The pros will play the wooden tees typically provided by the golf tournament itself.
The caddies will take a handful or 2 whenever they walk by the free tees that are usually in a large bucket on the driving range.
This should tell you all you need to know about all of the gimmicky golf tees that promise more distance.
If golf tees truly added 3-5 yards on a teeshot, professionals would be using them to try and get every advantage they can.
Why do pro golfers not use plastic tees?
Pro golfers do not use plastic tees because there is no advantage in doing so and use the free wooden tees provided by the sponsors of the golf tournament.
Can you blame them?
Plastic tees can also be harder to push into the ground and can easily bend and lose their shape with repeated swings.
A final reason golfers do not use plastic tees is because of the PR headaches for the tours that would occur if they had to answer why their players are using plastic tees which are bad for the environment.
What size tees do PGA pros use?
The PGA pros use the standard tee lengths recommended by Golf’s Top 100 teachers.
| Club | Tee Length | Height of Golf Ball |
| Driver | 3.25″ – 4″ | Half of the ball above the clubface |
| Fairway Woods | 2″ – 2.25″ | Middle of the ball in line with middle of clubface (1/2″ off the ground) |
| Hybrids | 1.5″ – 2″ | Middle of the ball in line with middle of clubface (1/2″ off the ground) |
| Long Irons | 1″ – 1.5″ | 1/4″ off the ground |
| Short Irons/Wedges | 1″ – 1.5″ | 1/8″ off the ground |
How High do Pros tee the golf ball?
All of the pros tee it up typically around the same height on tee boxes.
- Driver- Half of the ball is above the crown of the clubface.
- Fairway woods/Hybrids- Tee the ball half of an inch off the ground
- Long Irons- Tee the ball quarter inch off the ground
- Short Irons/Wedges- Tee the ball just above the ground
The only exception is for the driver. Some will tee it up high for extra distance, and some will tee it lower for when playing into the wind or when accuracy is critical.
From the picture below, you can tell Tiger is going for maximum carry on the left with the ball halfway above the clubface and going for accuracy on the right with the ball right on the sweet spot.
Do pros use tees on a par 3?
Yes, the vast majority of pros will use a tee on a par 3. Jack Nicklaus always famously said “you get 18 chances at a perfect lie, why not take them?”.
The pros need to take advantage of every opportunity they get, as one stroke over the first 2 rounds could be the difference between getting cut and playing on the weekend.
Being an avid weekly golf watcher and being lucky enough to attend the Memorial Tournament in Columbus several times, I can’t ever remember a PGA golfer not using a tee on a par 3.
conclusion
The majority of pros will use whatever tees that are given to them by tournament sponsors.
These happen to be wooden tees, mainly because they are extremely cheap and good for the environment.
Pros would flock to gimmick tees like brush tees or plastic pronged tees if they actually increased your carry distance by 1-5 yards every time.
So use whatever tee is in your bag on every teebox and attempt to hit it like the pros!
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