Whether you like it or not, you’re going to have to do some math here.  Take your distance to the hole and subtract 240 from it — that’s where you want your drive to end up.  So let’s say it’s 410 to the hole.  You want to hit your drive 170 yards and stick it […]

  Your first decision here will be whether or not you can clear the water, creating a shortcut to the green!  Keep in mind that a really sharp cutting shot will skip off the water, so you can use that to your advantage if needed. If you have doubts about cutting the corner, then you […]

You’ll be using a vast array of clubs on this hole depending on your tee box placement and the wind!  This green is always drivable, and you’ll usually use backspin to hold the green. The biggest danger here is the water if you go long, and it is pretty easy to miss long here too!  […]

Here’s a cleverly-designed hole that can get you in trouble if you’re not careful!  You’ll notice that the second fairway is elevated and guarded by a cliff.  If you blindly select your driver and hit an A1 towards the second fairway, the cliff might catch your ball and shoot it into the water!  Instead, select […]

Here’s a slightly more challenging par 3 that may force you to deal with a hill on an elevated green.  You can be on any of 4 tee boxes, so you’ll get lots of looks here.  Remember to account for that slight rise in elevation, and err towards the middle of the green if the […]

You can always cut the corner through the sand and rough with a nice big C3 with roll, but you also don’t want to mess that up and be shooting out of tougher terrain on the first hole!  If you get a nice pin placement and are within 100 yards or so, you might be […]

Here is the official preview of the new 2014 Galapagos Islands course, and this article breaks down the course even further. This post contains tips, tricks, and information related to the 2014 Golden Tee course Turtle Island! Check out the hole-by-hole breakdowns and example hole-outs as I partner up with the Golden Tee community to give you […]

The easiest shortcut here is to a grassy hill just over the river — if you are on the left tee box, you can line up with the green and you’ll see it straight ahead.  Pull out your 3-wood (you’ll need the loft) and crank it straight ahead on top of this hill!  From here, […]

On this hole, you’ll usually be laying up in the circle fairway, although sometimes you can clear the river to the next fairway.  If you’re laying up in the circle, be careful, because it slopes down and can leak into the water if you hit it too far! With this elevated green, loft becomes important […]

This hole has several looks among 3 tee boxes, but you should always check out the small gap in the trees leading towards the pin.  Most of the time, you’ll have a look with anything from a low-iron to a 5-wood to a driver that has the proper trajectory to fit right in that gap!  […]

This par 4 with an island green is usually driveable but very tough!  There are 4 tee boxes, and sometimes you’re on the back of one and simply can’t get there with your driver.  If this is the case, you at least have a lot of fairway to work with so you can line up […]

On this par 3, you’ll be on any one of 5 different tee boxes, hitting into a well-guarded green.  If conditions are tough, just aim for the middle of the green and deal with your putt, rather than ending up in the water or sand! EXAMPLE HOLE-OUT 1 EXAMPLE HOLE-OUT 2

Yikes.  Golden Tee sometimes likes to punish you coming out of the clubhouse for the back 9, and this hole certainly fits that bill.  If you choose to hit a long drive, you’re almost certain to have a tree blocking your approach shot into the green. Instead, I sometimes like to lay up short into […]

Pin placement can make this shot difficult sometimes, as can the fact that you don’t know whether the green will have slope of up 7, down 7, or left 7, because of all the different tee boxes! Use the strategies you already know to attack this green based on the slope. Be warned on downhill […]

Here is a manageable eagle opportunity on a par 5.  You have to get long, but more importantly to the right, off the tee, and many times rotating left and hitting an A1 will be the shot for you to get far out to the right side of the fairway.  However, you can also really […]

Time for some fun!  This hole is great.  It’ll take some practice, but you should always be trying to punch a driver (or a very low-lofted iron) through the covered bridge onto the green!  The tee box is 60-70 yards long, but it’s always in line with the bridge.  You’ll have an offset look through […]

Here’s a tough, long par 3 that can set up over 300 yards!  It’s slightly downhill, and you’ll probably have to fly the sand, landing on the green and sticking it by the pin.  Make sure you leave yourself a clear putt at the flag because of the oddly shaped green! EXAMPLE HOLE-OUT 1 EXAMPLE […]

There’s no point in trying to clear the lake here — just punch it down the fairway.  Be careful on your approach shot with the sandy moat in front — a low-lofted club may get stuck in there, so make sure you fly the green and stick it! EXAMPLE HOLE-OUT

Nothing fancy on hole 1 — just get out at least to the top of the hill and try to line up the wind with the pin as best you can! EXAMPLE HOLE-OUT

Handicap: 18th hardest hole Category: Easy Average Score: -0.97 / -1.00 Eagle+ 2% Birdie 93% Par 5% Bogey Double+ EXAMPLE HOLE-OUT

Here’s a great hole-out to a tough back-left pin.  And this deflection is amazingly lucky! Also, there’s a little ice gully to the right that can be fun to rattle around in — check out this amazing shot!  Here’s another shot that got some crazy bounces before finding the cup.  Here’s yet another wild one! […]

Take a high-teed 3-wood straight over the snow mound on the left, aiming to land in the sliver of fairway heading down.  If you’re on point, you’ll roll on down to safety for your approach.  Here’s a hole-out after a mammoth drive. If you do head right or try a cut shot that catches the […]

With a great tee box and strong tailwind, you may be able to high-tee this one to the green! Otherwise, just lay up a ways short of the icy divide to give yourself a 7-wood or 9-wood loft shot up the hill on your approach.  Here’s an example hole-out. VIDEO DEMO

It’s all about distance control here — you’ll be shooting straight at this green with backspin or bite.  Here’s a great 4-wood dunk to a front pin, and here’s a perfect 3-wood hole-out to a back pin. VIDEO DEMO

You’ll always be aiming out left for the green patch in the mountains.  It’s a bit uphill, so you’ll need a little extra loft and distance — something like a high-teed 3-wood may work well.  If you are a bit short, though, you can often bounce up the ice and onto the patch, so aim […]

Similar to hole #3 but a different distance.  Again, it’s a ways downhill, so compensate a bit extra for the elevation and wind.  Here’s an example hole-out. VIDEO DEMO

The safest play is to the layup patch out to the right.  It’s usually a 4-5-wood to get there, almost always high-teed for extra elevation and distance.  There’s some snow short, so you absolutely must carry it there — bank off the ice on the back if you need to.  That should leave you with […]

It’s a ways downhill, so compensate a bit extra for the elevation and wind.  Here’s an example hole-out. VIDEO DEMO

With a great tee box and wind, you can get within chipping distance off the tee here, so keep that in mind for a better chance of a hole-out!  A C3 from the front left of the box is ideal. You can also ram a medium-teed driver with roll straight ahead and hope to catch […]

Enjoy one of the few flat holes on this course!  Lay up anywhere and bring it in for birdie.  Here’s an example hole-out. VIDEO DEMO