4-Man scramble strategy?

[PlaidJacket 7,723]

I am participating in my first 4 person scramble this weekend since quite a few years ago and I am a much better golfer now. What have you found is a good strategy for a 4 person scramble?

 

The other three guys are your average golf once or twice a year guys, but really fun to golf with! I'm not too sure on the specific rules to this scramble. Obviously, I just want to go out and have fun but let's assume there is no cheating (big assumption), what are some good key points and strategies that can help us get a lower score? 

 

IMO there is only one strategy that matters.... Make as many birdies and eagles as you can and never make a bogey. The occasional times I do play a scramble is to support a charity. Those are the only scrambles I'll participate in. The point being; support a charity. Winning or placing is not the point. Scrambles that are held for prizes and pro shop gift certificates (non-charity) are a cheaters paradise. And yes... I used to play in them occasionally. Think I'm exaggerating? Go play a scramble and turn in an "honest" card with 18-22 under thinking your team might have a chance to win. You won't. Certainly not 1st. To put it kindly; you'll be Pencil Whipped. 

[Mr. 82 3,791]

If you're the best player tee off last. If one of them gets you in the fairway then you can unleash. If not, you can play it safe with a 3-wood or even an iron. Also putt last and help everyone read the putts. That's really the only strategy involved. The rest is to have a good time and shoot low

 

 

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This response is probably the best advice I've seen so far.

 

I've become somewhat of an expert on scrambles, as I have a weekly Tuesday night 9-hole scramble that I take part in, along with several annual charity tournaments where we pair up four guys in a scramble and go at it.

 

Before you tee off, determine who is the A (best), B, C and D (worst) player.  A player is in charge (captain) and chooses which ball to hit, and tees off last.  D player always goes first, followed by C, then B.

 

Having done so many of these I usually feel out the personalities of the guys I am grouped with and even though I am usually the "A" player, I often find a very outgoing personality to let be in charge.  The secret that I've found in these things is to try and make everyone in your group as comfortable as possible.  If you are tight, or nervous, or take these things too seriously on the first tee, you will all suck that night, and won't score low at all.

 

It never fails that the times I show up and try and press because I really want to go low for whatever reason, I'll end up shooting -3 as a group.  But like last night, I was with guys I knew, and were comfortable with, and we just played casually and ended up going -8 for nine holes.  But I always try and make everyone in my group as relaxed and comfortable as possible.

 

Once a year I team up with 3 guys from my company where I am actually the C player, as two guys I work with are scratch.  But I have discovered that the two scratch guys play better with "swing lube" before the first tee.  So I buy them a couple of beers before we tee off and voila, they bring their "A" game right away.

 

Think of your scramble like family.  Everyone is somewhat nervous and awkward on the first tee, but by the 4th or 5th hole you are cracking jokes, and making fun of each other in a good way.  Laugh a lot, don't take it too seriously, and as I try and do, try and hit a few good shots and the rest will take care of itself.

 

Putting ultimately makes all the difference in these scrambles.  If you can't get any approach shots inside of 15 feet it probably won't matter how good the players you have in your group are.  But if I have putts inside 15 feet all day, chances are one guy out of four will drain something of that length or shorter.

 

The drive is highly overrated in a scramble, as long as someone puts one in the fairway.  I've become the master of the 60 yard wedge shot because in the scrambles I play in, we play the forward tees, and I can count on having 3 or 4 60 yard wedge shots into par 4s that night.  It's those shots that I need to get within 10 feet to score with.

 

Finally, and I cannot stress this enough, and I tell my team this every week when we play.  I don't give a crap how hard you hit the putt, as long as you don't leave it short of the hole.  In going last, I am reading your putt, and you leaving it short of the hole doesn't do anything to help me.  So I tell the first guy to hit it at least 4 feet past the hole and give me a good read.  And you'd be surprised how many times that guy I tell to hit it 4 feet past the hole ends up just barely getting it to the hole, and a lot of times he makes it more out of luck than anything else.  It truly is amazing to me how many golfers I play with in scrambles leave putts short.  That's stupid to me, because who cares if you miss - you have 3 guys behind you to hit it too.  Hit the dang thing 6 feet past the hole for all I care.  Just give me a good read.

[newballcoach 865]

Two things I want to say, and I feel I'm qualified to, because I have an account, and I won our staff scramble last week. Well, we won...

 

The first thing is have matching shirts/clothes. That way everyone knows you're a team. You can't have any wildcards out there, mavericking and doing their own thing. In fact, do everything together, it promotes team unity. Chug beer, pee in the bushes, and hitting OB should be done in tandem.

 

The thing I like to do is on shorter game shots (chips/pitches on par 5's or shorter par 4's) let everyone hit the shot they're comfortable with obviously, but sometimes it makes sense to hit difference types of shots. I like to hit more higher lofted shots, one of the other guys was a better chipper. That way, if you get into a situation where you have lots of green, or you're short-sided, somebody in your group is feeling in the groove with their short game, you don't have to force anything. My 2 cents.

 

But seriously, matching shirts. One of the guys in our group was named Clifford, so clearly we wore red shirts and barked everytime we hit a good shot, The Big Red Dawgs baby!