Next time you face a tough hole with a narrow fairway, take a page out of Tiger’s playbook and drop down a club or two. Tiger developed a low-flying shot with his 2-iron that hits the ground and runs. He had a history (still does to some extent) of being a bit wild off the tee with his driver. So, when he faces a narrow fairway - which is a lot more often for pros than for the rest of us - he sometimes takes out the trusty 2-iron and uses that shot. Yes, he gives up carry distance (how far the ball flies before it hits the ground), but on courses with dry conditions, lots of wind, or very short fairway grass, the extra roll almost makes up for it. And, of course, it’s a club that, for him, virtually guarantees that the ball will remain in the fairway.

The lesson here is two-fold. First, assess the degree of difficulty on a hole with a tight fairway if you do go a little wild and end up in the rough. Sometimes, that’s ok when weighed against the extra distance you get from your driver. More often than not, though, it’s preferable to stay in the short grass and give up some distance if you hope to make par or better.

Second, some people are as accurate with driver as they are with a 3-wood, 5-wood, or 2-iron. Only you know that for sure. If you are, swing away with the big stick, even on narrow fairways! Tiger has gotten better with his accuracy in recent years, so he chooses driver more often on tight fairways than he used to.

If you face Tiger’s dilemma of missing those tougher fairways with driver, don’t be afraid to drop down a club (even two). You may find that, while you’re away first more often for that second shot, you might outscore your opponents by playing those holes smart, not macho.