20.08.2024

Par 3 Accuracy

The par 3 tee shot is "the most expensive shot in golf". It is not an "approach shot". It should not be classified as a "tee shot" either, to get mixed up with the drives. There are only four of them (on average) and they need to be respected in their own right.

The average par 3 length on tour is 195 yards these days and the old adage about "the importance of making your par 3's" gets even more crucial. Relative to par, average par 3 scoring is always higher than at par 4's, with par 5's always being sub-par. This is true for any pro tour or elite amateur squad we care to look at in any year. The par 3 tee shot is also 45 yards longer than the average length of approach shot.

Thorbjorn Olesen's first week on GDL was the Open at Lytham. A tied 9th finish propelled him into the OWGR top 100 for the first time and he started the week with 4 x birdie 2's!

He followed that on the Friday with 2 x 2's and 2 x 3's, an incredible Par 3 Scoring average of 2.25 for his first two rounds! They're not exactly easy par 3's at Lytham, especially back then when there were 3 x cavernous bunkers left of 5 (which have since been filled in).

Two of the best female amateurs in the world this year are both averaging 3.12 at the Par 3's this year-to-date, having been 3.02 and 3.04 last year. As we reported to one of their coaches last week, "these things don't normally improve just by accident or on their own. Additional focus usually does the trick".

The two questions proposed were 1. how often does she hit short irons off a tee in practise, and 2. how much of this might be decision-making?

The reason we are concentrating on the shorter irons is that we had identified that more than half of her total par 3 tee shots were played with her 8, 9 & PW and that she was missing twice as many greens this year v. 2023 with these clubs. In terms of decision-making, some coaches, commentators and psychologists insist that there should be different strategies for different clubs. One such "expert" reckons that the length of the shot should determine the game-plan and he preaches that 125 yards and below is the "birdie zone", like there's a material difference between approach shots of 123 yards and 126 yards??? The last time we looked, the PRINCIPAL objective of every par 3 tee shot or approach shot (and even the Short Game shot) was exactly the same!  Keeping it simple, every time, is always best.

With the other top ranked amateur (a six-time winner), a video call this afternoon with a US college coaching team will similarly have us looking for specific focus points to help her reverse this unwelcome Par 3 Scoring trend.

It's ALL in the data... it just takes a wee bit of effort to look for it   :)