How To Win Your Next Texas Scramble (I've Stumbled Upon The Perfect Formula)

If you've Googled 'How to win your Texas Scramble', you must be pretty serious about mounting a challenge in the upcoming competition.

However, when the prizes are so good - as they often are in these team events - it's no wonder they're taken every bit as seriously as the Club Championship (well, maybe not quite).

They're not for everyone. Our very own 'Mr Miserable', Joel Tadman, believes Texas Scramble is a terrible format.

Anyway, for those of you who like to take part in the odd Texas - let's be honest, Stablefords and Medals can become a little bit monotonous - here are some tips that could help you to get amongst the prizes.

TEAM (HANDICAP) SELECTION

It's the week before the Texas Scramble, and your phone has been pinging non stop.

'Fancy playing in the comp at the weekend?' You don't normally get asked to play with Dave and his pals, also scratch players - only when it's the annual Scramble.

You're a 25-handicapper, and there's nothing subtle about Dave's invitation: he just wants your shots.

Against the spirit of the game? Perhaps a little, although you'd hope that the handicap system makes it a level playing field.

On the subject of team selection, a competitive team will have a good mix of abilities: a player who hits a long drive, a solid iron player, someone who's good around the greens and, most definitely, at least a couple of really strong putters.

SELECTING A CAPTAIN

Although you might have a few discussions on course as to whose drive you'll take or what the playing order should be, ideally you want one player who makes the final decision.

The best candidate is someone who's played in a fair few Texas Scrambles and understands what's required to post the lowest score.

The team captain also needs to exude confidence and be capable of rallying the team. There's no 'i' in team, and this is not competition to focus entirely on your own game.

The skipper knows all this and, just like a good Ryder Cup captain, will help create an environment in which everyone feels comfortable.

STRATEGY

In golf, we're often told to play the percentage shots, but rarely does this strategy get you very far in a Texas Scramble.

In fact, quite the opposite strategy is required: attack, attack, attack.

There might be the odd occasion where safety is required, such as an iron off the tee if the first three players have hit their drives out of bounds.

However, because your team has the safety of having four goes at every shot, Texas is mostly about taking risks.

More on Texas Scramble strategy below...

PLAYING ORDER

In some forms of Texas Scramble, a player cannot play the next shot if their previous shot was the one taken. In other Scrambles, players don't have to sit any shots out.

If you're free to decide who plays when, it normally helps to have a playing order - which you can then mix up if you feel a change is needed.

For example, it often makes sense for the first player to find the fairway - perhaps the most reliable fairway finder in the group - which then allows everyone else to be really aggressive.

PUTTING

One of the most widely-adopted strategies is to let the best putter in the group go last.

It makes perfect sense. If someone is pretty average with the flatstick, even a mediocre putt can give the other (better) putters some kind of a read.

In theory, when the last player steps up, they should know exactly what the putt is going to do.

Don't switch off. Get right in behind the putt and watch what it does. This is not an individual Medal - so work as team.

A lot of Texas Scrambles are won on the green.

TEE SHOTS

To prevent the better players dominating (it is a team event, after all), most Texas Scrambles will require each player to hit a minimum number of drives each (usually four).

In a Scramble, deciding whose drives to take and when is a key part of the strategy.

There's no right or wrong way to go about this. If you have a high handicapper on your team who is either quite short off the tee or fairly wayward, getting their quota in early in the round might be the best strategy.

However, you don't want to 'waste' a tee shot on a very scorable hole. For example, if you take a short drive on a drivable par 4, you are probably going to pass up on a good chance of a birdie and lose a shot on the field.

This is one of the joys of the Texas Scramble (not for Joel). Many golfers will have experienced the fear of teeing up on the final hole knowing it's all on them.

And many golfers, knowing this, will have made a mess of it! (or nailed one down the center).

So, what's the best strategy? This is where the team captain can help. Someone who knows the course well and knows the strengths and weaknesses of each member can help make a plan.

From past experience, it's usually not a wise move to leave your high handicapper or erratic driver needing to deliver all four of their drives on the back nine.

HIT WHEN YOU DON'T HAVE TO

When one of your playing partners has hit a perfect drive and you're in position A, it's tempting to put your driver back in the bag and not even have a hit.

Even if someone desperately needs to get their tee shot shout count up, you should use every opportunity to have a swing and stay loose.