Last Safe Tee Time Calculator
Booking a twilight round? Find the latest you can tee off and still hole out on eighteen before dark, from the date, your latitude, and your group size.
Don’t run out of light
Twilight rates are one of golf’s best bargains, but they come with a catch: you have to finish. Teeing off too late means playing the closing holes by feel, putting on a green you can barely read, or walking in short of the clubhouse. A quick daylight check turns a gamble into a plan — and often unlocks a cheaper, quieter round.
Pair it with the Round Time & Pace Calculator to know how long your group really needs, and budget the round with the Green Fee Budget Calculator.
Frequently Asked Questions
How does the calculator estimate sunset?
It uses the standard astronomical sunrise/sunset equation from your latitude and the day of the year, which gives the length of daylight and therefore the time of sunset relative to solar noon. It then backs off your estimated round length plus a fifteen-minute safety buffer to find the last time you can tee off and still walk up the eighteenth with light to spare.
Why might the time be off from my clock by up to an hour?
The tool works in local solar time, where the sun is highest at 12:00. Your wall clock can differ from solar time by up to an hour or more, because time zones are wide and your longitude within the zone shifts real sunset earlier or later, and daylight saving adds another hour in summer. Use the result as a close guide and always cross-check the actual sunset time for your exact location and date.
What latitude should I enter?
A rough figure is fine — latitude changes daylight length slowly. As a guide: about 40° for the central United States, 34° for Los Angeles or Sydney (enter −34 for the southern hemisphere), 51° for London, and 55–57° for Scotland's famous links. Northern courses have gloriously long summer evenings and short winter afternoons, which is exactly what the calculator reflects.
How much buffer should I leave?
The tool already subtracts a fifteen-minute cushion, but on a busy course, in a bigger group, or on a hard walking layout, leave more. Daylight disappears fast in the last half hour, and the group ahead sets your real pace. If you're teeing off close to the last safe time, it's worth telling the pro shop and being ready to skip a hole rather than search for a ball in the dark.
An approximate local-solar-time estimate. Always check the course’s posted sunset and last-tee-time, and leave a cushion for slow play.