22 ways to make your first shot the easiest shot

I love tee shots. Always have, always will. I love hitting my driver in a big situation on a long, demanding hole. I love trying to work the ball around the corner of a dogleg or deciding to gear down on a shorter, tighter par 4 and hit 3-wood or 1-iron. Mostly, I love that the tee shot sets the stage for every hole, and that I'm in complete control of the situation. That's why you should love tee shots, too.

I know it's easy to feel a little distressed on the tee. Every thing's quiet and it seems all the attention is on you, and all you can think of is how hard this shot is going to be. Why not think about how easy a tee shot is instead? That's right, easy. Think of it this way: First of all, you're aiming at the biggest target there is on every hole. More important, it's the only shot you hit under virtually the same conditions every time. And you control those conditions completely. For every tee shot, you will have a perfect lie and a perfectly flat stance. It should feel almost as if you're hitting balls on the range.

You can develop an abiding affection for the tee by studying the tips on the following pages. I've developed 22 simple but solid rules that touch on everything from setup and swing to club selection and strategy. Solid tee shots set the stage for a great round of golf, not only by putting you in position to score but also by boosting your confidence. So learn to love them, and watch your game improve.

1. Shoulder turn keys both power, accuracy Useful, powerful swings with your driver, fairway woods and long irons start with a full shoulder turn. A full turn means your left shoulder is pointing behind the ball at the top of your backswing. If you can make that kind of turn while stabilizing your lower body and maintaining the flex in your knees, you will have coiled your upper body on the backswing, setting the stage for a powerful downswing. Moreover, you won't have to attempt to generate more power on the downswing by forcing the clubhead back down to the ball. That excessive action actually saps power from your swing and can throw the clubface open or rotate it closed. To groove the right sensation, try this drill: Without a club, make a mock backswing with your left shoulder and arm, grasping your left elbow with your right hand, pulling your left arm until your shoulder turns to point behind the ball. Try to match that sensation with a golf club in your hands.

2. Find a fail-safe club-and shot-for the tee. When I play a hole with heavy rough, I'll often hit a 1-iron to keep my tee shot in play. Average players should look at the 4- or 5-wood the same way.

You may hit a driver farther, but a fairway wood will keep you in the game more often. Stick with a familiar shot shape whenever you have doubts. Trying to hit a draw when your usual ball flight is a fade increases your tension level, making a hard shot that much harder.

3. Factor tee into distance. Because the lie is perfect, expect to hit your fairway woods slightly farther off the tee than you do off the ground. For instance, a 3-wood that flies 225 hit off the ground should fly at least 230 off a tee.

4. Adjust tee height as you move down through your bag

Tee height is often a matter of personal preference, but generally you want to tee the ball lower as you move from the driver to the short irons. With a driver and fairway wood (above, left), about half the ball should be above the top edge of your club. This will encourage making contact slightly on the upswing with a sweeping motion. With the long irons, you'll want about a quarter of the ball above the top edge of the club. With the middle and short irons (above, right), keep the ball on a tee and even with the top edge of the clubhead (maybe about a quarter of an inch off the ground). Your swing gets steeper as you move down through the set, so tee your ball a little lower to avoid hitting pop-ups.

5. Use full width of tee box for the best angle Take advantage of having the ball in your hands. When the target is on the right, tee up on the left side of the tee box, and vice versa. This gives your shot the whole width of the fairway to fly over. If it's practical, I'll even tee the ball a foot or so inside the marker to get the best possible angle. Remember, only the ball has to be within the teeing ground, you don't.

6. Hips, hands and clubhead have to move at different speeds

The tape measures above show the relationship between how far the hips (four inches), hands (six feet) and clubhead (18 feet) travel in the downswing. So you can see that if you over-rotate the hips, then your hands and the clubhead (which have farther to travel) won't catch up, and the clubhead won't be accelerating at impact. Now, that doesn't mean you make your hands and arms move faster. Just slow the hips down and let the hands and arms drop naturally.

7. Tee it high and let it fly? Not always. Teeing it high for distance is fine, unless you have a steep downswing like many average players. (If you tend to take a divot with your fairway woods, your swing is too steep.) Practice with a higher tee on the range, but until you can groove a shallower downswing, play your tee shots from a lower tee (less than half the ball above the top of your driver). You'll make better contact and avoid those confidence-destroying pop-ups.