at 50 years old what tees do i play on golf course

by Mr. Dan DuBuque 6 min read

Red Tees: Women’s tees, farthest forward with shortest distance to the hole, and least challenging. Gold Tees: Senior’s tees, not quite the shortest distance to the hole but second in line, meant to help the elderly who still play have a better chance at shooting their old hay day scores.

Most golf courses will have senior tees, but they won't always call them senior tees. Sometimes tee boxes will have colors, and other times, they will be referred to as front, middle, and back tees. The senior golf tees are usually one back from the front tees, which are designed for the lady golfers.

Full Answer

What age do Golfers play from the senior tee?

Nov 04, 2019 · On the Champions Tour for over-50 pros, average golf course length is around 6,500 to 6,800 yards. If you are a low-handicap golfer, then feel free to play from the set of tees that mimics the yardages on the pro tours (which will be the back tees for men).

What is the appropriate tee for a 79 year old golfer?

Golf courses tend to have 3 - 5 sets of tee options on the course. Tee options generally follow a color system, gender suggestions or a play on words that relates back to the theme of the golf course. To better explain this concept, please see some examples provided below .

What age can you play off the forward tee?

Jan 02, 2020 · Essentially, you just take the distance you hit your 5 iron and multiply it by 36. That number is your ideal. Here are a few calculations that will save you needing to do the math yourself: 5-iron ...

How old should you be to play golf?

Oct 10, 2014 · There's a reason golf courses evolved to have a certain mix of short/medium/long and harder/easier holes. The variety makes the game fun. Play a set of tees that lets you experience the full variety available from the course. Whether you are 30, 50 or 70 years old doesn't really predict that.

What age do you use senior tees in golf?

Many golf clubs today still apply an age rule for the use of the forward tees, especially on competition days. 70 years of age was the benchmark for most. Some senior golf societies have an age entry level of 55 years and most members play from the forward tee box.Jul 9, 2020

What golf tees should I play from?

A general rule of thumb to determine which tee box is right for you is if you hit your driver under 200 yards, play from the closest tee. If you hit from 200-225 the next farthest tee, and so on. When you are hitting 275+ accurately you should be playing the farthest tees back.

What color are the senior tees in golf?

The BasicsColorGenderTitleBlackMensChampionBlueLadiesMemberWhiteSeniorRedForward

What tees do seniors play from?

The middle tees are for middle to high handicap men, low-handicap or long-hitting women, and low-handicap or long-hitting senior men. The forward tees are for middle or high handicap women and seniors, and beginners of all stripes.Nov 4, 2019

When should I move to the blue tees?

A good rule of thumb to use is if you cannot reach the green on a par three in one shot because of distance, it is a good sign that you should move up a tee. Also, the lower your handicap is, the further back you should be playing.

Should I play from the blue or white tees?

Any golfer, regardless of gender or age, whose playing ability best matches the length of the golf course from the white tees should play those tees, whether they are in their traditional middle location or not.May 8, 2018

What color tees should I play?

White (Competition) Yellow - typically used by men of all ages playing recreational golf. Red - often the tees nearest the green (sometimes referred to as the Ladies Tees, although that term is being discouraged)

How do I figure out which tees to use?

Use average 5-Iron distance Example: You hit your 5-iron 150 yards. So 150 times 36 equals 5,400. Choose the tees closest to 5,400 yards in length. If you hit your 5-iron 180 yards, then look for tees around 6,500 yards (180 times 36 equals 6,480).Oct 22, 2018

What do the colors mean on a golf course?

BLUE means "200 yards from the center of the green" WHITE means "150 yards from the center of the green" RED means "100 yards from the center of the green" YELLOW STAKES indicate the boundaries of a water hazard. WHITE STAKES indicate the boundaries of a lateral water hazard, ground under repair or out of bounds.

How far does the average 60 year old hit a golf ball?

