Par-3s breaking your scores? Reconsider the height of your maut, says the master teacher

Welcome to Shaving Strokesa GOLF.com series in which we’re sharing improvements, lessons and tips from amateur golfers just like you—including some of the speed bumps and challenges they faced along the way.

My last few rounds of golf have been some of the best i’ve played in my entire life. I’m hitting the ball off the tee with distance and accuracy, and my approach shots have put me in position to make birdies and save pars when needed.

Of course, I’m still a mid-handicap, so there are some glaring weaknesses that are holding me back from my goal of breaking 80 (the short game, that is, but that’s a story for another day).

Outside of chipping and putting, though, it’s the par-3 holes that have just been eating me alive, with my tee shots often landing on the green and then slowly rolling, rolling, rolling somewhere away from the pin. It’s like a magnetic force just won’t let my ball ever land within 10 feet of the pin.

Now, look, par-3s aren’t as easy as they look, with many (myself included) looking at the shorter distance and thinking it should be an easier hole to score. Unfortunately, this is not correct at all.

Want to know the average score on par-3 holes from PGA Tour this year? It is 3.06.

If you’re a medium-to-high handicapper who can relate, it may be time to change your approach—and it all starts with the height of your tee, according to GOLF Teacher to see Derek Swoboda.

Try one higher tee height on par-3s

If you ask most amateur golfers how high they put their ball on a par-3, most will probably tell you it’s lower to the ground. It makes sense too, as it allows the ball to be closer to the low point of the club at impact. Just put a good swing on it, loosen the club, squeeze the balland watch the shot land safely on the green.

Unfortunately, many mid- and high-handicappers struggle with executing each of these elements, so Swoboda goes against conventional thinking and says it’s time to get the ball higher when playing par-3 holes.

“Whatever your normal height is, make it higher,” says Swoboda. “This will allow the golf ball to hit higher on the club face, while also allowing the club to work up the golf ball a little more than usual.”

While that idea may be questioned by some players, Swoboda adds that due to changes in golf equipment, the ball simply doesn’t roll like it once did off the face of some clubs.

“The advent of lower spin golf equipment has been both helpful and detrimental to mid-high handicappers,” he adds. “There are a lot of clubs in your golf bag now that won’t stay in the air because of the lack of spin they allow, so when these clubs are hit on par-3s, they’re going to come down and roll more than they’re going to land. and climb.

“The simple reason is because the golf ball is coming in at a lower landing angle with less backspin than it should. So when you lift the ball higher, you’re going to add height to the ball flight and give the ball more of a chance to stop on the green and hold them.”

So if you have trouble hitting the green on par-3s, and holding ball on the green, try this simple hack to start dominating them during your next round.

Western Birch Signature Bamboo 2.75″ “Arrowhead” Golf Tees

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Nick Dimengo

Editor of Golf.com