20+ handicappers hitting 300 yards (mild rant)

[funkyfred72]

Your right, because the pro's are laying up at 290 with their 3 wood.  Right now J.B. Holmes is leading the PGA Tour in driving distance at 318.4.  I'd think that number would be much higher if he used a driver on every hole.

Originally Posted by trackster

Many times the pros won't hit the golf ball 300 yards

[mikelegacy]

What you need to realize here (to the OP), is that a lot of 20+ handicappers started playing because they love to drive the ball. In my experience the short game interest comes into play later. My step brother just started playing golf this year and he is shooting in the 60's on 9. Needless to say, he's pretty bad. The funny thing is tho, me and him are both 6'5" and can drive around 300-310 on an average good stroke. He mishits a lot since he's new, but his average good drive is an easy 300. It depends on the player really. I know people who can only drive 250 max and they are scratch golfers. Me and my brother being so tall, we can really strike the ball hard. I hit a ball 190-200 with my 9 irons the other day. That's not my average but it happened. Just saying, just because a player has a high handicap doesn't mean they can't drive the ball. Most of my friends who hate golf love going and "crushing" the balls at the range.

[trackster]

Originally Posted by funkyfred72

Your right, because the pro's are laying up at 290 with their 3 wood.  Right now J.B. Holmes is leading the PGA Tour in driving distance at 318.4.  I'd think that number would be much higher if he used a driver on every hole.

Well if you would look past the first person you would see that the tour average is 290.  Which means that there are more drives under 300 then there are over 300 so yes I was right thank you for noticing.

[JasonFL]

Hello new member here. Former baseball player and young golfer who quit and now playing again. I'm an 18 hcp with 181 mph ball speed and heres an explanation I received while on a launch monitor from a pro. Basically with high ball speed and a sub par swing (like mine), even the slightest mistake will send your ball 50 yards out of bounds. In other words (to the OP), your slice is a miss fairway, mine is in someone's front yard. Now take a 200 + yard layup with a 5 iron and a slight miss hit and that's another opportunity for a penalty out of bounds. My short irons are way less of an issue. So combine penalty shots, around four to five per round, with poor putting.... My last ten rounds I'm averaging 2.2 putts per GIR and 1.97 per hole.... That's how I'm stuck at shooting 90 or so every round.

[funkyfred72]

If you actually watched a tournament you would see how often players use a 3 wood off the tee.  That is why the tour average is 290.

Originally Posted by trackster

Well if you would look past the first person you would see that the tour average is 290.  Which means that there are more drives under 300 then there are over 300 so yes I was right thank you for noticing.

[saevel25]

Actually if you check ou the driving distance stat, it says that its taken on two golf holes, each in opposite directions to account for wind, and those two holes are selected to maximize the use of the driver. They just don't average all the drives on every hole.

If you want a true measure of potential to hit 300 yard drives, just get your club head speed measured. If its over 115mph you got a shot at it. The rest comes with hitting the ball solid, to transfer that speed to the ball.

[Righty to Lefty]

But aren't those stats compiled only from the drives that finish in the fairway? No one said anything about hitting the fairway  regularly or being a good golfer overall.  The point is that anyone with ample swingspeed can average 300 plus because even half decent contact is gonna send the ball 300 yards in some direction! 300 yards right of target, or left of target is the same as 300 yards down the center of the fairway as it pertains to average distance.  It has nothing to do with being a scratch golfer or being good at the other facets of the game of golf. Hitting a golf ball far is not impressive to me and I can hit them far.The score written on the scorecard could care less that you drove that par 4 if you three jacked and everyone else made the same score with an iron from the teebox and a wedge onto the green!

Originally Posted by saevel25

Actually if you check ou the driving distance stat, it says that its taken on two golf holes, each in opposite directions to account for wind, and those two holes are selected to maximize the use of the driver. They just don't average all the drives on every hole.

If you want a true measure of potential to hit 300 yard drives, just get your club head speed measured. If its over 115mph you got a shot at it. The rest comes with hitting the ball solid, to transfer that speed to the ball.

[x129]

"The average number of yards per measured drive. These drives are measured on two holes per round. Care is taken to select two holes which face in opposite directions to counteract the effect of wind. Drives are measured to the point at which they come to rest regardless of whether they are in the fairway or not. (101)". They player can use any club they want and the holes are not necessary flat.

The nationwide tour routinely has a slightly longer drive average than the PGA tour for what that is worth. It is hard to be a PGA pro if you can't drive the ball 280+. But the ability to drive it far is a minor one compared to the rest of the skills required.

Originally Posted by Righty to Lefty

But aren't those stats compiled only from the drives that finish in the fairway? No one said anything about hitting the fairway  regularly or being a good golfer overall.  The point is that anyone with ample swingspeed can average 300 plus because even half decent contact is gonna send the ball 300 yards in some direction! 300 yards right of target, or left of target is the same as 300 yards down the center of the fairway as it pertains to average distance.  It has nothing to do with being a scratch golfer or being good at the other facets of the game of golf. Hitting a golf ball far is not impressive to me and I can hit them far.The score written on the scorecard could care less that you drove that par 4 if you three jacked and everyone else made the same score with an iron from the teebox and a wedge onto the green!

[huckleberry658]

i have and can hit 300 yard drives 3-4 times per round, unfortunately followed by, on other holes, pushed drives into trees and rough getting me into trouble. i have had two shoulder surgeries and 3 screws put into my shoulder. i dont know what it is about my cocking, but i have trouble with long shafts. i have gone to just 5 iron off of tee at 185-195, and still play mid eighty golf. i enjoy the fairway drives, and im in alot less trouble. i did buy a 2 iron this week, shorter shaft than my driver. i played with it first time, had 2 drives at 240(9 holes), a few at 210, others inconsistently off line. will play with it a little more to see if i can straighten it out, choking up a little to shorten my distance form ball.