Two decades later, that Smart Distance is down to 244 yards. All hope isn't lost for the older players, however. Players in the 60+ age bracket may hit it 43 yards shorter than their 21-30 year-old counterparts, but they average 49% fairways hit.Jul 5, 2017

How far should a senior hit 7 iron?

Average Distances for Senior Tour PlayersClubAverage Distance7 Iron163 - 169 yds8 Iron151 - 157 yds9 Iron140 - 145 ydsPitching Wedge129 - 134 yds7 more rows

What handicap should play from the blue tees?

That wily retired golfer at your local club who doesn't hit the ball very far but whose wicked short game helps keep him at an 8 handicap is going to have a distinct disadvantage against the 8 handicap who hits the ball a mile, if they were to play off the same tees....This simple formula can tell you which tee box you should play from.5-iron DistanceIdeal Course Yardage200720010 more rows•Jan 2, 2020

The Big Question is: When Do We Move to a Forward Tee?

Just think back over the last few months when you felt that you have hit the ball well, putt reasonably, but your score has ballooned to the mid to high 80s.

What About My Ego?

This, unfortunately, is possibly the biggest hurdle for us males to overcome.

What About My Handicap?

The old system allocated you a handicap that equalized your playing ability against the par rating of the course. ( in simple terms)

1. How Does The Index System Work?

Tee markers are all distance-related, and should you play from the yellow, white, blue, or red marker, your handicap will be adjusted accordingly.

4. What About Age?

Age is no longer a criteria and anyone can play from any tee unless the below rule is applied.

6. What Are The Signs That it is Time to Move Forward?

Can you make the first cut of the fairways off the tee on all the holes?

In Summary

There are many ideas on how this Major decision in our golfing lives can be changed.

How old is a senior golfer?

A senior can be defined in a lot of different ways. For the PGA Tour, a Senior is over fifty years old. In golf, there is no set age for when a person must move up to the senior tees. Most of the time, this switch happens around the age of seventy. In years past, golfers would try and delay this move to the senior tees for as long as possible.

What is a combination tee?

With combination tees, you may see some of the golf holes being played from the middle tees, and some will be played from the front. These combination tees are great for accommodating the golfer who is not entirely ready to move to the front tees but struggles from the middle. Many private country clubs will have five or six sets of tee boxes.

What is a tee it forward?

Tee it Forward is a program that was created by the USGA and the PGA of America. The program is designed to help players hit from a set of tees that matches their driving distance. Professionals were seeing that golfers were continuing to struggle with the golf course they were playing because the tees were so far back.

How old was Britt Olizarowicz when she started playing golf?

Britt Olizarowicz started playing golf at the age of 7. She played Division 1 College golf at St.Johns University, where she won two tournaments at the collegiate level. After college Britt went on to become a Class A PGA Professional. Her love for the game spans almost her entire life. Today Britt loves sharing her knowledge of golf through her writing. After all, to teach the game of golf, you must first have a love for it.

Can you hit a golf ball 250 yards?

It has also brought knowledge and awareness to this issue and made golfers feel more confident about moving up a tee box. If you can’t hit the ball 250 yards, you should not have to play from a 500-yard set of tees. This is too long, and you will not be able to compete or lower your handicap.

What is a senior tee?

Regardless of their color, “senior” tees have a very distinct connotation attached to them: They are to be played by people of a certain age who are so old they can’t hit it out of their own shadow. Or so goes one common stereotype.

Why do you play from the forward tees?

There is a critically important caveat to the above statement: Playing from the forward tees because one wants to is one thing; playing from the forward tees because one has to is altogether different.

How many tees are there in golf?

Most golf courses have at least three sets of tees—the forward tees, middle tees and back (or championship) tees. Other courses might have as many as five, six or seven sets of tees.

What is a championship tee?

The championship tees ( back tees) are for low-handicap men. The middle tees are for middle to high handicap men, low-handicap or long-hitting women, and low-handicap or long-hitting senior men. The forward tees are for middle or high handicap women and seniors, and beginners of all stripes.

