20+ handicappers hitting 300 yards (mild rant)

[jones]

Either way its amazing that with my size and my swing speed everyone on the internet out drives me.

Size really doesn't matter when it comes to driving distance. Here are some quick stats (using Yahoo! sports stats) of players from the top 20 in average driving distance for 2008:

-Only 2 guys weigh over 200 lbs -- 210 and 235, neither are in the top 10 -7 are over 6' tall -3 are over 6'2" tall -none are 6'5" or taller (from your posts, you said you are 6'5") -3 weigh 160 or less -1 weighs 145 (Andres Romero) http://sports.yahoo.com/golf/pga/sta...CE&season;=2008

[dirkduffer]

I posted this topic as the suggestion is rediculous - never seen it and dont believe it and your previous posts have hardly put me off - i am happy to witness this and in fact have put up $1000 on another forum for 20 plus handicaps that can prove it.

Well, on behalf of Charles Barkley, I'll accept your $1000. And you better pay up.

Watch the Hank Haney project. Charles, in his groove during the third episode I think, was smashing nearly every drive on the launch monitor 300 - 330. He's 6'7 I think and weighs probably 280+ (but your bet is not about that and doesn't make exceptions). And if you know the point of the show, I GUARANTEE he's over a 20 hcp right now. He might not AVERAGE 300 if you count his MANY duffs, but to say a 20 hcp can't hit 300+...well, you're a fool. And you're $1000 poorer. Email me and I'll tell you where to send my check. Incidentally, I'm a low teen hcp and am frustrated that I can't hit 300. My longest downhill drive is still only 298. My average carry is about 245 with average drive of about 255. I did fly a drive 292 into a greenside bunker once when I was a 25 hcp, but that was with a steady 30 knot tailwind (windsock confirmed). A big guy whose a natural athlete in high altitude even without the wind can probably put it out there 300 on occasion...and still carry a 20hcp. Half of golf is putting and another 30% is approaches/short game. A 300 yd drive doesn't matter if you can't work the other 3 strokes per hole.

[dirkduffer]

I discount pretty much everything I read on internet message boards.

Well, I'm fat (Obese according to my Wii Fit), ugly, and pretty much broke (and if I have any cheese left, Obama will redistribute that in short order), have no friends (black or otherwise), but I did marry a pretty hot chick...and I play a lot of golf which is pretty amazing.

[dirkduffer]

in med school, i believe it was the second year when we learned to take medical history from patients, one wise ass teacher told us something i still use today:

Similar college math:

How ever many people a dude says he's been with, divide by 3. How ever many people a chick says she's been with, multiply by 3.

[dirkduffer]

I think I read that the average drive on the PGA Tour is 281 and on the Nationwide is like 296. I asked someone about that once, why guys who hadn't made it to the big league were out driving the A players. His answer was very interesting.

First, "average" drive on tour is calculated by averaging two drives on two holes that are basically in opposite directions to cancel out any wind advantage/disadvantage. It doesn't tell you if they, for some reason, decided to lay off or hit a 3W or got no roll in the rough or how firm the fairways are on any particular day. There is a different number for "longest" and it's almost always from something like windy, high altitude, downhill.... and doesn't come close to representing the "average" drive.

Second, the Nationwide tour, he pointed out, is generally comprised of younger golfers. I thought perhaps the PGA tour guys were just more worried about accuracy than distance, but his point was interesting and might be valid. But in any event, the AVERAGE drive of the BEST players in the world is only over 280. The lowest on the list I think was around 260.

And I agree. If you're not measuring with GPS/laser, then you don't really count.

[dmc]

Wow! I play with alot of very good golfers, some have played on the mini-tours. And very few of them can hit it 300 yds. Maybe the places that I play water the fairway's too much. I use to play a muni from time to time that we use to call our ego builder. The hole yardages were off at least 50 yds.

At my club if a 20 handicapper was hitting it 300 off the tee, the handicap commitee would be talking with him.

