I believe it was Arnold Palmer who first made the comment but both realized that if you can get a preferred lie, then why ignore/dismiss the opportunity!
If Jack Nicklaus can use a tee with his irons and wear a glove when he putts....it's good enough for me. Still good to hear a little more detail on the subject. I am a "tee it whenever you can" sort of golfer and prefer the lower tee height you recommend. I do wear my glove the entire round too - never saw/felt an advantage to taking it off and it keeps it from getting stretched out too.
Love that you discussed shot shape relative to tee height. I struggle with a left miss and there’s a constant battle between teeing for best contact vs preventing an over draw/hook. Have become a big fan of the grass tee with shorter irons as of late. Great stuff Mark!
I only use two different tees. Small castle tee for irons, hybrid and 3 wood. Second castle tee about 40mm which sets the ball 50% above top of driver. I have lots of others as pick them up all the time but never use them but hate rubbish at the best of times.
Thanks Mark , this and the one about compression are really helping my 17 handicap understanding of ball striking, I use the castle tees for relatively consistent tee heights.
Great advice from Jack....and you. Thanks for the reminder as I have been teeing my irons higher as I have gotten older (73). As a result, loss of distance
Just getting back into golf, was never good. Playing par 3 course OK with medium tee but will definitely work on getting to low or no tee. Very helpful thanks
I have always teed up with my irons. Usually broken tee pegs come in handy for this. Especially when a distance is between clubs. That way I can take an extra club with a slightly higher tee which then takes a little distance of the longer iron.
I tee up as of lately. However, I barely tee it above the ground. I noticed if I tee higher, I lose distance. I know I’ve hit it well when I displace the tee from the ground.
I always tee my 3 iron high on par 4’s into wind. I get less spin slightly higher flight but ball seems to go further. It’s that or a 1/2 swing 3 wood, but my bladed 3 iron is my favourite club in the bag.
Thanks Mark. There on Honiton 12th is exactly where I struggle with iron off a tee. I will try the adjusted ground technique (provided Stuart or his team aren't looking) 😀
This is helpful Mark yes! Always wondered why you hit the ground rather than tee it up sometimes. Especially good to hear about the fade with wedges. I've been adding crazy out to in swing paths and cupped wrist angles to make this happen. Problem is it's difficult to control. Will give this a try, thanks!
As always Mark…the insight is truly appreciated! Tee height is such a little thing, but if it’s costing you then it’s worth the free questions about tee height.
If it’s good enough for Jack (his Dad told him to always use a tee peg if you can) then it’s good enough for us mere mortals. I must admit, I did start knocking up a bit of turf after seeing you (Mark) do it when I was still playing. Haven’t played since May due to having some serious medical issues.
When I was playing my best I never teed up an iron on a par 3 or a 3 wood off the tee (which was my go to club because driver was unplayable). I've been playing around with it this year and I am actually able to finally hit the ball now, but I'm far from where I was when I could just hit it off the ground.
100%. For short irons and wedges I use it to get a perfect lie,(basically touching the ground). For longer Irons I tee it up a little bit more if I want to hit it high. For a lower shot I tee it like the short irons.
Great advice for good players who can hit down,for "most" higher handicappers (I'm 20hcp) who pretty constantly hit the ball thin, teeing down is only going to make it worse. Have lessons I hear you say and learn to hit down. I understand the process it's the inability to execute that's the problem. 20 plus pro's have tried over the last 40 years and all have failed miserably to stop me doing it. AND I know I'm not alone I see so many players at my level who repeatedly do they same thing. The most consistent part of my game is to unerringly be inconsistent.
There is one advantage of being able to strike an iron pure off a a driver height tee and if you've ever been in thick rough and wooshed the clubhead under the ball only to look down and see the ball still in the same spot, you'll be able to figure it out! 😉
It sort of makes sense... However, I'm rather comfortable hitting my iron shots from a say 3mm tee height (just enough to be "perfectly lied") which I use for everything bar my driver (obviously). I sometimes hit from the ground picking a nice tuft of grass more than making a mound with my iron, which doesn't affect my trajectory or ability to more said trajectory, but gives me a more powerful hit, at least in terms of feel, being a tad lower down the face. One area in which my irons lose quite a bit of distance is when they're hit high on the face (and that feels really weak, too). I'll try experimenting a bit more with tee height with irons (I've just started teeing my 4 wood a bit higher for those "soaring low spin bombs" when a driver is too long and the standard 4 wood might be a bit short).
