consuming.
What brought this all to mind was perusing the data in Shot Scope’s Annual Performance Report 2026 they gathered from on-course stats generated during rounds player by users of their products. The information is from 124 countries and dissects 870,000 rounds and 74 million shots.
Impressive and it is a great way to find the parts of your game that need work. One stat that was unexpected is the high number of golfers that miss the green from 100 yards with a wedge in their hands. The most usual miss is short and across all skill levels it accounts for about 40% of all misses.
Obviously, under-clubbing is an epidemic despite the proliferation of hi-tech distance measuring devices.
Wedges fall the category of scoring clubs are not meant to be high yardage clubs but high accuracy clubs since missing a green for most players means a half or full stroke added to the score.
To fix that miss and recoup the unnecessary strokes consider your favorite club from say 100-yards. Do you often hit it short or left or right or miss hit it? Using a portable launch monitor such as shot Scope’s LM1 hit several different clubs 100 yards. Perhaps a gap wedge, a three-quarter swing pitching and a choked nine-iron with the ball back in your stance for a lower, higher spin shot.
The launch monitor will quickly show the differences between whatever clubs and shots you use and with practice the yardages will become consistent, and you will be more confident in what your results will be.
Don’t let your ego overwhelm your reasoning and just because you always thought before a sand wedge was your 100-yard club pay attention to the launch monitor results and what you feel.
You are looking for a go-to shot for 100 yards, one that will give you the best chance of being on the green not missing and almost automatically adding a stroke. After you’ve got the 100-yard shot comfortably in your swing repertoire, work on shorter and longer distances.
Tour professionals do this every day but they are playing for their livelihood while you can do the same thing to score better and have more fun.
