I played in a high school tournament this week, and played on a course that has to play target golf (which works so hard against me, as I naturally play bomb and gouge), and ended up grinding around the course with a 3 iron, even on par 5s, and ended up shooting really well.. I was proud of myself, and proved that you can play damn good, if not exceptional on a course without a driver ('course tiger already proved that, but I did it, so I feel really good about myself).

It is a hard thing to learn, not playing with a driver. My dad challenged me to play a round of golf during my high school days with nothing longer than my 3 iron, because I carried a 1 iron back then. I ended up shooting a 37. Even though he proved to me that I can play well with just irons, I went back to the driver, because of the macho status that it provided me. It didn't help that I was only 105 pounds during those days and I had little man complex. Keep it up. If anything do it while playing a match and watch the other guys in the group play bad, because they are worrying more about what you are doing, rather than what they need to do.

i played a tourney with nothing but a 3 wood this past summer too. Only thing was this was an open and long course. Reason i choose to hit only a 3 wood...because i broke it on day 1!

Glad to hear that you played well without putting the driver in play. What did you end up shooting?

I think it is great that you were able to play well that way. I think there is something cool about hitting long ions off the tee when other guys are bombing drivers, then beating them.

Yeah there is a lot to say about playing smart. I had a course I had to play back in high school where I had the same issue. I had to check my ego at the door. Of course I won all my matches at that course, it is funny how that works. You are learning a valuable lesson. Even on tour they don't always tee off with the driver.

I Shot horrible the first day (98, a personal worst, and learned my lesson after that), then brought it around the second day where I played all irons... 79.

It was funny actually, I pulled 5 wd. twice, and the first time hit it all right, and ended up parring..

the second time I played it should've ended really bad. I was on a par 5, that plays straight downwind w/ a 90 degree dogleg left. I can carry over all of the dogleg w/ my 3 wood, but wanted to leave that in the bag and try my 5. I end up topping it and putting it in a thicket of trees 30 yards to the left of me... Man, had I not been playing my irons so well, I would've tripled that hole.

I've always been known to hit the ball a long way, and was hitting my 3 iron shots consistently in the 220 range, with control. So, it's my final hole, and I'm stuck in the trees, and I have about a 15 foot gap between trees, and space up above to get over if hit on the screws. I pull my 6 iron, and hit it to the dead center of the fairway, up over the trees and in perfect position to attack the green, 235 yards out. I'm in between clubs, and end up pulling a 3 iron, as my five wood would've probably put me in the houses behind the green.

I ended up catching that three iron dead on the center of the face, and carried to the front of the green and had it roll of the back. I kept my cool, chipped to 2 feet, and got out of there with a par. God, I love my 3 iron so much now.

Back when I was in college and trying to hit my driver 350 off every tee, I once played without it because my dumba$$ roommate took it to the range and didn't put it back in my bag. I didn't notice until I was standing on the first tee (downhill, short par 5 that I ALWAYS hit driver on). Well, that ended up being the best round of my life up to that point and it taught me a lot about playing to your strengths and keeping the ball in play off the tee.