I've always wondered if my tee in the ground is being struck by the bottom of the clubface at the moment of ball compression and opening or closing the blade. I wish there was more data out there to support my thought.
I felt when using a tee I was artificially changing my swing and then thinning it. I've start using no tee for 8 iron below and par 3 scoring has really improved.
Same here, hit 7 and below off the deck, has defo improved my striking. I feel like a tee inhibits the interaction, especially when the ground is hard.
Tee height is one of my biggest faults for good contact. I always tee too high or low with irons/woods. I just can’t figure it out. Especially woods/drivers
7i down, off ground 3w-2,4-6i knock the ground Driver, tee Everyone is different, and they have to find what works for them, but this gives most consistency for my gapping, ball striking and shot shaping
I make the tee height the perfect lie for my irons. That way I don’t have to adjust my strike. How Mark sets it up here low is exactly how I set the height.
It's easier to set up that clean, perfect lie with a tee than kicking up some turf, especially on a closely mown tee box. That's why I use a very low tee with irons and a very slightly higher one with fairway woods.
Phil Mickelson said teeing it up just above the ground is like a flyer lie, he gets a few more yards, Makes sense. That very high tee looks strange for an iron, any iron long or mid,, maybe can be used for practicing hill side lies(?) but a little dangerous too.
I use a tee as much as possible when teeing off. I tend to struggle with tee height hitting my hybrid. I have experimented quite a bit with it and the fade is just the shape with that club. Any suggestions to turn it more into a draw with tee height?
Mark...i need some quick help on this... So when I try and tee it up with my irons 7i down I allways seem to catch it a bit thin and pull or pull draw the ball... Vs on the ground it will be fine, normal ball flight divot after the ball etc. So at the moment its no tee on par 3's etc... Any thoughts as to what could be going on...I'm not sure if I'm just reacting strange to the slightly different ball height...
8 iron to Pw - NEVER 7-6 iron - Laura Davies whack in to the ground and peg it natural 5-3 iron - yes A peg alters flight and spin. If a 160yard club alters spin in may go 167 so why choose more length and more roll? Spin is your friend!
I can't count how many times I've seen mediocre to poor golfers playing par 3's with an iron and not using a tee. It's like a "macho" thing where they think a tee is for sissies or something. Oh, and by the way, I've never ever seen ONE of them hit a good shot. These are the same people who hit shitty approach shots all day from perfect lies in the fairway but, all of a sudden, they think they're gonna hit a great shot from a beaten up tee box from 183 yards with no tee. Uh-huh. Right.
As a former tee keeper: grass does not grow back overnight. Why would anyone ever take a divot out of the tee box? It takes more than two weeks to grow dirt holes. One stroke is over two weeks of damage. There is a rule about being destructive to the course. It's bad enough you hit the greens ;) (speaking for the greens master) PS: this includes gap wedges - tee them up on a TEE. That's why it's called a TEE box. amiright? Can I get an A men from the maintenance crew?
Nicklaus said to always use one...that's good enough for me
I believe it was Arnold Palmer who first made the comment but both realized that if you can get a preferred lie, then why ignore/dismiss the opportunity!
Yep
I like mine as low as possible. Pushing the tee until only the cap is showing. Just what works best for me.
If Jack Nicklaus can use a tee with his irons and wear a glove when he putts....it's good enough for me. Still good to hear a little more detail on the subject. I am a "tee it whenever you can" sort of golfer and prefer the lower tee height you recommend. I do wear my glove the entire round too - never saw/felt an advantage to taking it off and it keeps it from getting stretched out too.
This 1 video has just explained what I've been doing wrong all my golf life, look forward to trying this out tomorrow 🙏
Got into a lazy habit of just dropping the ball on the grass but got too steep on my downswing. Teeing it up made a difference
Love that you discussed shot shape relative to tee height. I struggle with a left miss and there’s a constant battle between teeing for best contact vs preventing an over draw/hook. Have become a big fan of the grass tee with shorter irons as of late. Great stuff Mark!
Thanks, Ricky, keep up the great golf
I only use two different tees. Small castle tee for irons, hybrid and 3 wood. Second castle tee about 40mm which sets the ball 50% above top of driver.
I have lots of others as pick them up all the time but never use them but hate rubbish at the best of times.
Thanks Mark , this and the one about compression are really helping my 17 handicap understanding of ball striking, I use the castle tees for relatively consistent tee heights.
Great advice from Jack....and you. Thanks for the reminder as I have been teeing my irons higher as I have gotten older (73). As a result, loss of distance
Just getting back into golf, was never good. Playing par 3 course OK with medium tee but will definitely work on getting to low or no tee.
