G'day, Sports fan!
Paul Williamson here, PGA member, RGX Coach, here to give you rule number three in the 10 Rules to Shooting Lower Scores.

Rule number three is - Get out of trouble in one shot every time!

This means that when you've hit yourself out of play, most of the time it will mean you've hit yourself behind some trees, and you don't have a clear shot to the hole. There are trees in the way, there are branches in the way, and there is rough in the way, but there are some little gaps that you see that you think you could possibly go through to get closer to the green.

One of the cardinal sins I see of amateur golfers all the time is taking on too much of a challenge. It's something that they don't practice very much, trying to hit a little punch through these gaps in the trees. But they're going for that one in a million shot, and all of a sudden, they play a bit of pinball amongst the tree branches and rack up an eight or a nine because it's taking them three shots to get out.

The first thing I'd say to you is, next time you're standing there behind the ball, ask yourself (this might sound a little bit negative here), but ask yourself, "What's the worst thing I could do right here?" Chances are that's hit the tree right in front of you. Then ask yourself, "Alright, I've got to avoid that at all costs; how can I do that?". You will now come up with some answers regarding club selection, aiming and size of swing that will help avoid the big trouble. Now, you will be far less likely to have an eight or a nine on the hole that will ruin your whole score at the end of the day.

If you just chip out sideways and get yourself back in play, you're in a position now to possibly make up for that bad tee shot with a good chip or a putt. Never try to make up for a bad tee shot with a hero shot for your next one. This just piles pressure onto a swing that just got you in trouble off the tee. That's not playing smart golf at all.

So the lessons for Rule number three are
Number one, get it out of trouble in one shot.
Number two, don't try and make up for a bad tee shot with a hero shot on the next one.

Be sure to catch up on the other 9 Keys to shooting lower scores below.
Cheers!

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➔ Watch it all here!
Rule 1 - Hole all your short putts: 🎥 Watch | 📖 Read
Rule 2 - Avoid penalty shots at all costs: 🎥 Watch | 📖 Read
Rule 3 - Get out of trouble in one shot: 🎥 Watch | 📖 Read
Rule 4 - Get rid of your 3-putts: 🎥 Watch | 📖 Read
Rule 5 - Stop under clubbing: 🎥 Watch | 📖 Read
Rule 6 - Stop playing risky shots: 🎥 Watch | 📖 Read
Rule 7 - Stop short-siding yourself: 🎥 Watch | 📖 Read
Rule 8 - Read the lie: 🎥 Watch | 📖 Read
Rule 9 - Start your first round of golf in 1st gear:  🎥 Watch | 📖 Read
Rule 10 - Let go of BAD shots: 🎥 Watch | 📖 Read