At what hcp did you make the jump from the white to the blue tees ?

I'm your average 235-240 yard driver kind of guy - I know I don't have the length (& will probably never have the length)  to play from the blue tees (no less the tips).     I was wondering when did you guys who play from the rearward tee's feel it was time to leave the white's and play further back ??

I still play from the white tee's. Most of our local muni's have only white and blue. A few local courses have white, gold and black, in which I may move back to the gold. But for the most part I play white. I have came to a decision that when I can break 80 fairly consistent (which I have yet to do) it'll be time for me to take a step back to the big boy tee's.

I don't feel that it has anything to do with handicap.  It's about length.  I've always played from the middle tees,  or one back of middle, on just about every course I've played.  My length has suited me to 6000-6500 yards most of my life (depending on elevation - most of my golf has been in Colorado, so I lean toward the 6500 end of the range).

I only started playing the blues this year, when I made a commitment to improve. However, this was mainly due to most championship flight tournaments in my area being played from blue/gold tees. I still haven't worked up the courage to try the black tees at one of the courses near me, seeing's how they are 7300 yards, compared to 6900 from the golds. (5000 ft altitude though, so subtract about 300 yards from each to get what they play like at sea level, or something in the ballpark).

I decided to make the jump when I noticed I hit my 5 iron 180+ yards. I now hit it a bit over 200, but I generally play tees of 6400 or longer when I play full length courses. I think it's more about distance than your handicap, but there is a requirement for getting off the tee reasonably well that can hurt new players.

I think one should play wider and more forgiving courses at a high handicap instead of playing really short ones. Honestly if there are no woods/OB you can spray the ball pretty bad and still make the green. But a short and tight course will take all day. At that level, any shot where you can find the ball is a good shot. To shoot bogey golf, you pretty much have to be able to get off the tee and hit consistent distances with your clubs, by this point you can decide which tees to play for yourself.

I dropped most of my handicap strokes since I moved up. I don't think the tees make that much difference for me; as long as they're 6400 or less, I have no real challenge reaching greens.

^^ yeah, I guess color doesn't mean much - it's the yardage that I should have indicated, my bad.

I started playing in my mid 20s and the guys that got me started were 0-3 handicaps so they put me on the back from day one.  I never had any issues keeping pace with them and would just pick up to speed up play if needed.  I think it helped me get better faster and really helped me develop a good chipping and short game.  Distance has never really been an issue I'm not the longest but, hit it far enough to play the longest courses.

To clarify, I'm definitely not looking to back up to the blues - I only carry my 5 iron about 160-165 (drive 235-240).      My course plays abou 6200 from the whites ( http://www.glenbrookgolfclub.com/scorecard.htm ).

Was just curious when/how the better players decided it was time to move back... if it was primarily due to length or lower hcp

Total yardage is part of the equation. And, do white tee boxes "hurt" on some holes.

Despite my HDCP, there's one course I play where I prefer the blues over the whites. The course has a couple of 110-yd. par 3s with shots over water from elevated tees. I would prefer to be about 30 yds. back so I can hit a full 8i rather than feathering a PW over the water.

On three long Par 4s, the blue tees are 15 feet above the whites, and you can see the fairway rather than hitting a blind shot. Also, my drives roll a lot, so I can get more distance coming downhill from the blues than the lower whites.

Blues are 400 yds. longer, but I shoot the same score gross from either - and the blue gives me a lower HDCP differential.

Note: Some courses put a recommended HDCP range for each set of tees on their scorecards.

It's a combination of yardage and difficulty and how they stack up to your game.  I don't think that there is any set formula.  The only real mistake is to make the choice with your ego instead of your brain.

This.

I too hit it about 230-240 off the tee. Not long. I found that I like a course that plays in the 6300-6600y range. Any longer than that & I'm not even seeing my short irons.

I am 58 years old, and right now, I am hitting it as long as I ever have. I know that is due to equipment and the ball, and I also know that it won't last forever. I currently play from the Blues(6700). When I start hitting hybrids on a lot of the par 4's, I will move up to the whites. I think distance will be more of a factor than handicap.

I agree that it's about length. My comfortable range is at 6800 yards for a par 72. I have a chance at the par 5s with a great drive (at least 2 of the 4) and can hit irons into every par 4 with a decent drive. I average just over 260 and hit my 5 iron 187. I have a friend that hits it 235 and his fit is 6400 yards.

I moved to the blue tees once I started playing to a single cap and could hit it 250. The key was the distance.

I didn't look at moving from the White to the Blues based on handicap... I simply made the move based on how far I was hitting my clubs.

For instance, once I started to consistently hit my drive 200+yds off the tee and felt I could start hitting greens from 150 o 175yds out - or at least make clean contact with the ball and have the ball go in the general vicinity of the green... From the fairway or rough... Then I felt it was time to play a little longer set of tee's.

This is when I started to move back from the forward tee's...

Distance in golf is:

Quality of strike (force applied onto the golf ball)

Speed of strike (swing speed)

As you become a more proficient ball striker... And the course becomes shorter and shorter... Then move back to a longer tee box.

Nothing to add other than like other's I make the choice based on length and I move around accordingly. It's a moving target. We have courses here that are just 6400 yds from the back and others that are a monstrous 7600+ yds from the back. Though at a few of the longer courses you need permission from the head pro to play championship tees. I stood on the box of a 696 yd par 5 just to see what the view was, crazy long. There are 3 sets of men's tees there and more than a 100 yd difference on some holes from the tips to the most forward men's tee.