[Carolinahooker]

Are we talking "can hit a 300 yrd drive" or "avg a 300 yrd drive"? As a former 20+ hcp player, I have hit a couple of those or at least close. In four man scrambles I would hit close to last. If there was a drive out there already I could turn my shoulders and let it rip.

Now that shot had about a 10% chance of being in the fairway and a 90% chance to be 20 yrds in front me. I do laugh at all the people on the internet that say "I hit it about 290 or so". I hit mine about 260 and consider myself a decent driver off the tee. The more you play golf the more you don't care about being long off the tee. You care about being safe off the tee and consistent. Still working on that part

[SteelDriver]

i can hit it over 300 but i consistantly hit around 280. i have a hard time buying a 20 hc hitting 300 consistantly and in play. that would mean a whole lot of 120 yard and in misshits which would drive me batty!

[Neco]

Just to put everyone's thoughts to rest!

I went and played a round today with pretty nice weather and 10-20 MPH gusting winds. I also got a Taylor Made Burner 49 inch S flex Mid Tip driver to see if it made that big of a different on my drives (I hit a $20.00 driver from Academy and that has served my purpose since I started playing last July)

The first hole we play (Number 10) is a 348 yard par 4 according to the score card. I hit my drive and I land it 25 yards from the green in the middle of the fairway. I stand up to the ball with a wedge to get it close, hit it off the toe and it lands 50 yards past the hole. I pick it up to keep the pace of play going.

Two holes after that, we have the wind to our backs and I drive on a 402 yard par 4. I hit the ball 35 yards from the green in the fairway. Takes me 4 more strokes to get the ball in the hole for a bogey.

Go all the way to the back nine and on the second hole, a 550 yard par 5 with the wind facing us, I hit my drive and it lands right next to the 250 marker. 300 yards into the wind.

I am a high handicap player because my shortgame is terrible and my putting is worse. My ball striking is pretty good for how long I have been playing.

THIS doesn't mean that I can't hit the ball 300 yards. I hit a 300, 320, and a 370 yard drive today.

Can we end this ridiculous debate please?

[grantc79]

Just to put everyone's thoughts to rest!

No, because no 30 handicapper can hit a ball 325 which you claim you did

Hitting a ball 25 yards from a green that the scorecard says is 350 yards does not mean you hit the ball 325. Scorecards are measured straight down fairways to the middle of greens. There are holes that according to the scorecards that are 360+ yards long that if I cut the corner with a big enough draw I can be within 20 yards of. My best drive ever on flat ground with no wind was 303. Get it?

[iacas]

I also got a Taylor Made Burner 49 inch S flex Mid Tip driver to see if it made that big of a different on my drives (I hit a $20.00 driver from Academy and that has served my purpose since I started playing last July)

So you used an illegal club? 48 inches max.

Can we end this ridiculous debate please?

This won't do it, I'm sure.

[flopdarock]

A very, very tiny select few hit the ball 340 and I mean very tiny.

dude... are you mentally challenged?

you were the one correlating that the longer the driver the better the fundamentals they should have... so in "your" logic... the long drive champion should be #1 on tour... so jb and bubba and boo should be top 3 and the remax guys shouldnt even be in the same category... these guys should be holing out ever hole from the teebox according to you just due to the fact they can bomb balls because their fundamantals are so sound... clean your reading glasses on this one I say... just because you can hit the ball far... doesnt mean you will have low scores... your logic = the longer you hit = the lower you score my point = just because someone can cream a ball doesnt mean they are getting aces on every hole just because a guy can kill a driver doesnt mean his sandwedge is getting him out of a jam 50yrds in... sure the swing is "fundamentally" the same... but the mentality is different so im being ridiculous?

