What approximate yardage do you prefer to play?

[Matt_Ward]

Jeff:

I can't answer the question simply from distance alone. The insertion of a slope and CR number is very helpful. Ditto the sheer array / amount of bunkers, water hazards, forced carries, dimensions / contours of the greens, etc, etc.

If I play a course in excess of 7,000 yards and it doesn't really include much of what I mentioned above then the challenge is clearly less so.

The topograophy and altitude also need to be weighed into the equation. Those in the higher altitude areas play far differently than those at sea level and near the cost where heavy wind can be a real deal.

[TEPaul]

"Re:What approximate yardage do you prefer to play?"

I could not care less just as long as there's some way around.

I have no real concern with things like GIR and I never have. I've also always loved the idea of sneaking up on long holes before they see me coming.

[paul cowley]

6300 to 6800 at sea level.....but I don't mind going farther back if my playing partners want to.

[Mike_Cirba]

Well, frankly you wimpos, I need a man-size course.

When I get my Titleist 975D humming, there are frankly no courses built yet than can possibly contain me.

If I'm a bit off my game, perhaps I would move up to the 8,000 yard tees, but man, I'm thinking of investing in some technology this winter and gettin' me one of those "ham on a stick" drivers, so all you courses out there built for girlie-men had better figure out a way to get some 10,000 yard back tees installed!  

[Ryan Farrow]

7,000 probably have to go as far back as possible in higher elevations or its driver wedge all day and absolutely no fun. Especially when I can't hit a wedge. And I think I'm about a 20 handicap right now.

[TEPaul]

".....but I don't mind going farther back if my playing partners want to."

Heh, Paul, will you arrange for me to play off the tips with Davis one of these days so I can feel like the tiny turd of an even tinier tit-mouse?

[John Foley]

6500 is what I look for.

12 hdcp who used to be a lot longer. I guess technology ain't keeping up w/ the age decline!

[Jason McNamara]

Jeff, my last club was "just right" for me at 6800.  "Just right" in this case = longest par 4s were reachable, but required two very good shots.

So picking 6600 or 7000 would be a function of weather, fellow golfers, and how many monster par 4s I'd face.

Other data:  assumes sea level, 6 hcp when I stopped playing a couple months ago.

[Mike McGuire]

6800+ range.  We play a basket game where proxies and birdies matter. Over 7K everyone is hitting 4 irons and rescues into the fours taking away from the opportunities for a "gusher"

[A.G._Crockett]

6600 would suit me best on most par 72 courses.  

[Ken Moum]

At 12 handicap, and being a short hitter, my fun zone is 6000 to 6300 or so, depending on how fast the course is playing.

One of my key gripes is the number of courses that have nothing from 5800 to 6400.

There are a lot of guys like me who would happily play regualr tees at 6100 yards, but not every course offers that option.

Ken

[Steve Verde]

6800 is preferable. I've actually never played anything longer because my home course doesn't stretch any longer than that and when I'm playing other courses I make sure that the round is enjoyable and that I'm not hitting 240 yard fairway woods over water on par 3's. 6800 provides some variety instead of just hitting driver-wedge every hole, but any course where I have to hit driver and then mid/long irons on a consistent basis, I would die. I need to get better

[Peter Pallotta]

Jeff
mark me down for 6,600 being nice; as others have mentioned, it can feel anywhere from 6,300 to 6,800, depending on how that length is 'spread out'.  

I also think this 'elevated tee' business makes a big difference: I've played new courses like that, at over 6800, and scored better than I do at 6,300 on older courses.  

I've only ever played 'at sea level'.

I think just as important as the numbers at the tees is the numbers BETWEEN the tees. One friend likes to play from whites until we all par, and then we move to blue. But it's not so fun if we're playing from 6,000 until we can jump up to 6,800.

Peter

[Dan Kelly]

Depends on the design. If the 7,000-yarder doesn't demand tee balls that I can't hit, and if the architect has left openings on the ground for all of the fairway woods I'll be hitting, I'm perfectly happy to play the way-backs. But if I can't reach some of the 7,000er's fairways and have no shot at a bunch of its greens except through the air, give me 6,300 to 6,600.

