For as long as I can remember I’ve always used the pink castle tee peg. And I'm not the only one, it's a popular choice. It suits my driver perfectly as it lines up with the centre of the clubface. However, I’ve had a debate recently with a friend, who also plays off a single figure handicap index, about tee height.
When I suggested that most golfers would really benefit from using just one tee peg for their driver, she laughed this off as very amateurish (her words not mine!) Personally I think that the pink castle tee is the ultimate easy-to-use peg as it lines up perfectly with the middle of the driver clubface and that’s what we are taught to do in lessons, right from day one.
It’s why so many manufacturers design driver clubfaces with clearly marked out sweet spots.. Now while I appreciate that no two drivers are exactly alike, the large majority are built to the maximum allowable size limits under the Rules of Golf and have a deep 460cc clubhead with a big hitting area. And it just so happens that the pink tee peg pushes into the ground at absolutely the perfect height for the golf ball to line up with the middle of the club. Easy!
That’s why I was suggesting to my friend that all golfers only need to carry two tees in their pocket, this pink castle tee for the driver and a smaller tee that can be pushed into the ground low for an iron, hybrid or fairway wood. The latter three clubs all have a much shallower low profile face and again, you should be aiming to get the ball lined up with the centre of the sweet spot and to do this you have to tee it down much lower.
So why is it if the pink tee is so perfect for the driver that you don’t see any tour processionals using it? PGA Professional Emma Booth has an interesting take on this: “It’s because they are far more skilful,” she insists. At the elite end of the game golfers want to be able to control their ball flight and shot height trajectory, and to do so you need to alter the tee height.”
For instance, when the wind is blowing stronger against, a slightly lower ball height will encourage a more penetrating flight. While the opposite is true on a down wind hole, with the tee raised a fraction and the ball positioned further forward in the stance, good players can reap the rewards of a higher launch and longer with the wind carry.
This is the exact opinion of my better player single digit friend who only uses long white wooden tees. She also likes them because she can push them into her ponytail hair to store them! However, in my opinion, there would be massive negative effects if the average mid-high handicapper tried to emulate the more skilful player.
The moment you start teeing the ball up too high you’re at risk of skying shots and hitting what I call the ‘lob drive’ that balloons nowhere except upwards into orbit. Equally, if your ball is teed down too low it will come off the face far more dead, robbing the spin needed to get the launch incline and distance.
The other main problem I can see is the ability of a game-improver to actually tee the ball up with skilful precision. Can you really judge exactly how far to push it into the ground repeatably, every time? This is something that Booth insists is the preserve of the elite player.
“Tour players love the long white wooden tees because they can push them into the ground as far as they like to alter the tee height. The judgement of this is a skill that develops over time. Plus when they snap the tee in half it then becomes an ideal little tee for iron shots.”
Forgive me for sounding amateurish but I’m obviously just a golfer who prefers the simplicity of knowing that my tee height is consistent and correct rather than a player who wants the complications of dabbling with altering my tee height. I don’t know? But my handicap index is low so it’s certainly not doing my driving distance or accuracy any real harm.
I honestly believe that with the confusion of the best golf tees readily available on our shop shelves, in all colours, shapes, styles and sizes, the large majority of golfers would benefit from copying me. Just pick one tee you like that works for you and your driver and keep things simple. And yes, men are included, as your drivers are built with the same maximum allowable 460cc deep clubhead, and I’ve seen many men using the pink tee peg.
What do you think? Are you a better player who uses a pink castle tee like me or do you prefer to carry a traditional single stem long tee that you push into the ground? Am I actually limiting my driving skillset by doing so?…
