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Tee Box: What Drives You to Pick One?

Around where I live, we generally play the blues or whatever is in the 6500 range. I'll move up to the whites if it's cold or the group I'm playing with is. I never move back to the tips though. I don't have anywhere near the distance required.
 
Color of the tees doesn't matter to me, it's the total yardage. The 2 courses that I play the most have the back tees at 6400 and 6300, that's what I play. The other thing I pay attention to is the length of the par 3's. There's a course around here that I play a few times per year, and I could play the 6700 yard tees except that 2 of the par 3's play over 220 in that scenario, it's not fun for me to do that so I prefer to play the 6200 yard tees on that course. I'd say that 6800 is my max length.
 
I like to play about 6500 to 6600 yds too, so when I see the tees that are close to that that's what I choose.
 
For the easier courses or ones that I am more familiar with, I will take the back tees. New course or a rough one I will tee it forward. Unless, of course, they only have one tee option.
 
My home course got rid of the "tips" or gold tees and now have 3 tees maxing out at 6,321yds. Occasionally they will (for tournament play) move them back to where the gold tee's were and you're looking at 6,600-6,700 but that's a rare occasion. I enjoy playing from the Blue as it's a decent challenge and there aren't really any forced carries on my course. I have moderate length with my driver and, when in a group, will usually play whatever others' are most comfortable with..
 
I think the Tee it forward chart is pretty solid.

I played yesterday at 6500 and while I would typically call that a bit long for me it actually wasn't too bad at all.

Ideally I like 6200-6300.

6000 or less is just not as much fun to me at times as I do like to be challenged on longer par 3's and 4's.
 
One rule for me and the fella I play the most with is that we play as close to 6000 but not under until our scores improve then we will play closer to 6500. Once, at Donald Ross I believe, we had to play almost 6700 because the other tees were 59xx. Our scores were about what they always were. That's the real oddity with our games is that the yardages really don't have a massive change to our scores.
 
I look for 6300-6500. That is where I am comfortable.

What do you guys do if a set of tee's do not fall in your "comfort zone." Say you play around 6500. If the course has 7100, 6700, 6000, 5500. What do you play?
 
As for me I tend to play the back tees and prefer to stay inside the 6400-6700 yard range. I have no problem with moving forward to accommodate playing partners.
 
GolfFest said:
Well this is something I have been pondering. Distances say I should move back, my scores would say stay forward.
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Agree with you based on my lack of ability to get off the tee consistently and the scores that result I should play way up because to shoot well I'd need to hit hybo or iron off every tee. But If I go with what an average good contact drive is I should be in one of the upper two distances but my long iron game tells me that that is a poor idea.

Canadan said:
That's an interesting point GF. I absolutely support that people should move forward and enjoy the game where they want. I suppose Tee it Forward focuses far more on those who are hanging out with the tour pros on the tips hitting 5 woods into every par 4 green.
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agreed all should play tees that make the game enjoyable for them. Two of the courses I play frequent the tips are 6500 and change but most of the added length comes from about 6 holes which makes it a bit deceiving unless you look at each hole on the score card 180 vs 210 on par 3s is huge as well as 565-580 vs 520ish on par 5's

So my question: What drives you to play the tee boxes you do? I like 6300- 6600 as it allows me to pull driver on some 4's as well as the par 5's

Do you feel obligated to move back to suit playing partners? If its a friend I don't play much with I will if its strangers I won't

Ever get in a foursome where the tee boxes are split based on length off the tee? I have played a few times with strangers and split tees doesn't bother me to be playing in front or behind them.

How much thought have you put into where you tee off from each time you play? I usually take a quick looking at yardage and rating then a look over the par 3's and 5's if its a course I have never played before. I dont like all the par 3's at or longer than 200 and despise any par 3 at 220 or longer and I like to have a chance at at least one par 5 in two not with my 3wd.
 
I like staying in the 6500-6700 range, any more than that and I am playing more long irons than I care to into greens. I don't mind playing shorter if that is where my group is playing, let's me hit some fairway woods/hybrids off the tee.
 
