Instructor Tom Stickney has a simple three-point plan for avoiding the side of the course where the trouble is.
First, set up on the side of the tee where the trouble is and aim away from the trouble. That seems simple enough but most people don't do it. Why? Because they instinctively want to get away from the trouble so they set up as far away from it as they can. But that doesn't leave them enough room to aim away from it, so they end up hitting toward the trouble. You need to set up near the trouble and aim away from it.
Second, you want to pick an aim point that's only a couple of feet in front of the ball. You don't want to be looking up at the trouble. By picking a point on the ground that's close to the ball you don't have to see the trouble at all, plus it's easier to hit the ball over a point that's close to you rather than one that's farther away from you.
BTW, Jack Nicklaus used this one all the time. He didn't miss many fairways!
Finally, make sure the last place you look is at the safe side of the course, not the dangerous side. Just as a driver tends to steer their car in the direction they're looking -- that's one reason they tell you not to stare at accidents in the other lane -- you'll tend to hit the ball toward the point you're looking at, whether you want to hit it there or not. It's just the way the human mind works.
These three tips are likely things you've heard before but simply went "yeah, I know that." Still, if you make these three things a habit on the tee, you'll end up in trouble a lot less often.
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