[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":18},["ShallowReactive",2],{"article-golf-course-architecture-golf-course-architecture-a-practical-planning-guide":3},{"slug":4,"title":5,"subtitle":6,"image":7,"imageAlt":8,"category":9,"html":12,"wordCount":13,"prev":14,"next":15},"golf-course-architecture-a-practical-planning-guide","Golf Course Architecture: A Practical Planning Guide","How to read a course before you play it, from routing and hazards to tee choice, walking demands, and smart targets.","\u002Fimg\u002Fgolf-course-architecture\u002Fgolf-course-architecture-a-practical-planning-guide_golf-course-architecture.png","Golf Course Architecture: A Practical Planning Guide illustration",{"slug":10,"title":11},"golf-course-architecture","Golf course architecture","\u003Ch3>Read the course before the scorecard\u003C\u002Fh3>\n\u003Cp>Architecture is the course asking questions. Can you carry the bunker on the inside corner? Should you challenge the water for a shorter wedge? Is the green open in front or guarded by a false front that rejects anything short? When you notice those questions early, your round gets calmer.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Before playing a new course, glance at the routing and yardage book if available. Look for forced carries, long walks between holes, blind tee shots, and greens with trouble long or short. A 6,200-yard course can feel harder than a 6,700-yard course if it asks for awkward carries all day.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Ch3>Choose tees with architecture in mind\u003C\u002Fh3>\n\u003Cp>The right tee lets you experience the intended decisions. If every par 4 requires driver and a long hybrid, you’re not seeing strategy; you’re surviving. Move forward until you can occasionally choose between driver, fairway wood, hybrid, and iron from the tee.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Ch3>Find the preferred angle\u003C\u002Fh3>\n\u003Cp>Many holes reward one side of the fairway. A bunker might guard the left because the green opens from the right, or a dogleg might tempt you to cut the corner for a shorter approach. Ask where you’d rather hit your next shot from.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Ch3>Build a simple pre-round plan\u003C\u002Fh3>\n\u003Cul>\n\u003Cli>Mark holes with forced carries.\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003Cli>Note greens where short is better than long.\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003Cli>Pick conservative targets on narrow tee shots.\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003Cli>Identify par 5s where laying up to a favorite wedge yardage makes sense.\u003C\u002Fli>\n\u003C\u002Ful>\n\u003Ch3>Let design guide practice\u003C\u002Fh3>\n\u003Cp>If your home course has raised greens, practice pitch shots that land softly. If it has firm runoffs, learn bump-and-runs. Architecture tells you what shots you’ll actually need.\u003C\u002Fp>\n",283,null,{"slug":16,"title":17},"what-makes-great-golf-course-architecture","What Makes Great Golf Course Architecture?",1782812354784]