Will using a tee on a par 3 help you? Top 100 Teacher Brian Manzella shares his thoughts.
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Lifting the ball as often as you can with a wood or driver is not difficult at all. But what about a par 3 when you try to hit shorter clubs? Some golfers—especially those with steep swings and who are content to take a significant swing—prefer to give the ball a good lie without using a tee. But should they?
I asked him this question Brian Manzellaa long time GOLF Top 100 Teachersin this week Top 100 Teachers Summit IN Cabot Citrus Farms in Brooksville, Fla. His answer was swift and final: yes.
“If you get it too low, like it’s just a really good lie, and as long as you can’t take a big swing and hit it to the face — which isn’t going anywhere no matter which club — for as long as you get it down enough that it’s not the problem, it probably triples or quadruples (your chances of success) off the tee,” Manzella said.
Manzella said some players think that because they practice their irons off the green, they should hit shots that way whenever possible during rounds, but using a tee gives you an advantage you shouldn’t ignore.
“Whenever they made those original rules, they knew (using a jersey) was an advantage,” Manzella said. “You absolutely should, because I’ve done it both ways and there’s really no contest.”
However, there is one caveat: don’t go crazy with your head height. The key is to try to repeat a big lie. Manzella said the ball should ideally be almost imperceptibly hovering at the top of the bar.
“When you look at that ball, go, boy, that’s the best lie I could have ever taken in the whole world,” Manzella said. “No: It’s to a tee.”
After all, there’s one main reason why Manzella says using a mauve is preferable.
“It just increases your chance of not hitting a terrible shot, which at the end of the day, that’s why people shoot 80 instead of 70 or 90 instead of 80,” he said.
As Manzella pointed out, it’s not the good shots that often make the biggest difference in your score—it’s the avoidance of mishaps. And if lifting the ball will help you do that, then it’s a good practice to adopt.
