41 correspond to their distance. Safety is particularly important. A tee designed for a 150-yard drive may suit a slower-swing player, but a fast-swing golfer could hit a five-iron 200 yards from it, flying over the intended landing area and potentially towards a neighbouring fairway or forward tee. If slower-swing players use forward tees, architects have freedom to locate those tees safely as their shots generally have smaller dispersion. Forward tees can be placed closer to the start of the fairway, reducing forced carries and creating opportunities for naturalised areas and biodiversity between the back tees and the main landing area. Just as importantly, forward tees can be designed as part of the course rather than as an afterthought. Their position affects safety margins, centreline and landing-area visibility, strategy, receptiveness, driving and approach angles, and clearance of forced carries. Designing them at the same time as the rest of the course allows the architect to own that design scope. It can also challenge the long-standing perception that forward tees are an afterthought whose design is passed on to the women’s club. Thoughtful design matters to golfers who may have felt marginalised by traditional tee arrangements. They notice when a course has been designed with them in mind. And designing for different swing speeds does not have to make a course less interesting. It can do the opposite. With tees positioned according to hitting distance, architects can create varied routes to the green and secondary and tertiary lines of play. Wider corridors, centre bunkers, ground-game features and accessible green approaches can become part of a new course’s strategy. Landforms “ Designing for different swing speeds does not have to make a course less interesting” Photo: Royal Birkdale Golf Club At Royal Birkdale, Sharon Eales and Fiona Womack worked alongside architects Mackenzie & Ebert to develop an equitable forward tee model based on hitting distance and swing speed data
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