All About Golf Tees and Divot Tools
Golf tees have come a long way in the last twenty years or so. The only type of golf tees that were available prior to this era were wooden and later plastic tees. Since a golf tee is such a basic part of the game, have you ever wonder when they first began this role?
History tells us that golf was first played in 15th century Scotland. It was tradition to build a small mound of sand and balance the ball on top before teeing off. A pail full of wet sand was made available at each hole’s teeing area, just for this purpose. This was a messy proposition, and broke the flow of the game for many. A few innovative golfers grew so tired of the hassle that they experimented with making tees. The very first tee was patented in 1889, and it was made from a small rubber plate that had a raised ball support atop it. The tees that followed this first one all shared one feature. None of them broke through to the ground, but sat on top of it.
The problem with these early tees was that they had a habit of taking to the air when hit with a golf club. Sometimes, finding these runaway tees was quite difficult. In the early 1890s, a different type of tee was advertised. This was an iron peg with a rubber head made from pins. A similar tee was patented in 1897 with a rubber-cupped head and a base made of spikes.
The first tee that looked like the wooden and plastic tees of today was patented in the early 1920s. Called the “Reddy Tee”, it set the standard for the tees still in use today. Of course, innovative designers have elaborated on this simple design. It is possible to purchase standard golf tees in many colours, and personalized with your name or a business logo. Non-standard tees are also hugely popular. There are too many varieties to list here, but they range from the novelty tee to tees that can improve your driving distance, tees that are designed to eliminate slice spins, and tees that will produce an overspin for your golf balls.
The divot tool is a handy accessory that many novice golfers do not quite understand what to do with. The non-use of a divot tool is considered a breach of golf etiquette. Just what does a divot tool do, and why is it rude to refrain from using it? Watch the next time you play golf – what happens when a golf ball hits the surface of the putting green? That’s right; it leaves a little dip there, which is just large enough to stop a rolling golf ball. Can you imagine what would happen over time if no one repaired his or her divots? Most golf courses would look like the surface of the moon, all pitted and full of dips and craters. Since a smooth surface is needed for golfing, no one would be able to play at all. Of course, golf courses have groundskeepers, but it would be hard for them to keep up with the divot marks from all the golf balls that hit the ground on a daily basis.
Divot tools work by pulling the damaged turf back up and into place. You insert the tool at an angle, at the very edge of the divot made by the golf ball. Use the tool all the way around the divot, and then take your putter to finish smoothing out the area’s surface. It’s quite easy to do, and takes very little time to accomplish. It will kill the grass on the green if these divots are not repaired quickly. In fact, some golf courses will request that you stop playing and leave if they find that you are not taking care of the divots your golf balls make.