Anyone For Tee?

[oldwease]

So, there I was playing a few holes quietly the other evening when I came to the first par 3. Now, playing quietly and generally messing around like that is very dangerous because I start to have weird thoughts.

Normally, in this situation, on a par 3, I would just tee the ball up and off we go. I was thinking, though, since it's a relatively short iron shot, why bother with the tee? I was hitting the ball crisply enough and so simply placed the ball on the ground and played it as a normal iron shot. I did the same on the next hole with an iron off the tee. Results were fine.

On reflection, I'm not too sure what benefit you get from playing a short iron from a tee peg. Any thoughts? What do the pros do?

[bill reed]

Re: Anyone For Tee?

hi
stops you taking a big divot out the teeing green and having the groundsman's chasing you off the course.
was told you get more backspin but i tried it at my links course one evening when i hit about 20 balls to the green, i saw no difference to the shots apart from the damage to the tees. i still use the little red castle tees for the short par 3.
bill

[oldwease]

Re: Anyone For Tee?

You're right about the divots. I always make a point of replacing mine but, some guys just dig a trench and waddle off. On medal day, the course looks like a war zone.

[bill reed]

Re: Anyone For Tee?

hi
have you ever seen laura Davis on the short holes she takes the club and knocks up a divot with the grass a bit like the old rugby players did when making a tee for there rugby ball when they used there heals to make a tee, the green keepers must love her playing there course.
bill

[BrianW]

Re: Anyone For Tee?

hi
have you ever seen laura Davis on the short holes she takes the club and knocks up a divot with the grass a bit like the old rugby players did when making a tee for there rugby ball when they used there heals to make a tee, the green keepers must love her playing there course.
bill

ER - UM!! I have been guilty of that one at times Bill. I like to take a small backwards swing into the ground, this creates a small slit with a raised edge, I place the ball on the raised edge then hit it from there. It's not as damaging as it sounds though as the slit is pushed back down through impact just like it was not there.

[bill reed]

Re: Anyone For Tee?

hi Brian
with laura there is nothing left to tap back down the divot ends up half way to the hole alone with the ball and she just pats down the the grove left on the tee.
bill

[ubizmo]

Re: Anyone For Tee?

This is my worst shot. Par 3s are a problem because of it. For some reason, I have real trouble hitting a teed ball with an iron, even when the tee is way down low. It's entirely mental, no doubt, but there it is. For some reason, I seldom get good contact or good ball flight in this situation.

I have the option of not using a tee, of course, but that's not always a good option. In some places, the teeing ground is all chewed up or pretty bare, and that's not good either. Where there is a reasonable amount of turf, I'll try to fluff some grass up and rest the ball on that.

To answer the original question, the alleged benefit of using a tee is to give yourself a perfect lie for the shot. If the teeing area is such that it already offers a perfect lie, then I guess the tee is superfluous. I see some guys teeing the ball up almost an inch for iron shots. I couldn't hit the ball that way.

[snowman]

Re: Anyone For Tee?

I only use a tee for my 5w, 7w and 24* hybrid. All irons I hit off the tee box and fix my divot afterwards with seed mix that they put next to the tee-box. A good course will move the tee markers forward or back during the season to let the "hacked up" area regrow.

Some of my friend tee their ball up a good half inch or more for an iron shot and seem to slap the ball up in the air. I don't see how they can do this with any consitency. I'd rather keep it low as if it was on the fairway and hit right down on it.

[bulldog2k]

Re: Anyone For Tee?

Tiger doesn't buy this..! In his "How I play golf" book, he quotes - I believe - Jack Nicklaus, in saying it took him a while to realise air provides much less resistance than dirt, and he always plays off a tee.

Also, surely etiquette demands that damage on the tee - particularly divots - on the tee, should not be replaced or repaired by players..? Though if there is seed mix there, fair enough, but that seems a bit odd to me - if it's that worn, the tee markers should be moved, and the repair should be down to the greenkeeper?

[slater170]

Re: Anyone For Tee?

i always use a tee!
you have the chance to play your ball from a perfect lie so why not use the opportnity!

[BrianW]

Re: Anyone For Tee?

i always use a tee!
you have the chance to play your ball from a perfect lie so why not use the opportnity!

I think the danger is teeing too high on par 3's. These red castellated tees can hold the ball a little high for me and if I take a normal swing the ball can be contacted a bit high on the clubface which skys the shot somewhat and may leave it short, particularly on a nasty over the lake hole I play.

[bill reed]

Re: Anyone For Tee?

hi Brian
like the true Scotsman i an i often use the broken tees for the short par 3 and have the ball just above the tops off the grass so it almost looks like its not tee'd up.
bill

[BrianW]

Re: Anyone For Tee?

hi Brian
like the true Scotsman i an i often use the broken tees for the short par 3 and have the ball just above the tops off the grass so it almost looks like its not tee'd up.
bill

Hey Bill!

You could always engrave your name on them so if they are handed in you could get them back

[kbp]

Re: Anyone For Tee?

90 percent of the time I use a tee on a par three. However, in this part of the US, zoysia grass is frequently used for fairways and tee boxes. This grass is very thick and bristly stiff so the ball really sits up high. If it’s a bit long you can "fluff" it a bit and place a ball on the tips of the grass so it sits up just like it’s on a tee.

The downside is that zoysia is so thick that it’s almost like a plush carpet. Drives hit in the fairway do not roll nearly as far as on bentgrass or rye. But boy, when you walk up to a ball in the fairway and see it sitting there perfectly perched on tips of the grass, just waiting to be smacked........