I was taught and teach reduced flap, mainly for the path deviation from gusts. The yaw and lift arguments sound worth exploring.
Hudson, if the grass is that close, a shortfield is warranted wind or not. If it was 15g25, at 1.3Vs with Vs near 50kts... tell you what, you can fly with no gust allowance. I'll keep some on board.
Of course, most places make an absolute rather than proportional allowance on Vs for approach speeds usually around 15kts (?)