Very helpful thanks
I have always teed up with my irons.
Usually broken tee pegs come in handy for this. Especially when a distance is between clubs. That way I can take an extra club with a slightly higher tee which then takes a little distance of the longer iron.
I tee up as of lately. However, I barely tee it above the ground. I noticed if I tee higher, I lose distance. I know I’ve hit it well when I displace the tee from the ground.
I always tee my 3 iron high on par 4’s into wind. I get less spin slightly higher flight but ball seems to go further. It’s that or a 1/2 swing 3 wood, but my bladed 3 iron is my favourite club in the bag.
Thanks Mark. There on Honiton 12th is exactly where I struggle with iron off a tee. I will try the adjusted ground technique (provided Stuart or his team aren't looking) 😀
This is helpful Mark yes! Always wondered why you hit the ground rather than tee it up sometimes. Especially good to hear about the fade with wedges. I've been adding crazy out to in swing paths and cupped wrist angles to make this happen. Problem is it's difficult to control. Will give this a try, thanks!
As always Mark…the insight is truly appreciated! Tee height is such a little thing, but if it’s costing you then it’s worth the free questions about tee height.
If it’s good enough for Jack (his Dad told him to always use a tee peg if you can) then it’s good enough for us mere mortals. I must admit, I did start knocking up a bit of turf after seeing you (Mark) do it when I was still playing. Haven’t played since May due to having some serious medical issues.
When I was playing my best I never teed up an iron on a par 3 or a 3 wood off the tee (which was my go to club because driver was unplayable). I've been playing around with it this year and I am actually able to finally hit the ball now, but I'm far from where I was when I could just hit it off the ground.
100%. For short irons and wedges I use it to get a perfect lie,(basically touching the ground). For longer Irons I tee it up a little bit more if I want to hit it high. For a lower shot I tee it like the short irons.
I use the green castle tees (small ones) for every tee shot, irons through to my 5 wood.
Great advice for good players who can hit down,for "most" higher handicappers (I'm 20hcp) who pretty constantly hit the ball thin, teeing down is only going to make it worse. Have lessons I hear you say and learn to hit down. I understand the process it's the inability to execute that's the problem. 20 plus pro's have tried over the last 40 years and all have failed miserably to stop me doing it. AND I know I'm not alone I see so many players at my level who repeatedly do they same thing. The most consistent part of my game is to unerringly be inconsistent.
Hogan said you get two opportunities to touch the golf ball. On the tee and on the green, take advantage of it.
There is one advantage of being able to strike an iron pure off a a driver height tee and if you've ever been in thick rough and wooshed the clubhead under the ball only to look down and see the ball still in the same spot, you'll be able to figure it out! 😉
It sort of makes sense... However, I'm rather comfortable hitting my iron shots from a say 3mm tee height (just enough to be "perfectly lied") which I use for everything bar my driver (obviously). I sometimes hit from the ground picking a nice tuft of grass more than making a mound with my iron, which doesn't affect my trajectory or ability to more said trajectory, but gives me a more powerful hit, at least in terms of feel, being a tad lower down the face. One area in which my irons lose quite a bit of distance is when they're hit high on the face (and that feels really weak, too). I'll try experimenting a bit more with tee height with irons (I've just started teeing my 4 wood a bit higher for those "soaring low spin bombs" when a driver is too long and the standard 4 wood might be a bit short).
I tee up a little higher (mid tee height) when facing front wind I want to reduce spin by hitting in the upper part of the club face
I love the third 'tee' because it does pit some turf in the way so I dont feel it baloons as much.
I've always wondered if my tee in the ground is being struck by the bottom of the clubface at the moment of ball compression and opening or closing the blade. I wish there was more data out there to support my thought.
I felt when using a tee I was artificially changing my swing and then thinning it. I've start using no tee for 8 iron below and par 3 scoring has really improved.
Same here, hit 7 and below off the deck, has defo improved my striking. I feel like a tee inhibits the interaction, especially when the ground is hard.
Tee height is one of my biggest faults for good contact. I always tee too high or low with irons/woods. I just can’t figure it out. Especially woods/drivers
Irons and fairway woods use small Standard tee. Find the right height for tee and the driver 50% of ball above top of driver
7i down, off ground
3w-2,4-6i knock the ground
Driver, tee
Everyone is different, and they have to find what works for them, but this gives most consistency for my gapping, ball striking and shot shaping
I make the tee height the perfect lie for my irons. That way I don’t have to adjust my strike. How Mark sets it up here low is exactly how I set the height.
