i have no interest in "teeing it forward"

[tuffluck]

i hit the ball pretty long, so i target courses that are about 7,000 yards, which is usually the tips.  i shoot 90s consistently from this position.  i CAN tee it forward and shoot lower, but it doesn't boost my confidence any.  i know that if i play today from the whites and shoot 87 or from the blacks and shoot 93, my skill level didn't change between either.  if my skill level doesn't change and i'm not reporting my scorecard to anyone, 5 saved strokes via sacrificing 500 yards doesn't do anything for me emotionally.  if i play with someone with a similar skill level that decides to tee it forward, unless we are betting money i really don't care that they beat me by 5 strokes.  oh, and my pace of play is very fast, so teeing it forward isn't an issue in that regard.  anyone else feel this way?

[MyrtleBeachGolf]

i hit the ball pretty long, so i target courses that are about 7,000 yards, which is usually the tips.  i shoot 90s consistently from this position.  i CAN tee it forward and shoot lower, but it doesn't boost my confidence any.  i know that if i play today from the whites and shoot 87 or from the blacks and shoot 93, my skill level didn't change between either.  if my skill level doesn't change and i'm not reporting my scorecard to anyone, 5 saved strokes via sacrificing 500 yards doesn't do anything for me emotionally.  if i play with someone with a similar skill level that decides to tee it forward, unless we are betting money i really don't care that they beat me by 5 strokes.  oh, and my pace of play is very fast, so teeing it forward isn't an issue in that regard.  anyone else feel this way?

Sorry, but I just don't understand this thinking? If you can't shoot 70's from the middle tees, and are a 20 index, why are you playing from the tips? If you enjoy the extra yardage, and aren't slowing down the entire course by playing the tips, then go enjoy yourself. I play a lot of golf in this area, and one of the thing I see that slows down the entire course is players playing from tees that aren't correct for their handicap or skill level. During peak season, I have waited through 5.5 hour rounds watching players who can't break 100 play the course from the tips.

[SloverUT]

No, I do not feel that way.  If I am not scoring par or better from the white I don't think I need to be playing from the tips.

[GaijinGolfer]

Its your choice.  No one is going to hold a gun to your head and make you tee it forward.  With all respect, as a 20 handicap maybe you SHOULD be teeing forward though.  Teeing it forward allows you to hit a shorter club into the green, which is going to help you to hit more greens and shoot lower scores.  Thats what teeing it forward is all about: shooting lower scores, being able to hit shots that the average golfer has a chance to pull off and having more fun.

I dont play the tips (I play the whites usually) and always laugh at people who play the tips and still hack it around the course but hey, its your dime, play what you want.

[shanksalot]

I moved up last year from the whites to the senior tees. Turned 70 this year and the whites at my course have four par 4's that I need to hit a fairway wood to reach the green even on well hit drives. I do it for the enjoyment of the game. I can shoot in the 80's from the whites and high 70's low to mid 80's from the seniors. I have no problem with anyone playing from further back as long as they can keep up the pace of the group and don't slow down the players behind them.

Most of the guys at my course play pretty much the correct tees but once in a while a single will join a threesome that is playing for the purple tees, 7000 yd, and instead of playing the whiles or even the senior tees they play with the threesome at the purple tees. I had a guy join me and my wife this year and when I told him I was playing the senior tees he wanted to play the whiles. By the 5th hole he realized the course was too long from him there and moved up with me. Wish more players would do that especially when they are the reason their group is slowing down play on the course.

[Golfingdad]

Seems to me like the "Teeing It Forward" idea is good for two kinds of people:

1.  People who are slowing everybody else down because they are playing the wrong set of tees.

2.  People who are not having any fun because longer tees are just too difficult and they would enjoy themselves more from something shorter.

It's very simple ... more enjoyment for yourself and/or more enjoyment for others (the groups behind you)

If you don't fall into either of these two groups, and it sounds like the OP does not, then play where you want that is the most fun for you.

[Rfordeagle]

I agree with GolfingDad.  I'm not a great player, but do have enough distance and pace to play from the tips.  I don't want to move forward to have to use 3 wood or hybrid off most tees.  My short game does need alot of work and costs me plenty of strokes, so teeing it forward won't boost my scores a ton.  If your pace of play is good and you want the challenge, who cares.

[AmazingWhacker]

I agree - if you're shooting low 90's from the tips I see no problem in you playing the tips if you want.

For me - I base tee selection on the club just based on distance.  If I hit a good drive on a normal (for the course) par 4, I want to be hitting a 7iron or higher for my approach.  I play the set of tees that gives me that possibility.

If you're hitting a 6 iron on down for your second shot then you're going to miss a lot more greens and you aren't even really helping yourself learn the game since, when you're drives are longer, the long iron second shot to the green will just be for very long par4's or trying to hit a par 5 in two.  So you'd be practicing a shot that probably comes up 2 or 3 times a round on every hole . .and not getting enough experience with your 100 yard-in type shots.

[Dave2512]

When I participated in the forward tees experiment earlier this year it made a big difference. I anticipated the distance advantage but what I didn't think about was how it would affect my judgment. By the time I got to the back 9 it was like I was playing a different game and the impact on score was more than a few strokes. Approach shots landed closer to the hole resulting in less putts. From further out my goal was to simply hit the green. Putting a shorter club in the hands had me trying to hit specific areas of the green. Shorter par 5's became reachable in 2. Less bogeys on longer par 3's because moving up was a 2 club difference.

