Hey Golfers: Are You Hitting From the Wrong Tees?

Shelter Valley Pines Golf Club (photo taken by author)

I’m less than two months away from turning 70, and I’m loving the game of golf more than ever. I’m not hitting it farther, and my swing isn’t any prettier—but I’ve made peace with where my game is at now, not where it used to be.

The Biggest Difference?

My golf buddies and I have stopped trying to impress anyone with our choice of tee blocks and started focusing on enjoying the round.

Most of my golf happens at Bay of Quinte Golf & Country Club, just west of Belleville, Ontario. It’s a scenic, well-kept course—and I’ve played it from numerous tee decks over the years. We used to hit from the Greens (5,555 yards), then dropped to the Blues (5,316), and now we mostly play from the Whites, which measure 4,901 yards. That’s a full 1,200 yards shorter than the Blacks, or "the tips" at 6,175 yards. And you know what? It’s a hell of a lot more fun.

Instead of facing long, grinding second shots on every par 4, I’ve usually got a wedge or a short iron in hand. There’s a real shot at par—or better—if I don’t mangle the approach. And even when I do, I’m not mentally beat up by the sheer distance before I even get to the green.

Are You Sure You're On the Right Tees?

Now let’s bust a myth while we’re here: Playing from the back tees doesn’t make you a better golfer—it just makes the game harder. I’ve followed plenty of groups playing from the Golds (one set up from the tips), who struggled to hit their drives past the White Tees on some holes. Every hole was a slog—driver, 3-wood, and often another 3-wood just to get near the green. That’s not championship golf; that’s recreational suffering.

Tee boxes exist for a reason: to let every golfer play a version of the course that suits their distance, skill level, and physical ability. If you’re out there giving yourself no chance to reach a green in regulation, what exactly are you trying to prove?

Let’s say you’re paired with a guy who hammers his tee shots 300 yards. Great. He should be on the tips. You? You should play from the tees that gives you a second shot from roughly the same distance as where the long bomber's tee shot ended up. That’s when it becomes a real match. Because now the short game takes over—and this is where the plot thickens.

Because even if you bomb it off the tee, if you chunk your approach, flub your chip, and then three-jack the green, congratulations: you just turned a perfect drive into a double bogey. And as you sulk off the green, your playing partner says it—the line we all dread, “Nice drive.”

Use the Club That Lets You Swing Easy

And while we’re on the subject of smart golf decisions, let’s talk clubs. A few years ago, I could hit my pitching wedge 110–115 yards—no slope, no wind. These days? I’ll pull a 9-iron, maybe even a gentle 8. It’s not giving up—it’s wising up. We all club up for slope and wind, but we "seasoned" golfers should also be clubbing up for age. It's far easier to make a smooth, controlled swing with more club than to swing out of your boots and hope for the best.

So if you’re walking off the course feeling frustrated, sore, or like you’ve just completed some gruelling fitness challenge, maybe the problem isn’t your game—it’s your choices. Golf rewards self-awareness. Play from the right tees. Pick the right club. Give yourself a chance to hit greens, make pars, or maybe even birdies or eagles, and walk off 18 smiling.

Because let’s be honest—no one remembers what tee you played from. But they will remember the guy who drained that 30-foot birdie putt... and still had enough left in the tank to enjoy a post-round cold drink and bite to eat on the patio.

Stay Well, Stay Safe, and Have Fun

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