It's easier to set up that clean, perfect lie with a tee than kicking up some turf, especially on a closely mown tee box. That's why I use a very low tee with irons and a very slightly higher one with fairway woods.
As we are now starting with mats as autumn sets, does your ideas change regarding using a tee or not?
Phil Mickelson said teeing it up just above the ground is like a flyer lie, he gets a few more yards, Makes sense. That very high tee looks strange for an iron, any iron long or mid,, maybe can be used for practicing hill side lies(?) but a little dangerous too.
Small green tees for irons and hybrid, pink tee for driver.
Great job Mark
Would this be same concept for hybrids? Does it change with loft of hybrid? i.e 22* vs say a higher lofted one like27/28*?
Yes similar concept for sure. 👍
Love the videos! When are you and coach going to design some Rinky Dink head covers for all the hybrids in my bag!
haha that's a fun idea
@@MarkCrossfield Thanks, Muppet collection soon?
I use a tee as much as possible when teeing off. I tend to struggle with tee height hitting my hybrid. I have experimented quite a bit with it and the fade is just the shape with that club. Any suggestions to turn it more into a draw with tee height?
My mate asked why fo I tee the ball up on a short par 3 and answered his own question by fatting his 9 iron 😂
Always tee it up on the tee box, as spoken by Jack Nicklaus
my iron tee height is between the one on the ground and the middle one
Would you agree that you tend to fly the ball a little further from a tee ?
Even against a clean strike from a ball that’s on the ground 👍
Mark...i need some quick help on this...
So when I try and tee it up with my irons 7i down I allways seem to catch it a bit thin and pull or pull draw the ball...
Vs on the ground it will be fine, normal ball flight divot after the ball etc. So at the moment its no tee on par 3's etc...
Any thoughts as to what could be going on...I'm not sure if I'm just reacting strange to the slightly different ball height...
Love it.
Ooo… ground tap… “manners”!!! 😂😂😂
For irons, red 12mm masters graduated tee, less duffs for me
Red castle tee everytime. Consistency = confidence.
Stinger off the high tee
Tee as if it’s on the deck just perched at mid grass level with irons, in my view it shouldn’t look any different to a placed ball on a fairway
Just pick up busted tees and use them on par 3s where you use irons..
Tee high works for me
I always use a tee with my irons but I just use a broken tee and push it right down so that it is just off the ground.
Is “knocking up” turf legal?
Yes
I always use a broken tee, just off the ground and no more.
Yep me too.
I’d like these videos to show the tees most of us use, not plain white ones
Excellent video. Really useful, well explained, the knocked up turf mystery is now over, next……….why am I shit at golf 😀
8 iron to Pw - NEVER
7-6 iron - Laura Davies whack in to the ground and peg it natural
5-3 iron - yes
A peg alters flight and spin. If a 160yard club alters spin in may go 167 so why choose more length and more roll? Spin is your friend!
My life dilemma lol par 3 tee or not the tee ,
I find half a tee and push it all the way down. Really its just giving myself a good lie. Then strike as normal.
Don’t like tees for irons, prefer the knocked up turf one. Get a more solid hit
Always use a tee to tee the ball up
The tee gives less resistance than the ground
I can't count how many times I've seen mediocre to poor golfers playing par 3's with an iron and not using a tee. It's like a "macho" thing where they think a tee is for sissies or something. Oh, and by the way, I've never ever seen ONE of them hit a good shot. These are the same people who hit shitty approach shots all day from perfect lies in the fairway but, all of a sudden, they think they're gonna hit a great shot from a beaten up tee box from 183 yards with no tee. Uh-huh. Right.
Short answer.....whatever you're comfortable with
As a former tee keeper: grass does not grow back overnight. Why would anyone ever take a divot out of the tee box? It takes more than two weeks to grow dirt holes. One stroke is over two weeks of damage. There is a rule about being destructive to the course. It's bad enough you hit the greens ;) (speaking for the greens master) PS: this includes gap wedges - tee them up on a TEE. That's why it's called a TEE box. amiright? Can I get an A men from the maintenance crew?
So either this was filmed pre grip change or Mark has ditched that already
Pre grip change
You see knocking the ground behind the ball - isn't that technically artificially improving your lie?
On the tee it’s allowed 👍
@@MarkCrossfield Ah ok, good to know.
Please keep your grooves cleaner Mark. Ruining my OCD
😂😂👍👍
Sam Snead once said he used a tee when ask why he said I play for money.