It was enough of a difference that I decided to move up to the middle tees late summer but unfortunately it coincided with an elbow injury and some swing flaws resulting from bad instruction. I am back on track now but winter is limiting course time. But I have no doubt come spring my HC will drop significantly. It will be a combo of better instruction and moving forward but it will be different. I am longer than most but I can honestly say moving up helped my short game. For me the biggest change was less desperation around the greens. The pitch or chip I hit is a 2nd shot instead of a 3rd following a missed green. It's easier to recover from mishit tee shots. Being a little closer stopped me from overswinging and my FIR improved, which resulted in more GIR. My confidence with the putter increased due to not trying to save my score by forcing long putts. I still suffer the occasional double but with less frequency and without a doubt the pars are more frequent. There's something enjoyable about having successive birdie opportunites. I prefer that to playing a frustrating round of bogey golf with the feeling that I am trying to catch up and recover from mistakes.

[phan52]

Originally Posted by tuffluck

i hit the ball pretty long, so i target courses that are about 7,000 yards, which is usually the tips.  i shoot 90s consistently from this position.  i CAN tee it forward and shoot lower, but it doesn't boost my confidence any.  i know that if i play today from the whites and shoot 87 or from the blacks and shoot 93, my skill level didn't change between either.  if my skill level doesn't change and i'm not reporting my scorecard to anyone, 5 saved strokes via sacrificing 500 yards doesn't do anything for me emotionally.  if i play with someone with a similar skill level that decides to tee it forward, unless we are betting money i really don't care that they beat me by 5 strokes.  oh, and my pace of play is very fast, so teeing it forward isn't an issue in that regard.  anyone else feel this way?

JMO, but people with a 20 handcap index shouldn't be playing from the tips. But as long as your not holding anybody up. to each his own.

[saevel25]

Depends on the course really, i've played 7000 yard courses were 7000 yards would be the same score as 6200 yards. I've played the same course twice, once from 6800 another from 6200, i've shot better at more yardage before.

Given certain people should not be playing from the back tees. If your hitting into an average par 4, lets say 400-420 yards, and your hitting hybrids or long irons, and you can not get those hybrids or long irons near the green majority of the time. Then move up. If your like my dad who can stick a 3 wood on the green like someone can hit a mid-iron, then he can play longer courses, because his style of play isn't inhibited. Given he might shoot a few shots better, meaning he wont be closer to the pin with shorter iron shots. But he's not topping a 3-wood ever other hole because he can't hit the club.

Basically its balancing personal ability with the clubs your likely to play with the yardage of the course.

[iacas]

Originally Posted by Golfingdad

Seems to me like the "Teeing It Forward" idea is good for two kinds of people:

1.  People who are slowing everybody else down because they are playing the wrong set of tees.

2.  People who are not having any fun because longer tees are just too difficult and they would enjoy themselves more from something shorter.

It's very simple ... more enjoyment for yourself and/or more enjoyment for others (the groups behind you)

If you don't fall into either of these two groups, and it sounds like the OP does not, then play where you want that is the most fun for you.

^^^^ this.

[phillyk]

I did the tee it forward experiment as well, and being a long hitter myself, i saw my play get worse (at least that's what it felt like).  I've noticed the longer course i play, the better I feel about my game.  I like courses 6900+yds, but when i play with my buddies at 6200yds or so, I use my long irons off the tee and enjoy myself.  Sometimes I can go for a green here and there, but it plays a different part of your game you might not use often.  So, by all means, if you think you enjoy it more at longer distances go for it, but playing the whites/mid tees is nice so that you can switch things up to see where you might need more work.

[robrey85]

Originally Posted by phillyk

I did the tee it forward experiment as well, and being a long hitter myself, i saw my play get worse (at least that's what it felt like).  I've noticed the longer course i play, the better I feel about my game.  I like courses 6900+yds, but when i play with my buddies at 6200yds or so, I use my long irons off the tee and enjoy myself.  Sometimes I can go for a green here and there, but it plays a different part of your game you might not use often.  So, by all means, if you think you enjoy it more at longer distances go for it, but playing the whites/mid tees is nice so that you can switch things up to see where you might need more work.

If your play got worse, wouldn't that mean you need to work on your short game?

[phillyk]

Originally Posted by robrey85

If your play got worse, wouldn't that mean you need to work on your short game?

Since this thread isn't about me, I'll only say that no it wasn't my short game, because every par-4 was within driving distance of either my driver or 3-wood and every hole has water near the green. thus...

[Dave2512]

Originally Posted by phillyk

Since this thread isn't about me, I'll only say that no it wasn't my short game, because every par-4 was within driving distance of either my driver or 3-wood and every hole has water near the green. thus...

That sounds like a quirky course. I play a short 6100y course and there are only two par 4's that are reachable from the middle tees. One at 292y and one at 317y. All others are 340+, five of which are between 375-422. Many of the par 4's there wouldn't even be reachable from the red tees for those that can't hit it at least 300 consistently.

[rehmwa]

the course near my house plays significantly different from the black (tips) vs white (typical)

So I decide what I want to work on (or what would be more fun that day) and choose accordingly.  It's different enough that it's fun to switch it around.

Blacks - Par 4s more teeing with drivers (smile), still decent approach shots.  Par 3's get to be a better challenge.  Par 5's not a big difference really.

Whites - more thoughtful game - choosing to lay up on drive, etc etc.  Sometimes a driver on the 4's just leaves a crappy 'feel' partial wedge approach instead of a nice full swing with a PW or 9 or 8 or 6 or whatever.....

[phillyk]

Originally Posted by Dave2512

That sounds like a quirky course. I play a short 6100y course and there are only two par 4's that are reachable from the middle tees. One at 292y and one at 317y. All others are 340+, five of which are between 375-422. Many of the par 4's there wouldn't even be reachable from the red tees for those that can't hit it at least 300 consistently.

Robrey85 was commenting on the playing red tees which are 5800 I think, vs the 6200 for whites, which you may have confused.