No Tee - Solution for "Excessive" Driving Distance?

[DrvFrShow]

On 5/26/2020 at 4:39 PM, billchao said:

They're not all conforming. They make high COR heads. The USGA conforming clubs they sell are specifically listed as "USGA conforming."

I mean when you hit 75 yrs old and your driver distance drops to 170 yds, due to loss of flexibility, arthritis, etc., and you're just out there for fun why not? Some courses have par 3s that are 175 from the forward tees. 

[boogielicious]

2 hours ago, DrvFrShow said:

Some courses have par 3s that are 175 from the forward tees. It 

I don’t get that either. My wife hits her driver 130 max and some par 3s are too far. She shouldn’t be hitting driver when I’m hitting a 6 iron.

[colin007]

1 hour ago, boogielicious said:

I don’t get that either. My wife hits her driver 130 max and some par 3s are too far. She shouldn’t be hitting driver when I’m hitting a 6 iron.

You hit your 6 iron only 130 max? Bruh.....

[Vinsk]

5 minutes ago, colin007 said:

You hit your 6 iron only 130 max? Bruh.....

No. 175yds. Read again.😯

[boogielicious]

2 hours ago, colin007 said:

You hit your 6 iron only 130 max? Bruh.....

 

2 hours ago, Vinsk said:

No. 175yds. Read again.😯

More like 160-165

[colin007]

Lol it was a joke...I was hoping to avoid the emoji for extra dry effect

[Cantankerish]

Forgive my ignorance on this - I did not grow up with this sport. I do not watch golf much, and I do not have that deep sense of its history that some others of you do...

I am not aware of course records being rapidly and repeatedly broken.  What specifically is the issue with the longer distances (and what is wrong with lengthening courses for pro tees? Is it the obvious issue of limited land?)

[Double Mocha Man]

1 minute ago, Cantankerish said:

Forgive my ignorance on this - I did not grow up with this sport. I do not watch golf much, and I do not have that deep sense of its history that some others of you do...

I am not aware of course records being rapidly and repeatedly broken.  What specifically is the issue with the longer distances (and what is wrong with lengthening courses for pro tees? Is it the obvious issue of limited land?)

My opinion is it's the land issue... lack of land.  Some courses have bought parcels of land to lengthen their tees.  Not all courses have that option.  Also, lengthening messes with the course architect's original vision.

[Buckeyebowman]

On 5/26/2020 at 11:40 AM, turtleback said:

But you didn't just ask for tight fairways and heavy rough.  You asked for tighter fairways and heavier rough for some guys (the bombers) than other guys (the hunters), based on distance.

The speed of the green is the same for everyone, so your attempted analogy in inapt.

Don't tighter fairways and heavier rough affect every golfer on the course? Of course, some of that thinking has changed over the years. They'll give them medium rough and invite them to try an approach to the green rather than just gouge a wedge onto the fairway. Then, they'll shave all the rough around the green, allowing the ball to run forever if the green is missed. 

And yes, the speed of the green is the same for everyone. You seem to assume that every golfer's putting skill is the same, or the skill at placing shots on the green that don't get above the hole. That also is inapt.  

On 5/28/2020 at 4:51 PM, boogielicious said:

I don’t get that either. My wife hits her driver 130 max and some par 3s are too far. She shouldn’t be hitting driver when I’m hitting a 6 iron.

What tee is she playing? Admittedly, some courses don't really set things up fairly for women. My buddy got his Sis involved with golf a few years back. She is now a full fledged golf nut, and has made a couple of lady friends who are the same. On occasion, we guys will give them strokes and scramble against them. They have beaten us a time or two, but it's surprising how often the matches end up tied. That just means we got the bet right! 

One issue we find, especially on older courses, is when the senior men's tees are crammed into the same box as the lady's tees! We are all seniors, and it is not fair! Which prompted one of our group to say, "OK, there are the senior men's tees and the lady's tees. Where are the senior lady's tees?!" I think that's a valid question.

As far as some of those older courses go, I've talked to course managers about distancing the senior men's tees from the lady's. I've told them that they don't have to build us distinct tee boxes. Just give us a closely mown area on one side of the fairway or the other, and put the markers there. Give the ladies a 60-70 yard advantage, Or, give the senior ladies their own teeing ground. So far, nothing has changed. So, I guess my arguments are unpersuasive.

Edited June 4, 2020 by Buckeyebowman

[turtleback]

15 hours ago, Buckeyebowman said:

Don't tighter fairways and heavier rough affect every golfer on the course? Of course, some of that thinking has changed over the years. They'll give them medium rough and invite them to try an approach to the green rather than just gouge a wedge onto the fairway. Then, they'll shave all the rough around the green, allowing the ball to run forever if the green is missed. 

 

I'm not sure if you really just don't get it or are just being disingenuous, at this point.  You have called for tighter fairways and longer rough and maybe bunkers in the landing zone of big hitters.  No, that DOESN'T affect every player on the course.  It only affects guys that hit it that far.  Hitting it far and accurate has almost always been a Hallmark of great players.  One of the things that made Bobby Jones great was the way he could dominate the par 5s.  Same with Arnie.  Same with Jack.  

If the fairway is 30 yards wide at the 280 mark, it should be (at least) 30 yards wide at the 320 mark.  And if so, it is ALREADY harder for the guy who hits it 320 to hit the fairway because of simple geometry.  But you're not content with that, you want to slim that fairway down to 20 or 25 yards at the 320 mark and make it even harder.  As if there is something wrong with hitting it far.

There really are 2 different aspects to this whole discussion.  One is the problem of increasing distances making classic courses obsolete for top level play if they don't have or can't acquire extra land to lengthen the course.  I'm not sure that problem is solvable without equipment restrictions.  But there's another, insidious in my opinion, aspect where folks want to use this general distance problem to change the competitive balance of the game and effectively, punish one particular skill - hitting the ball long.  And considering that the long guys don't, on average, gain more strokes off the tee than other players gain by the strengths of THEIR games, I see no justification for interfering with the competitive balance of the game by punishing one particular skill. 

[Papa Steve 55]

These guys will just practise hitting driver off the deck more and be right back to bombing them. 

[Double Mocha Man]

1 hour ago, Papa Steve 55 said:

These guys will just practise hitting driver off the deck more and be right back to bombing them. 

But first they'll take a little hack at the turf on the tee box and create their own little mound of a tee.  Unless that is forbidden by the new rules.

[Papa Steve 55]

59 minutes ago, Double Mocha Man said:

But first they'll take a little hack at the turf on the tee box and create their own little mound of a tee.  Unless that is forbidden by the new rules.

Sure, find a little clump of dirt and place it on that. Make sure you make a couple more with your practice swings for the next guy.

[boogielicious]

14 hours ago, Double Mocha Man said:

But first they'll take a little hack at the turf on the tee box and create their own little mound of a tee.  Unless that is forbidden by the new rules.

A la Laura Davies.