My answer to this question has changed 100% over the last ten years. Drivers were much harder for the average player to hit 10-20 years ago then they are now. 3 Woods were much easier to hit due to the shorter length of the shaft combined with a more forgiving loft then the standard driver. Also 20 years ago there was only a ten to fifteen yard difference between a Driver and a 3 Wood. Back then I would highly recommend the beginning golfer to average golfer would have more success hitting 3 woods, specially on tighter holes.
Currently that difference in yardage is much more. Todays Driver also flies much straighter then in the past and is harder to curve. So the long winded answer is, if it is a straight but tight hole where no curve is required, I would recommend hitting a Driver. If the hole requires some curve to the tee shot then I would suggest hitting a 3 Wood. Why not reap the benefits of the extra 20 yards from hitting a driver? Personally, I find it much easier to choke down a half inch to an inch and make my normal golf swing to hit very straight shots with a Driver vs the modern 3 Wood.