When playing smart on the golf course might not be all that smart on the scoreboard.
Safe is not always smart
Conservative golf is good advice most of the time and terrible advice some of the time. The difference is whether the aggressive line actually carries meaningful risk.
Plenty of shots golfers treat as red light are statistically green light: the bad outcome costs half a shot, the good outcome gains a full one.
Judge the downside, not the fear
Ask what the realistic worst case is. A greenside bunker is not a penalty. Short rough is not a penalty. Water and out of bounds are.
Once you separate real hazards from uncomfortable ones, half of the caution disappears and the birdie count rises.
Where red light is genuinely red
Short sided over water, long shots to tucked pins, and any shot where a miss brings a reload into play. Those are the shots that produce the doubles that ruin cards.
Play aggressively to safe targets. That single phrase resolves most on course decisions.