I haven’t posted much on the mental side but this is something that I teach in my playing lessons every time. Most amateurs have no business even looking at a flag that isn’t in the center of the green. If there were no flags in the greens, what would you shoot? Most of you would play better. Here are my three factors that will help you decide on how to pick smarter targets.
1. How are you swinging? Do you have you A, B or C swing? Always have a pulse on your momentum. This will help you stick to your game plan. If you are playing well or playing poorly, stick to the plan.
2. What club are you hitting? I suggest you rate your clubs. 1=favorite 2=medium 3=I loath this one
3. Where is the flag located? I use the stop light system. Red Light: A tucked pin that you should never shoot at unless you are playing a captains choice. Yellow Light: An exposed pin that is close to the front or back of the green. You must be careful with your club selection because you could leave it short or knock it over the green. Green Light: A pin that is in the middle of the green and you can fire at all day
When making decisions on your approach shots, the ideal situation is when you have your A swing, A #1 club and A green light pin. This is what we call The Go Zone. If you are struggling with your swing, hitting 2 and 3 rated clubs and getting red and yellow pins………..Play it Safe. Hit more greens and shoot lower scores. Stay tuned for the next installment of The Jeff Passage Project….coming soon
See you on the lesson tee,
Guru
The Golf Guru Show 
Guru,
What if you loathe all your clubs? What is one to do then? 🙂 Seriously, I think this is great advice and I never really thought about the flags in this way. A couple of other observations watching myself and others on the course. Out of 10 approach shots to a green, how many do you think would be short versus how many long? For myself, I am very conscious that I am almost always short. I think the eye can fool you and you think you have hit it right at the flag but it ends up way short. A tip I got when I was a kid was to try and land the ball right on top of the pin. That swing thought I think has helped me. And now I will only try to do so with the rules you have provided above.
Thanks and I am looking forward to the next episode of the Jeff Passage project!
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It does help when courses you are playing use different color flags for back, center, front pin positions.
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