Do You Support the PGA's "Tee It Forward" Effort?

[lville lefty]

The PGA and USGA are suggesting all of us amateurs move up a tee and shorten the golf course.  The benefits according to the PGA/USGA are faster rounds, lower scores and ergo more enjoyment.  You can read the entire story here.

Here's the question will you support this idea and move up a tee? (This assumes there is a tee on your course you can move up to without playing from the very shortest tee on the course.)

I can attest this will lower your score.  Our group moved up from 6664 yards to 6215.    Broke 80 for the first time in five years.  Now that is fun.

[darkhunter139]

Yes! I play from the white tee's (6013 yard par 70) and I see people that don't hit it any farther than me hitting from the blues sometimes.  I don't get how people have fun from tee's when they hit a perfect drive then wind up having to use another long club on a par 4.

[MEfree]

I won't be doing anything except maybe some putting and chipping this summer, but have happily played the recommended and shorter length tees (based on my average drive) in the past.  If you play the same course often, I think it is a good idea to mix up the tees you play.

[mirv]

this is the first i've heard of such an effort, though at the moment, i would say i'm both supporting and opposing it - my dad, who has very weak legs and can barely hit his driver 200 yards, used to always want to hit from the same box as me (and i'm usually on one of the back boxes).  i told him over and over and over he would enjoy the game more if he'd tee up from the ladies tee because he's just dooming himself to bogey or worse hitting back there with me.  he finally did, and his scores went from 95 to 85.  he even got into the 70s a couple of times, which he said he'd never done before in 40 years of playing.

me, on the other hand... i played the white tees for the longest, and finally forced myself to move back towards the tips on the idea that, sure, i can shoot in the 70s just about every time from the whites, but can i do it from the blues?  or the blacks?  and come to find out, a lot of the time, i couldn't.  i'd usually wind up in the mid-80s.  not from the additional yardage, but because way back on the tips, there are suddenly all kinds of hazards and trouble spots i never even noticed from the whites, primarily because i could carry them from the whites.  from the tips they're right in my landing area.  so i stay on the back boxes because if i don't push myself, i'm never going to get better.  i have to learn how to accurately land my tee shot and avoid those trouble spots.

[Stretch]

http://thesandtrap.com/forum/thread/47190/tee-it-forward

[B of H]

I don't mind playing 6200 yard courses with friends sometimes and I encourage them to play from up there.  I do sometimes miss being able to hit driver if I do it too much but its a small concession for some of my friends being able to enjoy the round more.  I try to look at it as wedge and fairway wood/ long iron practice.

[The_Pharaoh]

Originally Posted by lville lefty

Here's the question will you support this idea and move up a tee? (This assumes there is a tee on your course you can move up to without playing from the very shortest tee on the course.)

I think it is a great idea and am praying the idea comes off and then heads across the pond to Europe. Far too many players are playing courses that are way too long for them. The problem in Europe is the fact most courses only have four tee boxes (red for ladies, blue for pro ladies, yellow for men and white for pro men) and very few men are going to admit defeat and move up to the ladies tee box. I like the US situation where you have 6-7 tee boxes and where you play from is based on your handicap.

I'm all for beginners, OAPs etc. flooding our golf courses, but we really need to do something about these 5-5.5 hour rounds.

[sean_miller]

I support this initiative for whoever is in the group ahead of me.

[jshots]

Its a good thing for a lot of people but I'm not going to quit playing the back tees.

[goodguy96]

I think its  a Great Idea!....... well anything that speeds up play and lets me hit a Mid\Short iron in to the green is a Good idea To me!

[BigTazz53]

Yes I support it and play either blue or white in my area. Usually it isn't a whole lot of difference and it allows a quick round.

I think guys need to leave their ego in the bag along with the 300 yd drive everyone claims is a regular thing

and move up and out of the way.

If you play from the tips in 3 hours great ,but if you don't then you should adjust.

Golf Course Superintendents Association of America also supports this.

[goodguy96]

Originally Posted by BigTazz53

Yes I support it and play either blue or white in my area. Usually it isn't a whole lot of difference and it allows a quick round.

I think guys need to leave their ego in the bag along with the 300 yd drive everyone claims is a regular thing

and move up and out of the way.

If you play from the tips in 3 hours great ,but if you don't then you should adjust.

Golf Course Superintendents Association of America also supports this.

Exactly! I think some Guys are just too proud to play off the Gold\White tees! I have to play of Shorter Tees since i only hit my driver about 230-240.

[B-Con]

Yes, because I think that a lot of players play inappropriate tees for their skill level. Particularly the higher handicappers; I think the good players are pretty realistic about their games. I've always played appropriate tees because I've never thought well of my game. I've never wanted to make the game harder than it already is. I don't want to sound like I'm saying "everyone does it wrong but me", but I don't think I've played the wrong tees without being simply new to the game and ignorant.

[Chas]

Originally Posted by sean_miller

I support this initiative for whoever is in the group ahead of me.

LOL.

I feel like my game still has real improvement potential - assuming I start playing more often than I've done the last few years - so I'm not willing to give up the chase for sub-80 rounds playing from my usual set of tees.  I've got the length off the tee, that isn't the problem.  But the longer you hit the blasted thing, the farther off the fairway you end up if you block the shot right or (heaven forbid) release early and hook into the creek ......

But when I reach the age and stage that it's appropriate, I hope I have the good sense to move to more forward tees.

[oltombon]

As a guy in his late twenties, I feel like if I can't score well from the regular tees, I deserve the score I end up with. However, I'm not dreading getting my AARP card and moving up a box.

[doublesuited77]

i think it is a good idea, but also require golf courses to provide more tees.   For courses with a typical 3-tee setup this can be problematic.   Most men wont play from the front / ladies tees even if there game deserves it.

[Fourputt]

My home course only has 3 sets of tees at the moment, although a fourth is planned st some point in the future.  Right now I play the white tees there as that has always suited my game, but as I get older, they get harder to deal with.  The two longest par 4 holes are both on the back 9, 430 yards and 440 yards.  The longer one is straight and is nearly always out of reach in regulation for me now.  The 430 yard hole is a sharp dogleg left and is reachable if you cut off some of the dogleg, but that brings a couple of fairway bunkers and a grove of trees into play.  Both holes would be much more playable for us seniors if they knocked off 20-25 yards.  The way I see it if you can't break 90 at least occasionally for the tees yo are using, you should move up if possible to where you can.  I still shoot most rounds in the 80's, but I don't seem to threaten to break that 80 mark much any more.

So to answer the OP's question, yes, I'd happily support such an initiative.

[stealthduffer]

I support the effort but feel that I already play from the appopriate set of tees.  On all but the longest par 4's I'm hitting short irons to the green - and enjoy the times where it takes a 5 or 6 iron to get to the pin.  Generally I play the white tees unless a course is particularly short and then it is usually the blues.  If paired with compatible players we can easily play 18 in 3 - 3 1/2 hours.  But watching enough guys struggle from the back tees convinces me that the effort is worthwhile.