[Tim MacEachern]

I'm a 5 to 6 handicapper who drives the ball about 240 on average.  Given those choices, I'd go for the 6600, with the 6300 being a little too short.  That assumes, though, that the course is not set up as a strategic challenge, with narrow fairways and trouble in the landing zone, or all carry to the greens.  

As others have said, it depends on the slope and rating.   You can figure your average round as being your course handicap plus the rating plus 3 strokes, and a few more if you don't know the course.  If that gets up past 84 or 85 for me, I'd be wondering if I should lower my expectations.

Given several plays of a course, though, I go by the adage that you should play the middle tees until you've broken 80, then you can start playing further back.

[Tony Petersen]

Usually play from between 6800-7200. Depending on the course, that usually translates into the back tees. Still, I'm not a fan of the "Tournament Tees" that seem to be in vogue as of late and typically run around 7500... Me not hit the ball long enuff for dem dere tees

I like to think that one of the reasons that my handicap travels so well is due to the yardages we typically play... and the fact that I'm fortunate enough to Desert Mountain Outlaw on a daily basis (yes, it really is THE best course in Arizona!)

[Ryan Farrow]

Tony, don't spew that around here, we all know damn well that Apache Stronghold is the best course in the state.

[Andy Troeger]

Ryan and Tony,

The interesting question would be whether either course you mention (haven't seen either one) can stand up to the best two courses in New Mexico!  

Forest Highlands Canyon is pretty tough to beat in its own right.

[Tim Gavrich]

I prefer to play the back-most tees nowadays (6915 and 7026 at the two courses I play most often).  I prefer to play the tips whenever possible, but the longest golf course I've played since I started playing from the tips has been about 7200.  I doubt I'd be so brazen as to tackle Erin Hills from the insane set if given the chance, however.

[Jed Peters]

I play the back tees at most course I travel to, but can play really from anywhere above 6800 (if the course is designed as such). The reason I say that is that most new courses are very tee dependent (I don't want to be hitting irons all day!).

I hit the ball about 240 carry, and am a 4 index.

The course I usually play is 7303 and flat, which kinda sucks because I have long irons, hybrids, or fairway woods into almost every hole!

[Jeff Doerr]

I usually play the 6400 to 6600 set.

My index usually rises exponentially past 6600.

6700 +1
6800 +2
6900 +4
7000 +8
and so on...

[Walt_Cutshall]

Generally, I prefer 7,000 plus, but over 7,300 it starts to become a slog. I like the longer tees because it provides a more interesting test--a greater challenge. On a longer course, there are no "throw-aways" off the tee.

[Matt_Sullivan]

I'm a 2 hcp who on a par 72 aims for the 6900-7100 mark. But like some of the earlier posters, I also look at the course rating. So if a course I hadn't played before had a rating of 73 from the 6800 tees, I might well play those

Having said that, on a new course, I think I would rather err on the side of playing a set too far back than a set too far up. On a course I have played a lot, playing it on the short side is often a lot of fun. But on a course I haven't seen before I find it almost disconcerting to play it short -- I always seem to leave my self in awkward places. I would rather have 5 iron instead of a 7 iron than a three quarter sandwedge instead of a 9 iron, if you know what I mean. Says something about my wedge game no doubt!

[Pete_Pittock]

    6000-6300 is about where I max out and maintain enjoyment of the round. I can go up to 6600 if it is like good bacon and eggs, hard and runny. My driver carry distance is 185-190 and I just purchased a 9 wood.
    I was fortunate during green committee discussions this year to talk our club into rating the courses in composite yardages mixing and matching from various tees. The Fought (South) course used to be 6200-6700-7100 for men. Now we will also have 5900 and 6450. The Cupp (North) course will also have more options. Our group of eight is evenly split between longer and shorter hitters and on set is always losing out. Now we can compromise.

[Rich Goodale]

When I'm hitting the ball squint or just out for some fun, 6000 is enough for me, but on those rare days that I'm making solid contact more than occasionally, something around 7000 is preferable.