Strategy with Scrambles

[Josh Parker]

I typically play in 3 or 4 scramble tournaments every year for some type of benefit and it's always interesting the strategies that are thrown out before the round. 

Besides the fact that some group is going to shoot a 50....

Do you have a strategy?

Do you even care about score?

 

[RickyBobby_PR]

Caring about score depends on how much you care about the event and why you are playing.

Every group I played with in a scramble we had the intention if playing well and trying to win so yes we cared about score.

Strategy off the tee was simple. Shortest driver first then the next two were to get a ball in play further up and then let the longest guy go last.

Best iron player went 3rd or 4th. Worst putter went second so that a decent putter would give some kind of actual read. Best putter 3rd or 4th depending on the hole, how often they putted before that and the situation at hand 

[Rob Person]

Good question @Josh Parker

Having just played in a benefit tournament yesterday,  and not knowing how everyone played from each position,  we went all willy nilly after the first hole.

I did ask to go last on most of the holes, because I knew i could get it into a fairly decent position in the fairway off the tee if all else failed. Not the longest,  but in fairway play.

Each of us had some impressive shots, but Noone was consistent enough to pick a playing order of strengths.

Now, if it was a club event or league, and you play the same partners frequently, a  strategy works for the most part.

It's when you get a person that insists their shot needs to be used,  even though it's not the best position,  that you run into issues IMHO. 

 

[Preeway]

I rarely play to win but follow a similar strategy as @RickyBobby_PR if we are trying to be serious. This typically lasts only as long as we are playing well. 

[Stuka44]

1 hour ago, RickyBobby_PR said:

Worst putter went second so that a decent putter would give some kind of actual read.

In my opinion this is the biggest key.  Most of the time even with average to above average players, and maybe one good player you are going to hit many greens in regulation. Scrambles come down to making  those 8-20 footers you end up with for birdie.    The worst putter can learn much from how hard a put is struck that comes close, and an actual visual reference of how much break to play.  The worst putter going first most of the time will provide almost nothing in terms of speed and break.

[ballhawk]

Always bring a pencil with a big eraser!!...............

[livininparadise]

I typically play in a large number of charity scrambles and others.  Strategy off the tee is whomever feels confident in the shot, goes.  I am a pretty good driver of the ball so 98% of the time, I am going to hit the shot I am going to hit, regardless of how anyone did in front of me.  The only time I will change is if my drive is if it has a high probability of ending up in the junk.

Putting is the real strategy.  I do like the worst putter going 2nd.  The putter that can handle the pressure best should go last.  The best putter may not handle the pressure best, so they should go where they are most comfortable.   I am not typically our best putter, but making or missing a putt doesn't change my approach, so I go last a lot.  Because I can usually put a good roll on the ball, not hooked or cut, I do often go first on some of my teams.

[poprocksncoke]

long drives and never leave a put short

[Josh Parker]

I play similar to @RickyBobby_PR.

I always play most consistent first off the tee to put us in play and allow the rest to go for it.  Par 5s is similar.

Putting, same. Decent first and best at the end. 

I have played in groups that don't care, but the competitor in me hates it.  I don't expect to win because of what @ballhawk said a few comments up. Ha

[livininparadise]

The only reason to have the shortest driver go first is to make them feel like they are contributing.  In a not so perfect world, you would never use their drive anyway.  If the best driver hammers the first one everytime, even if in the rough, the shortest guy doesn't need to hit and can start to feel left out.  You want everyone to feel responsible for the team outcome, letting the shortest guy hit first does that.

[Shrek74]

First off, just take the scorecard and mark an eagle on every hole. There will always be one or two teams that come in with some BS score. So just start there.

Off the tee: Most accurate up first, regardless of length. Get one in play. Next two guys can swing out of their shoes. Last guy will likely be your best combo of length and accuracy with nerves of steel in case the other 3 screw the team off the tee.

Approach play is pretty much the same. Best/2nd best first, followed by the 2 question marks, and lastly either the best or 2nd best approach player. This can adjust based on par and distance.

Putting, as mentioned, is the most important. Take either the best or 2nd best guy up first. Give the chance to make right away, but if not the others should get a great read for their putts. Last guy is either the best or most nervy, where the middle 2 are just those "other" guys.

But, in the end, have some fun. Most scrambles are charitable events. So enjoy the time, and help the charity however you can.

[gavinski91]

I usually play with the same group (my 2 brothers and brother-in-law) so we have it pretty much figured out. First key off the tee is to get one in a good spot in the fairway, so my brother C almost always goes first with a hybrid to get one in a good spot. If he gets one in play then the rest of us will just try and bomb one on the most aggressive line possible (cutting corners, forced carries, playing a different fairway for an advantage, etc). If he misses, then we'll make less aggressive plays until we have something usable.

For approach and short game, same general idea, but order doesn't matter as much. We will typically have the better iron and wedge players go last, so that the first guys can just focus on getting on the green, and if they accomplish that then the better players can fire at pins.

Putting is usually the guy with the best ability to hit his line (usually me) goes last, other than that most of the work is communicating together on line and pace. If you have a guy who is a poor putter, then the above advice about having him go second is probably useful.

