Tips for the Struggling Golfer: Tee Box Edition

The game of golf is a beautifully designed sport. It requires precision, patience, and skill. The golf course can be a beautiful place to spend time with friends and family. But it also can be frustrating when you are not playing your best game.

Many things can affect your game on the course: weather, course conditions, equipment, etc. But one thing is always in your control: How well you approach each hole starting at the tee box.

You Do Not Have To Use Driver From The Tee

There are several reasons a golfer should use an iron on the tee instead of a driver. Golfers often have to decide between using a driver or an iron off the tee. Drivers are designed for hitting long-distance shots in reasonably open areas. On the other hand, Irons are designed for accuracy and to aid in avoiding obstacles in the golfer’s way. 

The only time most golfers should use a driver is when they have an unobstructed fairway which is usually the case on most golf courses, yet golfers often reach for the driver whenever they head to a Par 4 or 5.

Before the #1 fairway woods were called a driver, golfers were not pressured into the idea of using this single club from the tee box as they are today. A memorable past quote from founder and CEO of LIV Golf, Greg Norman said: “If you can’t hit driver, don’t.” This statement couldn’t be more accurate.

When you arrive at the golf course, give yourself some time to hit the range. Use this time to see your ball flight and decide whether or not to swing the driver. This is not to work on swing mechanics or try something you saw on TikTok, Instagram, or YouTube.

Keeping the ball in play will significantly boost your game and build your confidence to work with your driver. If you don’t feel confident, do not think twice about leaving the driver in the bag for the day. Because of their loft, your fairway woods or long irons are much more forgiving off the tee.

Tee up to the correct side of the tee box for your ball flight

We all know how this works. You and your buddies go out for a day golfing, hole after hole; everyone takes their shots from the tee box. Walking up and put their tee in the center of the two markers in the teeing area, go through their process, and finally hit their ball.

Very seldomly do golfers take the time to assess where in the teeing area they should be placing their tee. While something so small may be overlooked by many, it has the opportunity to help tremendously based on your natural shot shape.

If we are breaking it down, a golfer can expect three different shot shapes: a ball that turns left, goes straight, or turns right. It is tremendously more complicated than this as the start line and extent of the movement can cause different outcomes. This section will not dig into the difference between a pull fade or slice. Both balls are moving in the same direction based on the handedness of the golfer.

We want to focus on the tee placement to promote a better outcome for the swing. As stated in the section before, keeping the ball in play is crucial for golfers.

For a right-handed golfer and vice versa for a left-handed, you would want to place yours toward the side of the teeing area where your ball naturally moves. If your ball moves right to the left, you want to tee to the left side of the box. If your golf ball travels left to right, placing your tee on the right side of the box will allow more room to the left for the ball to work back.

The goal of this setup is to increase the margin of error. Give your ball flight some extra area to work in so many sides carry you see still keeps the ball in the fairway or the very nearby rough.

Adjust your aim for a “Good Miss”

Now that you have chosen the right club to hit and positioned your tee to allow for more room, you must aim with intention.

The term “Good Miss” is one that I frequently use because it makes the most sense to me. I am sure we can all recall when we aimed for a bend in our ball flight, took an excellent relaxed swing, and hit a pure, dead straight shot that ended poorly. Whether that shot landed in a bunker, hazard, or just left you out of position for an approach shot, injecting some strategy here can help your game immensely.

This tip also involves you being able to hit a few golf balls on the range before your round. Again, no swing mechanics or changes during warm-up sessions. During the session, as you note your ball flight to various targets with your clubs of choice, make a mental note about how far your ball travels off your center line. If you are using your driver and hit toward a target, be conscious of whether your ball moves 10 feet to the right of it or 10 yards. This information is valuable.

Once you know roughly the distance your ball will drift with various clubs, you begin the processes we stated above. Look at the hole to decide how much room you have to work with, left or right, and what obstacles or hazards you must avoid. Pick your spot on the tee box based on how much room you need for the ball to move in the direction you saw on the range.

When you aim, pick a spot that leaves you in a good position if your ball travels perfectly straight. Then take notice of where that shot would go if your ball traveled the max amount of side carry you saw on the range before the round. Pick a new aim point if your ball is not in a good position with both outcomes. If the club you chose is too long or too short for both shots to be ok, select a new club.

This will add 30 seconds to your preshot routine or nine minutes to your entire round but will pay huge dividends.

What Is The Struggling Golfer Series?

Golf is easy if you approach it correctly and play within your limits. Most golfers struggle with many issues within their game, but very few can take their game to the next milestone score without a bit of help. That is often no one’s fault; they do not know where to start and likely do not know the information. Some golf knowledge is simple and intuitive, while other information is not common knowledge and requires it to be learned.

As always, I believe you should not dig too deeply into the internet for lessons or critiques about your swing. Everyone is different, and you should look for a coach that emphasizes lessons based on a personalized swing that your body allows.

Also, it would be best if you had a coach that matches your vibe and intensity. Something that no article or video will ever be able to do. With that in mind, I started this series to help tackle different parts of a player’s game, focusing on controllable pieces such as strategy, drills, and mental approach.

I would love to hear from you in the comments on topics you may want to be covered or elements of your game that you believe could be improved. I am sure someone else would love to hear some outside perspective about your exact question, so don’t be shy.