Your enjoyment of a round of golf can be greatly affected by tee box from which you choose to play. Choose a tip that’s too short and you’ll be hitting the driver’s wedge all day; too long and you’ll feel like you’re beating yourself up. The key is finding the peaks in the Goldilocks zone: just right.
In your home course, or one you are familiar with, this is an easy task. But when hitting a new course, choosing the right tee can be more of a challenge. The last thing you want is to open yourself a few holes with an ill-advised box selection.
So what is the solution? I like to think back to some advice I was given a few years ago GOLF Top 100 Teachers Jon Tattersall.
“The best players I coach, they cover about 50 percent of the hole with their driver on a par-5,” Tattersall said. “And they’re covering about 60 to 70 percent of the hole with a driver on a par-4.”
This means that if you average about 250 yards, for example, the par-5 you should play would be about 500 yards, and the par-4 would be about 380 yards. If your well-struck drives aren’t covering about 60 percent of the distance of the hole on a par-4, it may be time to raise a tee.
“Most second shots, for good players, come from 125 to 175 yards,” Tattersall said. “So what do you have to work on? Not too many 4-irons. If you’re hitting too many of them on the green, you’re not playing high enough.”
This is not a hard and fast rule, and the tip boxes you play may vary based on the conditions. But if you’re playing a new course for the first time and aren’t sure where to play, this hack can come in handy.