[GaDawg]

5 hours ago, ballhawk said:

Always bring a pencil with a big eraser!!...............

Yep. It's easy to get pencil whipped in a scramble.

[DerekB54]

Most teams have their fairway finder hit first so they know they have one in play. I’m that guy. I prefer to let our big hitters hit first, and if they mess up and we don’t have one, let me, the guy that is confident with the driver, take the pressure and hit the fairway. It seems backwards, but think about it: I’m accurate. I know I can keep it in play. If I happen to screw up first, it puts pressure on my team. Give me the pressure. I’ll focus more if I hit last and know I need to be perfect. 

[hckymeyer]

Strategy - Have fun, drink lots, go for everything.  Rinse and repeat

[Rob Person]

5 hours ago, hckymeyer said:

Strategy - Have fun, drink lots, go for everything.  Rinse and repeat

This is how most charity tournaments are handled here...  

[Rob Person]

14 hours ago, livininparadise said:

The only reason to have the shortest driver go first is to make them feel like they are contributing.  In a not so perfect world, you would never use their drive anyway.  If the best driver hammers the first one everytime, even if in the rough, the shortest guy doesn't need to hit and can start to feel left out.  You want everyone to feel responsible for the team outcome, letting the shortest guy hit first does that.

That's good strategy off the tee.  Thanks for letting us little guys feel a bit better!!!

[THE GOLF GUY]

My feeling is let the shortest or average drivers hit off the tee , so the biggest hitter(s) can try to shorten a hole . Secondly , the highest handicapped player hitting the approach first up to the best iron player , you should be putting next not unless you are on a par 5 (on  in two if possible ) , with putting let the highest handicapper putt first then up to the lowest handicapper ( to see the line and pace).

 I have played in over 100 benefit tournaments over my lifetime and have been involved with approximately 25 wins . The scores have ranged from 52-58 depending on the “mulligans “ and “tee busters “. If your team is simply wanting to just win and they are offering mulligans and tee busters ,buy all that they allow you to buy , because  rest assured, opposing teams will! Don’t put too pressure on yourself or your partners and try to have fun too.Even the best players struggle at these events sometimes and don’t necessarily have their best stuff .

Edited April 27 by THE GOLF GUY

[MissionMan]

The scrambles we play require you to take a minimum 3 drives from each player, and a max of 6 from one. That does force you to adjust strategy for some holes where you want the shorter hitters to do well. On the holes we want the shorter hitting to score, we typically let the best driver hit first so it takes pressure off them.

[Hacker60521]

18 hours ago, livininparadise said:

The only reason to have the shortest driver go first is to make them feel like they are contributing.  In a not so perfect world, you would never use their drive anyway.  If the best driver hammers the first one everytime, even if in the rough, the shortest guy doesn't need to hit and can start to feel left out.  You want everyone to feel responsible for the team outcome, letting the shortest guy hit first does that.

@livininparadise I played in a few scrambles where you had to use at least two tee shots from each player on par 4 or 5 to sort of level the playing field a bit on this. It made the day a bit more interesting because you couldn’t always choose the longest off the tee 

[BreakfastBall15]

Off the tee we always have the guy that can put it in the middle of the fairway go first. Next 2 guys just try and get it out there a bit further. I typically go last and most of the time we have one in the fairway so I’m free to hammer it. We normally keep the same rotation for approach shots but occasionally switch it up. For putting we have our 2nd best putter go first, followed by the 2 of us that suck and best putter go last. By that time he’s had 3 looks at it and shouldn’t miss

[ShimmyCocoBop]

Charity Scrambles in my area are starting to use a "same player can't hit two consecutive shots in a row" rule.  

It requires a bit of different thinking/strategy and helps the entire day go a bit faster.

In Stuart, Florida, there's a huge charity scramble called THE BREEZY every February.  Every foursome gets a Golf Professional (club, tour, retired, assistant, etc.) to make them a fivesome.  This year, there were 35 fivesomes in the morning wave at 8:15a and 36 fivesomes in the afternoon wave at 1:15p.. That's 355 players and the "same person can't hit twice in a row" rule makes it flow fairly smoothly and keeps the strong players from dominating the team play.  

We normally have the worst driver of the ball perform all tap-ins, but when someone makes a long putt, that strategy goes out the window. 

I try to treat charity scramble fundraisers as what they are - fundraisers.

[Golf2Much]

Everyone knows there will be one or two stacked teams that will be in the 50's no matter what. 

To keep more teams involved, some of the charity scramble tournaments will flight the teams after all the scores are in.  To make the math easier, say there are 30 teams.  Once the scores are posted, the first ten are in the A flight, second ten in the B flight and last ten are in the C flight.   By doing it this way, more teams with varying degrees of collective skills (or not) can compete for team prizes within their flight.  

It creates an interesting dynamic.  First, there's often a fine line between being last in one flight and first in the flight below.  Often, it comes down to matching cards where the "winning" team is the one who lost the card match to drop down and win the next flight. 

It also complicates the "would of/should of" post round lamenting.  That's because not only do you kick yourself for missing a critical putt, but on the flip side you can kick yourself for making one.   In two of the last three charity scramble events I've played in, we birdied the last hole we played and that put us on the bottom of one flight rather winning in the lower flight.  