[anotherday]

Originally Posted by funkyfred72

Your right, because the pro's are laying up at 290 with their 3 wood.  Right now J.B. Holmes is leading the PGA Tour in driving distance at 318.4.  I'd think that number would be much higher if he used a driver on every hole.

JB Holmes was doing this while having cerebral issues which specifically affect his balance. He'll be going under the knife soon for brain surgery. Just shows how amazingly skilled these Tour players are and more specifically how talented he is to be able to overcome a physical hindrance to a key part of his game and remain so dominant off the tee.

[Rip24]

Sorry Huckleberry, I gotta call BS...you hit your 5 iron 185-195 then you aint got the swing speed to knock one 300 with the big dog with out the aid of a pretty good tail wind.  Not that 185-195 is weak 5, its not.   300 is bomb though

[saevel25]

My irons go,

3 iron - 226

4 iron - 213

5 iron - 200 yards

I have a ping G10 driver, 10.5 degrees of loft, x-stiff shaft, 44" inches long, and i can belt out 300 yard drives, consitantly. I do say consistantly, i am hitting from 290-310.

If he can hit his 5 iron up to 195, he's got enough pop to hit one out to 300. That is not a weak 5 by many standards. So does 200 yard 5 iron mean its weak and i can't hit it 300 yards, because honestly, you don't know jack

[mdl]

I'm with saevel here.  I hi 3i ~210, 4i ~200, 5i~190.  I don't really know exactly how far my driver carries, but carry+roll with my 9.5˚ driver averages ~285, with the best 3-4 drives of a round going to or past 300 yards.

[xprostylex]

sorry but 300 yards drives are something most golfers will never achieve without significant help - unless you swing at around 120mph faster than the average tour pro you aint going to be averaging 300 yards.

anyway got it of my chest feel better!

rant over

agreed!

[Rip24]

I call BS on you too Saevel...I can hit it 300+ on the monitors at Golfsmith too...they inflate the numbers to make you feel good about yourself.  I go out on the course and its 285 max.  I hit my stock 5 195ish..

Also at at 10 handicap, youre not really doing anything too consistently there are ya fella?

[saevel25]

Then you hit your driver poorly and are not maximizing out your yardage. I hit my 5 iron, 28 degrees of loft, 200-205 yards. I can hit my driver 300 yards. I don't car what your swing is, my swing allows me to get these yardages with the clubs i have.

Oh and i don't get my numbers from a golf machine, i get my numbers from having this distance the past 7 years of my golfing life, hittting hundreds upon hundreds of drives. So there is your data right there. GPS certified.. If you don't believe me, buy a ticket, fly down to Dayton, Ohio, come on out and see for yourself. Im willing to man up.

Oh you want to know were my 10 handicap comes from, piss poor wedge and short game. I waste at least 2-3 shots around the green or inside 100 yards each 9 holes. So really, if i tighten that up, i am what as good as you. So don't think because i am a 10 doesn't mean my swing isn't good, is solid, very solid right now. But when you have abotu 2-3 three putts a round, and duff or scalled a few chips, you go from a 5 to a 10 really fast there.

[Grumpter]

I play with a guy who plays his 5 Iron about 200 yards while my 5 iron is about 175 yards. I can could hit driver 25 yards farther than a decent driver for him though (and he isn't what I would consider short with his driver). Different clubs, different swings, different players.

edit: changed can to could. I slowed down my driver swingspeed and shortened the driver backswing later in this season to try to fix some duck hook issues and am just starting to get back to putting good swings on the ball with the big stick.

[Kieran123]

Originally Posted by saevel25

Then you hit your driver poorly and are not maximizing out your yardage. I hit my 5 iron, 28 degrees of loft, 200-205 yards. I can hit my driver 300 yards. I don't car what your swing is, my swing allows me to get these yardages with the clubs i have.

Oh and i don't get my numbers from a golf machine, i get my numbers from having this distance the past 7 years of my golfing life, hittting hundreds upon hundreds of drives. So there is your data right there. GPS certified.. If you don't believe me, buy a ticket, fly down to Dayton, Ohio, come on out and see for yourself. Im willing to man up.

Oh you want to know were my 10 handicap comes from, piss poor wedge and short game. I waste at least 2-3 shots around the green or inside 100 yards each 9 holes. So really, if i tighten that up, i am what as good as you. So don't think because i am a 10 doesn't mean my swing isn't good, is solid, very solid right now. But when you have abotu 2-3 three putts a round, and duff or scalled a few chips, you go from a 5 to a 10 really fast there.

Some people refuse to believe others can hit their ball long.

My 5 iron is my 210 yard club. My 4 i is my 220 yard club. My used to be able to drive the ball over 300 once or twice a round confirmed using GPS ( I always use my GPS when I play ). Now it goes around 270-280 but it's cut to 44' and I have issues with low ball flight ( forward shaft lean issue )

On 3 different simulators my driver swing speed has averaged around 114.

I came second in a tournament in the long drive hole with 309 yards. The guy who won drove it past me and won with 314 yards. He shot 96 in the tournament. Probably a 20 something handicap.

I am a mid handicap, athletic, played cricket for 8 years and used to bowl a cricket ball 120km/h ( fast in high school ), ran 100m in under 12 seconds and went to my regional finals for long jump. I only weight 150 pounds and am only 5' 11', but size isn't everything

It is possible, but people seem to need a hand written letter from Obama stating 'I saw it and can attest" or something.