[Elsfan]

This is rather simple actually. The majority of guys I see on the golf course are quite unimpressive athletically. I actually would assume many of the better golfers on this forum are probably the same. They may be good golfers technique wise, but they probably average 225-245 off the tee and rely on their short game. I was a very solid baseball player growing up who could hit a baseball quite far. Translating that power to golf was very natural for me. Sometimes I would even go as far as to say a lack of technique in a golf swing could create greater distance when the ball is hit flush. When it is not, which is most of the time for these people, the result is pretty bad. Guys who tend to hit fairway after fairway usually sacrifice a little distance however increasing their scoring ability.

[Fourputt]

Just to put everyone's thoughts to rest!

So, you say you have an illegal driver, 30 handicap, and you used the scorecard to measure your distances? Dream on, dude, dream on... you're living in a fantasy world.

You haven't even come close to proving anything. And the thread goes on..... and on...... and on......

[grantc79]

dude... are you mentally challenged?

No, you still don't get it. The better the fundamentals the longer the driver.

your logic = the longer you hit = the lower you score my point = just because someone can cream a ball doesnt mean they are getting aces on every hole

No, go back and read the thread and reach some sort of understanding.

I say that in order to hit the ball 300 plus unassisted you need to have proper fundamentals. The same fundamentals that will allow you to be consistent with a 7 iron or a wedge. YOU say that you can hit the ball 300 plus and not be able to hit a wedge or 7 iron well at all.

just because a guy can kill a driver doesnt mean his sandwedge is getting him out of a jam 50yrds in... sure the swing is "fundamentally" the same... but the mentality is different

Let me break this down for you.

You don't have to be Mickelson with a wedge to be JB Holmes with a driver. However if you have the talent to be JB Holmes with a driver you simply cannot be completely worthless with a wedge. See below. Do you notice any similarities? I think if you had any understanding of the golf swing you would realize there are a whole lot of similarities in that driver, iron, and chip. Notice the flat wrist wrist throughout (hard to learn). Notice the angle relationship between the left forearm and shaft of the club throughout the downswing until release. This is called lag. It is a very narrow angle which generates a lot of power (hard to learn). Notice the cocking and uncocking of the wrist creating a snap release at impact. That also makes a lot of power and is VERY HARD TO LEARN. You aren't hitting 300 yard drives without most of those fundamentals in place and rock solid. You learn those fundamentals by taking shorter shots (namely chipping) because trying to figure out if you are doing it right at 110 MPH with a driver in your hand isn't really feasible. So basically, you have two scenarios: A: The person learned these fundamentals hitting chips and shorter irons like the rest of us, picked up a driver, pulls it off awesomely on a driver, and COMPLETELY forgot about all of those fundamentals after they learned how to hit the driver. B: The person learned those fundamentals with the driver (which is virtually impossible) and can pull off all of those really tricky fundamental power moves at 110 MPH but just can't seem to pull it off at 60 mph with a wedge in their hands. Basically they can tie a sailor knot in their shoes in under a second but ask them to tie a double knot in the same pair of shoes and an hour to pull it off and they just can't quite do it. You are purporting a golfing Rain Man and yes it is completely ridiclulous.

[Pinseeker81]

Can we end this ridiculous debate please?

This won't do it, I'm sure.

Please, continue. I find this petty bickering to be most entertaining.

[Fat Slice]

Are we talking about AVERAGING 300 yards, or occasionally smacking one that far? Even with rotten fundamentals, a 20+ handicapper can do everything right on ONE "perfect storm" swing and put it out there 300 yards (if he has the clubhead speed). Of course they might do this 1 in 100 or even 500 tries, so other people (and their own common sense) will have them try and put it in the fairway with an easy swing instead.

If the claim is that 20+ handicappers can average 300 yards (in play), I'd say...that's gotta be hard to find, because someone who could drive the ball in play consistently enough to AVERAGE 300 yards would probably have enough practice at the other parts of their game to be under 20. The longer you drive, the harder it is to keep in play.

If the claim is that no 20+ handicappers can EVER poke it out there 300 yards, I'd say...how can you afford to play golf with your crack habit?

[Neco]