What Is The Age Limit For Seniors Golf
There may be some confusion in golf about what constitutes a senior player. While some people may wonder whether a senior is 65 and over or even 75 and over, those age limits may apply to work or society standards but not golf.
The age limit for seniors golf is 50, which applies to men and women. Once players reach that age or over, they are considered senior golfers. While they can still play from normal men’s tees if they choose to, they can use senior tees for tournaments and regular rounds.
Let’s look at all the aspects of being a senior golfer , like when you should consider moving to senior tees and changing clubs to suit your game as you age. We’ll also look at how clubs use age-plus handicap systems for tournaments.
When Are You Officially A Senior Golfer
While you may not feel like it, once you reach the age of 50, you are classified as a senior golfer. Now, being 50 does not automatically consign you to the senior tees; most golfers only start using those tees when they lose distance.
If you are still hitting the ball 220 off the tee, you can continue playing from the men’s tees on most courses without an issue.
In general, though, most players aged 65 and over will use the senior tees as, by that stage, they have lost distance and flexibility and require the concession of shorter courses to maintain handicaps and scoring.
As far as PGA tour events and most amateur and club tournaments go, if you are over 50, you can opt to use the senior tees, and while most people are not fond of the idea of getting old, in golf, there are some tangible benefits!
Are There Advantages To Being A Senior Golfer
The most important one is that the holes become shorter, and this can make you more competitive in competition and normal play.
Remember that senior golfers are classified by age, not by distance, so if you can still hit it 240-250 off the tee and your hole is 30 yards shorter, that effectively gives you 270-280 off the tee, and that puts you well in the game and gives you a distinct advantage over younger players.
Another consideration for pro golfers is that the senior circuit is less competitive on the PGA tour than the regular tour. Many golfers that move to this tour continue to succeed there, and many continue to play on the senior tour long after they reach 50.
How To Determine If You Are Playing From The Right Tees
While it is true that officially, the age for seniors is 50, most golf courses don’t have an official age handicap and offer it to the individual to choose what tee box they should play off.
If you aren’t sure what tee box you should be hitting from, use the guidelines below to determine which tee boxes you should be using.
- For par 3’s, you should be able to reach the green with your drive.
- For par 4’s, you should be able to hit the green in two shots.
- For par 5’s, the green should be reachable in three shots.
If you struggle to achieve these distance goals from the regular tees, it may be time to accept that you need to start using the senior tees.
Using Senior Tees When You Don’t Need To
If you can consistently make these distances, you can continue to tee off from the regular tees even though you could legally play from the senior tees, and this becomes an ethical choice for you as a player.
Playing off the senior tees when you can still hit the ball good distances would give you a significant advantage on the field, and while you are legally allowed to, is taking this concession in the spirit of the game?
The game is set up to make it a fair and even contest and to give senior players short on distance the opportunity to retain a competitive edge over players who can still achieve good distance.
Is using the senior tees when you don’t need to considered cheating or an unfair advantage?
That’s for you as an individual golfer to decide, as there is no penalty in the game either way; it rests on your conscience.
What Tee Box Colors Indicate Senior Tees
Most golf courses use a variety of tee box marker colors to indicate which tees should be used by the different golfers.
- Black tees are for the pro players, and these are the furthest from the flag
- Blue tees are for the low-handicap players and are second furthest from the flag
- White tees are the men’s most commonly used for mid-to-high handicap players.
- Yellow or gold tees denote the senior tee boxes
- Red tees are for the ladies and the benchmark for men to clear off the tee if they don’t want to buy their playing group a round of drinks!
- Green tees are for juniors and are the closest to the flag
When Should You Switch To Senior Tees
Based on the distances listed above, you should only consider using the senior tees when it becomes evident that you can no longer reach the greens in the allocated shots.
As players age, they lose strength and flexibility and often need to change their clubs or shafts to lower flex to keep some distance in their game.
Suppose your current clubs are slightly erratic, or you develop a slice or fade, and you’re struggling with shot inconsistency and distance; you may need to consider measuring your swing speeds to determine whether you need to change clubs, shafts, and golf balls.
As your swing speed decreases, you need lower-compression golf balls to accommodate lower swing speeds and keep you competitive.
You can always keep those skills up to par with a look at a practice net or putting set which we look at in detail on the site.
Conclusion
Officially, the senior age limit is 50, but most golfers don’t migrate to senior golf until around 60 or 65, and 70 is considered the golden age for senior golfers. When to switch to senior tees and consider changing clubs to match your game is only something you, as a player, can decide.
Resources
