How To Tee-Up Your Golf Ball

On each golf hole, there is a teeing ground, or tee box, from which you hit your first shot on that hole. Depending upon the length of the hole, you may need to use either a driver, fairway wood, iron or hybrid. Hybrids are new, easier-to-hit clubs that are meant to replace the long-irons. Depending on the club you need, your ball will need to be teed at different heights. The tips below will first describe how to most easily get the tee into the ground. They will also provide suggestions for how to tee your ball for the different clubs.

1. How to tee the ball. The easiest way to tee your ball is to use the ball to drive the tee. That doesn't mean to use it as a hammer and the tee as the nail. Simply use the ball to push the tee into the ground. To do this, the tee will be held onto the bottom of the ball with two fingers and the ball will rest in the palm of your hand near your thumb. The hand you use is the one with which you're most comfortable. Once you do it a few times, it will come naturally.
2. Teeing the ball for your driver. The driver is the longest club in your set and it will be used on the longest holes. When teeing for today's drivers, since many of them have huge clubheads, the ball will need to be teed higher. Typically, tee the ball to where, if the driver were resting on the ground as you were preparing to hit, its center would meet the center of the driver clubface.
3. Teeing the ball for your fairway woods. The fairway woods (called "woods" even though they're now made of metal) are slightly shorter than the driver and they have more loft. Even so, they are still used for longer shots. They would most likely be used on the teeing ground on long par-three holes, or par-four and -five holes that have hazards near where a shot with a driver would usually come to rest. Usually, the ball needs to be teed nearer the ground for the fairway woods. Again, it is a good idea to tee the ball so that it meets the club near the center of the clubface.
4. Teeing the ball for your hybrids. Many hybrid clubs look much like fairway woods, but they are generally shorter. Shorter clubs tend to induce more of a descending blow toward the ball during the swing. As a result, a ball teed closely to the ground would be required. Again, it would be safe to tee the ball at a height where the ball sits near the center of the clubface. Here, trial and error (preferably on the practice range) is the key.
5. Teeing the ball for your irons. Irons will require the ball to be teed at its lowest. Some people don't even use a tee for many of their iron tee-shots, but that is not advisable. There aren't too many places on the course where you can give yourself an advantage and place the ball where you like. Take advantage of it. For long-irons, tee the ball slightly above the grass. For shorter irons, tee the ball to where it appears to sit atop the grass. With irons shots, a ball teed too highly will result in an exceedingly high ball flight that will land short of the target. The golf swing with most irons gives a descending blow to the iron. When properly executed, the club will make contact with the ground in front of where the ball is teed. This fact would cause a ball teed in the center of the club to actually make contact with the club near the top of the clubface, which is above the club's "sweet spot," resulting in a short shot.

Over time, every golfer will develop his own strategies for teeing shots. These tips are good starting points. As with anything new in the game of golf, have a go at it on the practice range before taking it to the golf course.