Golfers Who Can't Ever Hit it 100+ Yards

[iacas]

On another site, someone saw a woman who, on her best hits, couldn't advance the ball even 100 yards. He started a discussion about what golf courses could or should do to accommodate these types of players.

Another poster estimated that these players are responsible for 25% of golf's yearly revenue.

I suspect it's closer to 0.25%, and my answer as to what we should do about the non-juniors who can't ever hit a ball 100+ yards (normal conditions, not downhill onto a concrete runway) is… ignore them, because golf is a sport, and it also wouldn't make good business sense to try to accommodate a tiny portion of the population.

When @NatalieB was younger and she couldn't hit it too far, she'd tee off on par fours and fives where my tee shot ended up. It gave her plenty of 155-yard par fours and 245-yard par fives. No course accommodations necessary.

100-yard hitters (or, really 90-yard hitters) already find that the course "scale" is out of whack. Greens are huge, fairways are completely unmissable (plus you're teeing off from them, so even if you hit it ten feet you're likely in the fairway). If there's a forced carry, well, they likely have to skip that hole anyway.

[dennyjones]

I agree.   

I play occasionally with a couple that are close to 80.   They enjoy golf but have no expectations of improving their game.   They just want to be out swinging a club and enjoying the day.    When their score gets high they pick up and head to the putting green to finish the hole.    I enjoy their company.   We do play for putt skins and that is very competitive with the winner getting a Pepsi next round. 

[Ty_Webb]

I think whatever the actual percentage is, the subset of those people who care is going to be pretty small.

[boogielicious]

I played with a couple of women in their 70s this fall who would tee off down the fairway. I had no problem with that. It made it more fun for them. I’ve also played courses with a tee box down the fairway for juniors.

[iacas]

2 hours ago, Ty_Webb said:

I think whatever the actual percentage is, the subset of those people who care is going to be pretty small.

Yep.

2 hours ago, boogielicious said:

I played with a couple of women in their 70s this fall who would tee off down the fairway. I had no problem with that. It made it more fun for them. I’ve also played courses with a tee box down the fairway for juniors.

Right. I don't think anything needs to be done to "accommodate" them.

Here's the original post:

I hit balls yesterday next to a woman who made good contact with the ball but her mightiest wallop could not have gone much past 100 yards. There are many such people … and I imagine the game for her, even from the shortest tees, consists of repeatedly hitting the ball as far as she can.

Beyond forward tees, is there an opportunity to design courses that provide more interesting challenges for such a player? Are there courses that do so effectively?

I recall watching my father agonizing over whether to go for it and hit a hybrid over a pond to an elevated green 110 yards away or to bail out right and chip up to the green.  It was an interesting choice for him when it would not have been for a younger player.  I could envision a course that presents those sorts of choices all over the place without asking interesting questions of others.

God no. That's my answer.

Golf is a SPORT.

I'm not going to play rec soccer if I can't run anymore.

[Denny Bang Bang]

These courses already exist… they are generally called Par 3 and Executive courses.  And in the areas they don’t exist, tee off from the 150 or 100 yard markers (I’ve seen people do it, including my kids).

Here is the scorecard from an executive course back home that I played a lot when I first started golfing.  A lot of seniors and kids played it (was actually a pretty fun little course).

 

[Zippo]

For me, I'm less interested in how far she hits it than I am how long it takes her to do so - and is she enjoying it or is she cursing and tossing her club...

[NM Golf]

Oh golly I'm hot today!! 

Kidding aside, when we set the course up for junior PGA kids we just put the tee boxes in the fairway. We also have several senior women who just tee off from the 200 or 150 disks. 

[mcanadiens]

My home course has what it calls "family tees" at a couple of spots down the fairway. They really aren't anything more than a plate in the ground, but they give the short hitters a couple of closer options.  I think a 100-yard hitter could do ok from the front and it really doesn't change the experience at all for anyone playing from the conventional tee boxes.

In a related experience, my brother and I took his wife out for her first-ever time on a golf course. Probably only a handful went more than 100 yards, but they were straight and we were playing the round as a scramble. We used a couple of her tee shots when we went tree. She added a chip and sank a couple of putts. Apparently enjoyed herself enough that their is a bag of clubs in their garage for when it warms up.

 

 

 

 

[Piz]

Toward the end of his life my dad could manage about 120 off the tee...on a good strike.  It didn't matter what club he used.  He could still pitch, chip, and putt.  Although it bothered him...he kept playing until two weeks before he died.  Good for him I say...and good for anyone who finds a way to enjoy some of the game.  

[HankBlue]

The point of the GAME is to have FUN.  I say, let them be. 

[Esox]

My son and I golf at least once a moth with a couple ladies in their late 60's. I love it when you hear the groups behind us groan when they see them pull up to the regular ladies tees. Usually the ones that groan and make the most snide remarks are the ones that don't even have to wait to hit when the ladies get to their drives. LOL We can keep pace with anyone, and outpace the groaners if it's open in front of us. Both of these ladies usually score in the low 80's, NEVER over 90 and play ready golf.........

Edited January 30, 2022 by Esox

[bwdial]

I do this with my children.  They are 10, 9, 9, and 9 (yes... triplets) and I will map out a strategy on the scorecard for yardages on each hole before we go.  They were younger when we started, so obviously they weren't able to hit the ball as far as they can now.

If you are an adult who can't hit the ball 100 yards with any club in the bag, perhaps Top Golf or a simulator with accuracy games is best for you.

[DrvFrShow]

These are recreational golfers. They're not playing in comps. They probably don't have handicaps. They make high COR drivers. Give them another 15-20 yds.