What Tees Should Women Golfers Play?

For decades, “forward tees” (often labeled the “red tees” or, offensively, “ladies’ tees) have been treated as the default for women golfers. But that one-size-fits-all approach doesn’t hold up. Thanks to better data, we now use a golfer’s actual hitting distance to determine which tees make the most sense no matter what your gender.

It’s not about the color of the tee box; it’s about total yardage and how far you hit the ball on average.

The USGA’s “Best Tees” system

The USGA created the “Best Tees” system, a simple way to determine from which tees you should be hitting. The Best Tees system is based on the average 7-iron distance for any golfer.

The system is built on the principle that a set of tees is the correct choice when it allows a golfer to comfortably reach the fairway on par-4s and par-5s and reach the vicinity of most greens in regulation. Additionally, it is important for players to hit a variety of clubs on their approach shots (e.g., not just a 5-wood or a wedge).

Playing from the wrong tees could mean playing from a tee box that is too short or too long for your game.

According to the USGA, the average female golfer hits a 7-iron 100 yards. This corresponds to a recommended course length of 4,400 yards. Of course, this isn’t an exact science and sometimes the golf course itself or the specifics of a player’s game can dictate the best tee location.

However, this is a good starting point.

7-Iron Distance	Recommended Course Length
90 yards	~4,000 yards
100 yards	~4,400 yards
110 yards	~4,700 yards
120 yards	~5,000 yards
130 yards	~5,300 yards

We dug a little further into Shot Scope data

While the USGA model is built on research and their historical data, Shot Scope tracks actual on-course performance from thousands of golfers and updates it continuously. We asked for their most recent performance data on how far women golfers are hitting each club.

Their data provides a helpful comparison, especially when broken down by handicap.

Here’s how driver and 7-iron distances stack up for women at each skill level:

Handicap	Avg. Driver Distance	Avg. 7-Iron Distance
Scratch or Better	252 yards	160 yards
1–5	235 yards	152 yards
6–10	226 yards	154 yards
11–15	199 yards	141 yards
16–20	188 yards	133 yards
21–25	178 yards	125 yards
26+	166 yards	122 yards

Most mid- to high-handicap women golfers fall into the 120–130 yard 7-iron range which corresponds to a recommended course length of 4,800–5,300 yards.

Check your scorecard to see what options you have

As helpful as this data can be, one of the biggest problems is that many facilities don’t offer enough teeing options. Many courses don’t even offer a tee box under 5,000 yards. According to the USGA, if golf courses wanted to accommodate 95 percent of golfers, they would have at least five tee boxes ranging from 3,600 to 6,800 yards with combo (hybrid) options available between them.

Yet few courses have that range.

The course I play features six sets of tees along with four additional combo tee options. The best part about it is that as your game evolves, you can always find an option from which to play. In addition, if you want to work on course management or learning to hit a variety of shots, you can try a round from another tee deck.

Final thoughts

Playing from the best tees for your game doesn’t make golf easier; it makes it fair and fun. You’ll be able to reach more greens, use more clubs in your bag, keep up the pace of play and enjoy your round more. Before you tee it up for your next round, check your 7-iron distance and see which tee box is the right choice for your game.