2. Of the dwindling number of courses still offering free tees, I've never seen plastic ones offered pro bono.
That covers both ends of the spectrum-the dyed-in-the-wool player and the infrequent golfer who hasn't been through his bag in six months and having tees beforehand is less important than remembering his shoes and stocking the cooler.
A few of the private clubs here in Erie, PA offer plastic ones free. One of them (Lawrence Park GC), I believe, has a member who owns a plastic plant (Erie has a good number of plastics manufacturers - bottle tops, pen caps, etc.), and I think he donates them or gets a tiny bit off his membership or something for them.
I use plastic tees, but I still prefer broken wooden tees on the par threes or when I'm hitting less than driver on other holes. I like the tradition of wooden tees… but many of the "plastic" tees are biodegradable (I believe - some of the "plastic" is actually a corn starch or something, I think), and they do sell those short tees in plastic, too… but I still kinda hold out hope for the wooden tee.
I wonder which is lower impact on the environment. Wooden tees are obviously made from trees, but plastic tees might be possibly made from scrap materials, corn starch, etc. If they're not biodegradable, then that's a strike against them.
P.S.
https://evolvegolf.com/epoch/ says their tees eliminate tee litter (they don't break), that they're environmentally friendly because they're made from 70% post-consumer materials, and that they require 30% less force to cut through than a wooden tee (for mowers). I generally use…