This section breaks down how to play each hole at Golden Tee’s Cypress Cove, which was voted the easiest of the 2008 courses by the expert community. The par 3 third hole got multiple votes as one of the toughest holes in Golden Tee Live 2008, and the tough par 4 9th hole also got votes for being among the hardest.

Make sure you check out the video of how Sobe attacks each hole on this course! Then come back here and learn even more tips and tricks, and how to play from each of the tee boxes on the course!

When you’re done reading, click here to download and save a printable version of these tips that you can take to the bar while you play! Don’t worry, I do it too!

After polling several of the experts, there are three different ways people choose to set up for Golden Tee Live 2008 Cypress Cove.

The overwhelming majority of the pros prefer to play Cypress Cove with the old hybrids (”old birds”) and the orange balls. The rest of the group is split between two other options — the low-loft (FTX) clubs and the D2 (high-spin) balls, or the low-loft (FTX) clubs and the orange balls.

Of course, the choice is yours, but it’s helpful to know how the pros set up to play Cypress Cove!

Sometimes this opening par 4 can be drivable, but mostly you’ll be trying to lay up for a straight shot in with the wind.

Drivable about 20% of the time. If you’re on the front big box, you can drive this hole with a straight shot. From anywhere else on the front box, hit an A1 or C3 to get there.

From the back boxes, just lay up and try to create a straight-wind approach shot again.

Sometimes pin placement can make it tough to attack the flag, so make sure you get your birdie here. You just have to read the pin and the wind to know which type of shot is best. Watch out for all the fringes on every hole of this course. Sometimes they are crooked, and if you putt from them, you will miss (to check, turn your guy left or right a few times and look at the fringe from the side).

Several options here to leave you an approach shot to the green in 2.

If you’re close enough to hit it down past the sand on the left and onto the lower fairway, hit it there and close to the water, as far left as possible. You’ll have a 3-wood with backspin to the green.

If you’re stuck behind the trees, you can sometimes hook a 5-wood around and over the left side of the trees.

If that’s too difficult, lay up a 2-iron (or whatever club gets you there) on top of the hill to just before the sand on the left. From there you will be about 330 yards out and you’ll have to hit a hard driver with backspin, but it’s still doable.

Always drivable, but difficulty depends on your setup.

For most setups, it’s an easy thumb shot with a 5-wood to driver.

The only time this hole is tough is when you’re on the tee box behind the trees. If you are close and right, you will want to hit a B1-type drive through the middle of the V-shaped tree (sometimes you’re only 280 with a wind behind you. Try the same shot, but pull your club back 75% of the way and finesse your follow-through (when not pulling back the full way, you have to put a little extra hook on it)).

From any other placement here you’ll want to go around the left side of it altogether.

The stock driver misses the leaves without backspin, but you’ll usually want backspin here if you know you’ll miss the leaves.

Just make sure you’re not short!

This green is sometimes drivable with a lucky turbo-bouncing C3, but watch out! This green is 250-feet across, so if you’re on the wrong end of the green, you could be 3-putting from 200+ feet! It’s better just to shoot a straight driver 300+ in the fairway to get a clear look at attacking the flag with your approach shot.

From every tee box, you will either be turning left once to blast an A1 driver with topspin, or you will be turning right once to hit a C3 driver with topspin. Hit this one hard. If you get past the sand, you’re gold. Even if you’re in the sand but you get out far enough, a hard 3-wood or driver will get there on the approach.

This par 4 is drivable 75% of the time, but it’s very challenging.

The front left box gives you the best chance. Aim for the right side of the green and hit a C3 5-wood to 3-wood with backspin, The follow-through is the key here — make sure you hit enough “3” so you don’t come slamming back into the mountain, but don’t go so far out that the ball doesn’t come back to the green. Practice makes perfect!

From the back right box, it’s a little tougher, but you’ll be hitting the same type of shot with a 3-wood. If the wind is blowing hard to the right, you may have to lay up as described below.

The back left box makes this hole very tough. If you are on the very front of this box with a big right-to-left wind, you can aim for the green and get lucky with a huge C3 5-wood or 3-wood. Otherwise, aim straight down the fairway and hit a C3 driver with backspin. This will get you out far enough around the trees to leave you with a nice wood shot into the green for a chance at birdie.

This hole is sometimes drivable, especially from the front left box with a good wind. Just hit a C3 into the green. Sometimes with a headwind you’ll need to blast a C3 and catch a lucky bounce but you can still get there.

