Levelling the Fairways: Jan Bel Jan and the rise of Scoring Tees™

I’ve said this on plenty of occasions: I don’t think there’s enough consideration for shorter hitters when it comes to course design and tee placement. And I am sure that is really negatively impacting female participation in golf.

Purely anecdotal, I say that because of my own experience of playing from the “women’s tees”. Despite being a PGA Professional, I so often find myself hitting the same clubs all the way around my home course. Particularly in the winter, I more or less hit driver and a wood or long iron on every par four and five.

I often feel like I don’t get to use all the clubs in my bag or play different shots, and the features that make the course more interesting are often not in play at all. Don’t get me wrong, that often makes it a bit easier. But that’s not always what I’m playing for.

I’m also acutely aware that if the current tee system doesn’t particularly work for me, it must be even harder for shorter hitters.

And as I’ve started to voice all of this as part of the Levelling the Fairways series, I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard: “You should connect with Jan Bel Jan.”

So, you can imagine my delight when Women & Golf Editor Emma sent me a message from the Solheim Cup. She’d bumped into Jan Bel Jan, and Jan was happy to connect! I wasted no time in setting up the call and a few weeks later, I listened in awe as Jan educated me on all things golf course design.

Introducing Jan Bel Jan, ASGCA

Jan Bel Jan is somewhat of an icon in the world of golf course architecture. Raised in a golfing family, she spent more than 20 years of her design career working with Tom Fazio – legendary golf course architect – where she held a senior position in golf course design, construction, and project management.

She’s a Landscape Architect, Certified Arborist, and former assistant superintendent, and was elected to the American Society of Golf Course Architects (ASGCA), and was the ASGCA

President from 2019 to 2020. So, she more than knows what she’s talking about when it comes to the playability, strategy, and design of golf courses.

The concept of Scoring Tees™

Jan Bel Jan pioneered Scoring Tees™ in the U.S. a few years ago, and they have transformed how golfers of various skill levels experience the game.

Introduced as part of Bel Jan's mission to make golf more inclusive, Scoring Tees™ shorten courses to encourage higher success rates, faster play, and more enjoyment. Typically spanning 4,000 to 4,400 yards, these specially positioned tees offer a fresh alternative to the traditional design, enabling players to reach greens more effectively. Most courses can be retrofitted economically and easily to include this scorecard yardage range, which can be rated for handicap purposes.

As Bel Jan explains, the concept emerged from her desire to create more par and birdie opportunities: “Birdies are celebrated because they’re infrequent. I wanted everyone –women, men, juniors, seniors, and novices ­– to make more birdies and have more fun.”

Her initiative has not only broadened accessibility but has also garnered success and popularity across American courses.

But Bel Jan's Scoring Tees™ aren’t just about placing extra markers part way down the fairway.

Beyond shortening the course, Jan’s approach includes the thoughtful design and construction of fully-fledged teeing areas; Scoring Tees™ look like any other tee on the course and, importantly, like they’ve always been there. Considering ball trajectory and angles of play, Scoring Tees™ enable almost every player to reach the green in regulation with two or three well-played shots.

And by avoiding alienating terms like "ladies' tees" or "junior tees" that exclude groups of players, the inclusive naming and positioning of Scoring Tees™ has made them more inviting for everyone. The appeal to golfers with slower swing speeds is obvious but Scoring Tees™ are also regularly being used by elite golfers to refine their short games and hone shots they don’t usually get to play. It’s all about skill over strength and distance.

A recipe for success for golf participation?

Scoring Tees™ have cemented Jan Bel Jan’s vision of accessible, engaging golf. But more than that their success underscores the potential for well-designed, inclusive golf courses to drive participation ­– and not just amongst women, either.

Male or female, young or old, proper tee selection is crucial to a golfer’s overall experience and satisfaction. Scoring Tees™ offer opportunities for a fair challenge and to play courses as they are designed, with features like bunkers, hazards and slopes having to be taken into consideration. They enable golfers to use more clubs in their bag and play different shots. And, perhaps most importantly, they allow people to experience better scores and grow in confidence – but they still have to play good golf.

All of that combined makes the game far more enjoyable and means golfers are more likely to come back again and again. It’s clear to see, therefore, that there’s a clear return on the investment of implementing Scoring Tees™.

Scoring Tees™ might not be a fix-all solution for every club, but they definitely provide some food for thought for the future …

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