Well I think Dan probably put it perfectly. Let your distance decide how far back you can play, and then move forward based on your scores.

It makes plenty of sense for a long hitting high handicap player to move forward and play a shorter easier to control club off the tee.
 
I will typically play the back tees on, but will move forward to play with anyone.
 
I look for around 6400-6600 tees and go from there but I don't mind moving up or when playing partners move up. I've played with guys who insist on teeing back where I normally tee even if I offer to move up. These guys are quite a bit shorter than me off the tee, then get upset when they don't score well.
 
Most of my friends who don't hit it very far (not saying I'm a bomber) always want to play the white/mid tees and I'm ok with that, but sometimes it takes driver out of my hands too much. I'd prefer about 64-6500, but I don't like to go much more than that. I'm fine from playing any tee box as long as we all have fun. Playing split tees in the same group can take longer, too.
 
There's a Nicklaus course in the area that sort of throws a wrench in my normal preferred yardage. It's a par 70, with the 'white' tees only paying something like 5,300 yards and the 'blues' at 5,900. Back tees are 6500. That course is just plain hard from as short as 5,900 (slope is 124), but you don't really see anybody playing the white tees.
 
I prefer somewhere between 6200 and 6500. I play 6200 at my home course most of the time because the par 3's are brutal if you move back a box.
 
I prefer the 6200±150 range.
In actuality, I tend not to play here so as to eliminate playing from a different box all the time.
My little cash group is of an average age that likes (dictates?) playing the whites.
Many of my THP buddies are also a bit shorter in length as well, so I just play up, usually.
Also, fwiw, even from the whites my home course has a 200 yard par three and a nasty par 4 that, if you're not able to go 275 (downhill aid) off the box, you're laying up and playing for bogey.
 
I think it depends on the course and I usually don't know which box suits me best till I've played it once. Yardages, slope and course rating are supposed to help, I know, but for me they don't much. I play at two local courses of opposite extremes. One has a bunch of 4's with creeks that cross fairways at about the 285 mark. Those are 4's no matter which box you pick, so playing from whites or the tips is no real penalty or advantage. The other course has 5 par fives that turn into driver/mid iron if you play from the whites and it has a rating of 66 or so. If you play from the whites you're fooling yourself, if you play from the tips you have some huge forced carries. So it depends on the course.
 
5800 - 6200 yards is in my comfort zone. I'm getting a bit older so why push the pedal unless I have to. I may have to in the upcoming King event however when I signed up for it, I knew everyone would be playing from the same tees.
 
For me it really depends on where im playing and the style of play. Normally.I play between 6200-6600 because its challenging yet still comfortable for me. But if im playing with someone a bit newer to the game I am willing to move up a tee or two.
 
Ole Gray said:
5800 - 6200 yards is in my comfort zone. I'm getting a bit older so why push the pedal unless I have to. I may have to in the upcoming King event however when I signed up for it, I knew everyone would be playing from the same tees.
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Tighten up that putting game on those Lane Creek greens and you'll have everyone cowering like a henhouse when the big 'ol rooster comes striding in!
 
6000 yards (give or take a 100 yards) is my comfort zone. I will tee it up forward if I am playing with shorte hitters than me but rarely tee it up from longer distances. With the current state of my game, playing from longer tee boxes is guaranteed to bring frustrations ( unless I am playing a THP event).
 
When picking tees for a course I look at par 3 yardages. I like to keep them under 200 yards. Typically that puts me in the 6500 total yardage range.
 
Do you feel obligated to move back to suit playing partners? All the time, and it benefits the long hitters in my group... and forces me to play Driver, Long Iron when they are playing Driver 8,9,PW. I struggle with it, because I don't have the distance off the tee, and the accuracy is at times hit-or-miss.

Do I move up and play other tees when they are playing their tees? No. I don't want to take the extra time (which is silly).

Have I suggested we all move up a tee set? Often. Do they ever agree? Never. The reason? "We pay X amount of money to play this course, so why would we move up and play less of the course?"
 
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