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Here’s a tip: You probably shouldn’t play by tips.
Deep down, you know this. But for whatever reason — ego, peer pressure, lack of better choices — you end up taking a path further than you can handle.
you are not alone. According to the USGA, in a survey of more than 700 PGA and LPGA professionals, 92 percent said it was “very common” or “somewhat common” for golfers to putt from too far. And the evidence is not just anecdotal. Scoring data shows that approximately 75 percent of golfers and 50 percent of golfers play from distances beyond their capabilities.
Results? Aside from higher scores, rounds become a grind, and golf becomes less fun.
Over the years, many campaigns have been launched to address this problem (remember those TV commercials in which Jack Nicklaus admitted he even needed a “Tee it Forward”?). But when it comes to leveling up, the game still has a ways to go.
Which brings us to a new initiative, the USGA’s Data Driven Offering, aimed at helping golfers choose the right tees. It’s called – wait for it – the best tees.
The gist is this: if you know how far you’re going with 7-iron, that’s it The best tees The system can tell you which tiles to play. Hint: If you’re a typical golfer, you should be playing from 6,100 yards; If you’re a typical golfer, you should be playing from just over 4,400 yards.
More on those numbers in a minute.
But first, some background on the methodology.
The Best Tees system arose from several years of research that included analyzes of global handicap system scores and stroke distance data, as well as surveys of golfer preferences. (In this work, the USGA collaborated with the American Society of Golf Course Architects, the National Golf Course Owners Association, the American Golf Course Superintendents Association, the LPGA and the PGA.)
To arrive at their recommendations, the researchers defined a range of tees as appropriate to a golfer’s abilities when they “allow them to comfortably reach the fairway on par 4’s and 5’s, reach the vicinity of most greens in regulation, and allow them to hit a variety of clubs in their approach.” . Golfers in the polls, meanwhile, were asked to say when holes felt “too long,” “too short,” or “reasonable.”
This definition and those preferences were then combined to create a system that can recommend course lengths based on one club as a reference: 7-iron. The 7-iron was chosen because most golfers have good grips for their arm reach, and because golf instructors often use the 7-iron as a reference point in lessons. It’s Esperanto that’s about a language most of us can understand.
And that’s the point, really. To communicate important information clearly. After all, most golfers want to play the right tees; Surveys show that. Course operators want that too. But most say they lack an objective way to guide golfers to the right square.
Best Tees provides just that. It is based on averages. The average male golfer hits it for a 7-foot iron 138 yards; The average golfer hits 100 yards. Those numbers translate to par-72 course length recommendations of 6,100 and 4,437 yards, respectively. in the middle. But because not all golfers or courses are created equal, the system is designed to be customizable to any player, anywhere.
The system is currently being tested in 60 courses across the country. Feedback from this test will be used to fine-tune the system before it is rolled out on a larger scale after 2023.