When to Start Playing the Gold Tees
Golfing may not be the number one retirement activity, but it must be in the top ten. Visit any public course or country club and all you’ll see is a bunch of white-haired folks in golf carts crisscrossing the fairways chasing errant drives. It seems nobody under 50 even plays the game anymore unless you happen to be on the PGA tour. The entire industry is driven by seniors, ex-Presidents, and a few rich Saudis. It’s time you did your part.
You may have played when you were younger. You might even have been pretty good. You probably told yourself that once you retire, you’d rebuild the game you imagine you once had but probably never actually did. You’d take a few lessons, get a regular playing schedule, and concentrate on getting that consistent, repeatable swing that eluded you for your entire life.
The first thing you will need is a new set of clubs. The golf industry is built around the false promise that having the best equipment will lead to a better score. Countless millions of dollars are squandered each year on clubs, balls, tees, gloves, training devices and other stuff that promises to shave strokes off your score. You might as well just admit that you are not going to make a 300 yard drive unless you use a cannon, which unfortunately is not allowed in tournament play.
The internet has revolutionized golf instruction. Once upon a time, you had to hire the club pro to fill your head with all sorts of conflicting and confusing advice. Or you had to listen to your father-in-law yelling instruction — “get behind the ball!”- as you try to focus on your tee shot.
Today, you don’t even need to go driving range to get some of the worst golf tips available. There are literally thousands of instructional videos on YouTube alone, never mind TikTok and Instagram. Best of all, it doesn’t cost a thing to ruin your game as well as your self-esteem.
Luckily, the game of golf is a great leveler. Because of its unique handicap system, the thinking goes, every player can be competitive. Even though no one really understands how the handicap system works, golf propagandists insist that players of any age, skill level or political persuasion should be able to happily play together. Nothing could be further from the truth. The reality is that you wind up teeing off with the most inept, most senile or most buffoonish golfers in a 100 mile radius and absolutely ruin your round.
The real challenge you face as you rekindle your love for the game is that no amount of practice can counter the effects of age. It is sad that once you have the time and the means to finally master the game, your body has other ideas. It wants to have lunch and take a nap.
But there is one sure-fire game improvement technique. It’s called playing the forward tees. Think of it as the senior discount of the golf world. You get yards back on every hole.
You can of course live in denial and continue to play the back tees. There is always someone in the crowd that insists on playing from the tips. He is usually the aforementioned buffoon.
The rules of golf don’t specify when you can or must play the forward tees, but they should. It makes the game more fun for everyone, especially the foursome waiting in the tee box behind you as you hack your way down the fairway.
