tee

Every year I receive golf tees as a stocking stuffer. It is one of those gifts that I love because I always need them. As I continue to get my equipment ready for summer, I realized that I have three different lengths of tees. Not that really bothers me, but I actually wondered if it really makes a difference.

At ehow.com, they explain how to pick a length of tee. They focus on the size of the club being used and the size of the club. They suggest:

2 1/8″ tees are used for your irons, hybrid clubs, and low profile woods.
2 3/4″ tees are used for drivers under 360cc.
3 1/4″ tees are used for drivers over 360cc.
4″ tees are the longest tees allowed in play, they will give you the maximum impact angle while driving.

Sandtrap.com conducted a poll on the length of tee used by golfers. 2 3/4 inch was first with 44% of the vote and 3 1/4 inch was second with 34% of the vote. I would suggest that the longer tees are used more because of the increase in driver size over the past 10 years.

This is all very interesting. The length of tee is important, but there are no real rules. I believe that the 4 inch tee may not be the length of choice because of how high the ball would sit, but again I have never tried it.

For my driver, I use a 2 3/4 inch tee. For my irons, hybrids or 3 wood, I use broken tees. I collect them around the course and use them all the time. Rarely will I use a new tee. I have tried just about every design and style of tee. I always go back the standard old fashion tee. Seems to work best for me.

Overall, it really does not matter. What does matter is that the length of tee is right for you. Experiment and try different lengths. Let me know how you made out.

I am a grateful golfer. See you on the links!

2 Stroke Penalty – Stroke Play
Rehit – Match Play

On Friday I was playing match play against some friends. We had a discussion about teeing the ball up ahead of the tee blocks. Going around the foursome, I quickly realized that there was not going to be a consensus on the rule. One said re-tee the ball, it was a two stroke penalty, it was a one stoke penalty, and the last said who cares.

Of course, I was quite curious about the actual rule. I went to the RCGA website and the 2012 rules are posted in a PDF format. I quickly read the rules and found out that rule 11-4. Playing from Outside Teeing Ground – applied to our conversation.

The rule states:
a. Match Play
If a player, when starting a hole, plays a ball from outside the teeing ground,
there is no penalty, but the opponent may immediately require the player to
cancel the stroke and play a ball from within the teeing ground.
b. Stroke Play
If a competitor, when starting a hole, plays a ball from outside the teeing
ground, he incurs a penalty of two strokes and must then play a ball from
within the teeing ground.
If the competitor makes a stroke from the next teeing ground without first correcting
his mistake or, in the case of the last hole of the round, leaves the putting green
without first declaring his intention to correct his mistake, he is disqualified.
The stroke from outside the teeing ground and any subsequent strokes by the
competitor on the hole prior to his correction of the mistake do not count in
his score.

I always thought the match play rule applied to all situations….I was shocked to read that in stroke play a 2 stroke penalty is applied and the person must rehit. And a player can be disqualified from the tournament. Now that I know, I am better prepared when playing in tournaments. My day has not been wasted: I learned something new. I am a grateful golfer.