From the next box back, it’s only drivable with a HUGE tailwind and a HUGE C3 with a few lucky bounces. Make sure you hook it enough and don’t go into the water.

From all other setups, pick out a spot that gives you the best approach shot with the wind and pin placement, whether that be in the fairway or in the sand. Hitting out of the sand is okay from almost any close sand trap, so don’t be scared to dump one in there.

If you can get to the second fairway across the water, this one is easy. Stay right as much as you can, because the fairway slopes left. Just watch out for this fringe when you’re on the green, because it really throws putts off track!

If you cannot clear the water to make the second fairway, lay up short and to the right on the first fairway. This will give you a difficult, but makeable, second shot where you hit a B3 wood around the trees and hope to stick the green. Sometimes, you’ll be able to shoot a low liner through a gap in those trees as well.

Here’s another always drivable par 4. This hole can be an easy straight wood shot, an A1 or a C3, all depending on the tee box.

If you’re toward the middle of the boxes, an A1 5-wood will clear most of the left trees if you’re close enough to get this there.

If you’re tucked away back and right, sometimes you’ll need to chip a C3 driver (60-75%) around and through the gap on the right. Be careful with this shot. If you hit a tree trunk, you might not be in a position to even stick the green on your 2nd shot, and you will take a par or worse.

If you’re on the close back right box, a 3-wood will get you through the gap and over the next tree.

Sometimes one of those boxes will leave you a straight driver shot underneath.

Once again, make sure you’re not short!

You’ll need a big A1 drive off the tee with topspin (into a headwind) or backspin (with a tailwind), also depending on the angle you get from tee. Make sure you get the ball as far left on the fairway as you can without actually going in the rough, and you’ll have the best approach shot here with a wood. Watch out for the hill on the right during your approach shot – you can hit it if you’re not careful. Also be careful curving a shot into this green, because you’re off the cliff in the water if you go too far right or come up short!

The best way to play this hole is to position your drive so that you have a low-lofted club into the green (a huge tree will catch any high-lofted approach shot). You need to get out far enough past the trees on the left, but not so far that the big approach tree is too much in your way.

Take a look at the pin. If it’s close to the fairway, you want to position your approach shot close enough to use the low-lofted 2-iron. Then turn back and aim down the first part of the fairway. If the wind isn’t blowing extremely (double digits) to the right, hit your tee shot down the left side of the fairway and get just past the trees. If the wind is big to the right, hit your tee shot to the right side of the fairway (close to the water) and you’ll have a driver (low-lofted) to the green. If you get in trouble with your distance or you hit it too far down the fairway, you can always curve it around that big tree too, but it’s tougher.

Here’s a tough par 3 that can ruin your round.

This hole can set up anywhere from a sand wedge to a 3-wood depending on the tee box and wind, but it always has a hard left-sloping green towards the sand.

If you’re close enough for a small iron or wedge, and the wind is blowing left too, you may need to get creative. Turn right one of the green and hit a B1-type shot with backspin. Doing this with any club longer than a 7-iron will hook the ball too much and you’ll be stuck behind a huge hill and in the sand.

You can always try to take advantage of the hill by landing on it so that it rolls down onto the green (use backspin).

If it sets up pretty square, play a B1 or A2 shot with backspin into the green, trying to land behind the pin, to combat the slope. If you land it correctly, it will curl back toward the pin.

Be careful on a downhill putt here! I had a 12-foot down 10 putt roll over even while pulling back to A (which is supposed to prevent such roll overs)!

This long par 5 has a tee shot that is sometimes the toughest in the game. To get there in 2, you’ll need to go down the squiggly fairway and be close enough to get a wood to the green. Hitting to just in-between the first 2 bunkers will leave you about 360-400 to the green with really no shot at making it, unless you have a huge tailwind.

If you are on a back box and into the wind, try turning left or right, and then hit an A1 or C3 and hope to get lucky and stay on the fairway. If you end up in a bunker still, determine the best place to lay up – it may be just down to the end of the squiggly fairway where you’ll have a 5-wood into the green, or it may be up and left to the top fairway for a wood approach.
Again, be wary of the roll over putt on this green!

Here is one of the most favorable finishing holes in Golden Tee, where you should end up with a birdie at worst.

This par 4 is always drivable, but it can set up for a straight wood shot or be a difficult C3 or A1. Just remember when hitting this shot that you don’t need backspin, because the big hill behind will keep it on the green (as long as you land the green first)! Also be sure you have enough loft on your club to carry the green. Try to stick it close and finish your round with an eagle!