How long is the average golf course?

On the Champions Tour for over-50 pros, average golf course length is around 6,500 to 6,800 yards. If you are a low-handicap golfer, then feel free to play from the set of tees that mimics the yardages on the pro tours (which will be the back tees for men). Low-handicap women and seniors might choose the set of tees whose yardage is 250-500 yards ...

Who is Brent Kelley?

Brent Kelley is an award-winning sports journalist and golf expert with over 30 years in print and online journalism. Every golf course you visit is likely to have multiple sets of tees boxes, as designated by colored markers on the teeing grounds at the start of each hole.

What is a back tee?

Championship/ Back tees are for lower handicapped golfers; most often men. Member/ Middle tees are for middle to higher handicapped male golfers, low-handicap or long hitting ladies, and low-handicap or long-hitting senior men.

What is a combo tee?

They can be used between any and all sets of tees. It is a way for a golf course to update the course for their players without the added expense of constructing new tee boxes.

Is there a gender to teeing?

For many years, golfers have been boxed in by the myths about ‘Men’s’ tees and ‘Women’s’ tees. There is no gender to the teeing area, there is, however, a gender to Course/Slope Ratings. This has been more daunting than expected.

Feedback

I play the so-called "senior" tees at my home course.

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The Senior Foursome

Nomenclature

  • In the old days of persimmon woods and balata balls, golf courses typically had three sets of tees: the blue tees for the good player, the white tees for the average player, and the red tees for the ladies and senior player. The first variation- that I noticed, anyway- was the addition of what were usually black-colored tees. These began appearing ...
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The Senior Tees

  • Regardless of their color, “senior” tees have a very distinct connotation attached to them: They are to be played by people of a certain age who are so old they can’t hit it out of their own shadow. Or so goes one common stereotype. One of the fundamental questions that SYA wanted to explore was, what, exactly, isthat age? At what point should a golfer consider moving to the senior tees? …
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The Experts

  • I decided to turn to some experts. I consulted the following: ·Ken Green, 5-time PGA Tour winner and member of the 1989 Ryder Cup Team; ·Two separate PGA Teaching Professional and Golf Course Managers who remain nameless only because politics in the city result in their shying away from being quoted- however, their knowledge remains valuable; ·Rear Admiral Michael Bro…
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Making The Decision

  • Del Ratcliffe:
    “The short answer, in my opinion, is the appropriate tee for any given individual has nothing to do with age, gender or even ‘ego.” It has to do with the playing ability of that individual. It is evident that people enjoy the game more if they are presented a challenge that is appropriate to their ski…
  • Ken Green:
    “Golfers make the move up way too late, in my opinion. The male ego gets in the way. I don’t play the tips anymore, and sometimes I even go to the whites depending on the length of the course.” [NOTE: Ken’s lower right leg was amputated after a horrible accident in which his RV blew a tire …
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The Color Conundrum

  • Most of us remember the “Tee It Forward” initiative launched by the PGA and USGA. The initiative came from Barney Adams of Adams Golf fame, and is based on the fact that pros hit the ball about 1000 yards longer over 18 holes than most of the rest of us. Simple math shows that if the pros are playing a 7200 yard course, we should play at 6200, or even less if we hit it less far. Yo…
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What If You’Re Female?

  • Another critical factor that is too easily overlooked is the female golfer, especially the senior female golfer. Is it automatic that women should play from the red tees? Ladies, do you just go to the red tees by default? Do you play from the tees that make sense distance-wise, or from the red set that are traditionally for your use? Playing from the set that makes sense distance-wise cuts …
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Recommendations

  • If there was a common thread to the comments, it was have fun. Without exception, every person I spoke with said the decision on which set of tees to play from should have nothing to do with age. The two criteria that were mentioned repeatedly were: a) Play from the set that allows you to hit your approach shot into the green with an iron; and b) Play from the set where it is the most fun. …
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