If your group isn't stacked and gunning for the overall first prize, using this format sort of takes the pressure off scoring and lets the chips fall where they may.  

[BLD7]

Im in the camp of "it depends." I've played in charity scrambles where the primary goal is raising money for the cause. Usually in those events, my level of competitiveness remains in check. I always want to play well but "strategy" is not top of mind... I've also played in 2-person and 4-person scrambles where the objective is to win prize money. In those events, the "strategy" is key to success. These are usually better-player outings and the strategy is dependent on the group Im in. I agree with statements above that what's important is making those mid-range length putts for birdie. If you aren't making putts then the rest doesn't matter. The only other strategy is dependent on par-5 holes that may be reachable in two, or if there is a risk/reward carry off the tee. Usually in those instances we have the most consisitent driver (not necessarily shortest) go first, then the next most consistent will go. Intent here is to "put one in play" so that the two longest hitters can attempt to "go after one." 

[RickyBobby_PR]

On 4/27/2024 at 12:00 AM, DerekB54 said:

Most teams have their fairway finder hit first so they know they have one in play. I’m that guy. I prefer to let our big hitters hit first, and if they mess up and we don’t have one, let me, the guy that is confident with the driver, take the pressure and hit the fairway. It seems backwards, but think about it: I’m accurate. I know I can keep it in play. If I happen to screw up first, it puts pressure on my team. Give me the pressure. I’ll focus more if I hit last and know I need to be perfect. 

This is assuming those who have theong guys go last have guys that have no control over the drive and just swing all out.

The reality is for most teams that deploy the big hitter last is that guy also doesn’t lose the ball wayward very often and the two that go in the middle are longer and still was accurate as the short hitter who went first. The goal with the long guy going last in this scenario is he is free to swing without having to try and place the driver and still isn’t going all out on the swing 

[RickyBobby_PR]

On 4/27/2024 at 10:06 AM, MissionMan said:

The scrambles we play require you to take a minimum 3 drives from each player, and a max of 6 from one. That does force you to adjust strategy for some holes where you want the shorter hitters to do well. On the holes we want the shorter hitting to score, we typically let the best driver hit first so it takes pressure off them.

This changes strategy a lot even if it’s only two have to count from each. If allowed we use par 3 tee shots from the shorter hitters to help keep the advantage on par 4s and 5s. We then get picky with tee shots on the rest of the holes but we don’t really change the order of tee shots and in some cases the last guy or last two won’t even hit a drive 

[DerekB54]

2 hours ago, RickyBobby_PR said:

This is assuming those who have theong guys go last have guys that have no control over the drive and just swing all out.

The reality is for most teams that deploy the big hitter last is that guy also doesn’t lose the ball wayward very often and the two that go in the middle are longer and still was accurate as the short hitter who went first. The goal with the long guy going last in this scenario is he is free to swing without having to try and place the driver and still isn’t going all out on the swing 

Why I let that guy swing first is because he has 0 pressure. If he sprays it a little bit, no worries! I’ve got you. Swing free, hit big, and have no fear. 
 

I think differently than most. It’s a good strategy, Cotton, but it’s worked out for me in the past. 

[RickyBobby_PR]

2 minutes ago, DerekB54 said:

Why I let that guy swing first is because he has 0 pressure. If he sprays it a little bit, no worries! I’ve got you. Swing free, hit big, and have no fear. 
 

I think differently than most. It’s a good strategy, Cotton, but it’s worked out for me in the past. 

Theres less pressure for that guy to go last. When he’s first he needs to be somewhat accurate to be able to take advantage of his distance and more pressure  on the guys that are middle of the road distance wise to make up for his lost drive.

Strokes gained tells us closer to the hole is better than short and in the fairway.

Unless the long guy has no control then it really doesn’t matter where he goes in the rotation 

[MissionMan]

6 hours ago, RickyBobby_PR said:

This changes strategy a lot even if it’s only two have to count from each. If allowed we use par 3 tee shots from the shorter hitters to help keep the advantage on par 4s and 5s. We then get picky with tee shots on the rest of the holes but we don’t really change the order of tee shots and in some cases the last guy or last two won’t even hit a drive 

It does because you have to be careful about which drives you take. In our case, par 3's may count but that doesn't help if the shorter hitters don't hit them.

Our last game, I hit 11 fairways in reg excluding par 3's and there were obviously quite a few we couldn't take

[RickyBobby_PR]

31 minutes ago, MissionMan said:

It does because you have to be careful about which drives you take. In our case, par 3's may count but that doesn't help if the shorter hitters don't hit them.

Our last game, I hit 11 fairways in reg excluding par 3's and there were obviously quite a few we couldn't take

It’s a format I like because it forces everyone to be involved in all aspects of the round. It requires some good thinking about who’s shot to use and when.

Most of the guys I’ve played scrambles with were guys I played with almost weekly so we all knew each others game and rarely did we play on a course none of us were familiar with. Sometimes we ended up having to take a bad tee shot on a or 3 to get someone’s drive in