Why when you see a 250-260yd drive, it's a bomb!

[jojoampt]

I understand that no matter what club they use on those two holes, thats the yardage they use as the average. I was under the impression that he though EVERY drive on every hole was averaged.

I wouldn't say he's wrong. The PGA does only measure two holes per 18, but they only measure the distance. Mileydog's post was pointing out that those measurements aren't always for the players driver. A long hitter might hit his driver 300+ yards and could take 3 wood/Hybrid off the two holes they measure and average 275 yards in driving distance, but this wouldn't be an accurate estimate of how far they can actually hit their driver.

[Parker0065]

Hey man you're killing what ppl think of me on the course lol. I at least want ppl to

LOL,,,Sorry man, I didn't mean to pick on tall people :)

[msd3075]

Sorry dude, you ARE NOT AVERAGING 300-305YD drives, Tour Pros dont average that...You MADE MY POINT!

I'm sorry for bringing this thread back to life, but I played today after work. I met up with some co-workers when they were teeing off on #9, then played #10-13, skipped over and played #16-18 because it was getting dark, so in all I played 8 holes.

Anyway, I marked all my tee shots where I hit my driver just to see what my average distance was. Here's how it went: *9 -> 295 yds (rough and uphill) #10 -> 325 yds (downhill off tee but landing area is upslope so no roll) #11 -> 335 yds (drop-off at 315ish and rolled down it) #12 -> 298 yds (rough) #13 -> 290 yds (rough) #16 -> 306 yds (in fairway, flat and level) #17 -> par 3 so no drive #18 -> 295 yds (rough) The average comes out to 306.3 yards. This includes uphil and downhill shots as well as 'mishits' that weren't on target and/or hit flush. I know this is beating a dead horse, but oh well.

[Andycapped]

So what's your excuse for not being able to play under par with typically 100 or less yards to go?

[NotAStick]

I have caddied for five tour professionals in my life, as well as several high-level collegiate golfers. I also played Division 1 collegiate golf.

Every single competitive player in the field could drive it over 300 yards if they reached back for it. Every single one.

A really good swing with good mechanics can hit a ball about 300 yards without a huge, strong person behind it and most highly competitive golfers have developed those muscles quite a bit.

The longest tour pro I caddied for averaged almost 340. He reached two 600 yard par 5s with an iron and drove a 375 yard par 4. When he reached back and swing as hard as he could, and made solid contact, he was putting it out about 360-370.

But on tour, his driving average was stated (according to the PGA tour website) was 307.1. That put him near the very top of the tour, but the point is... his average drive... when he reaches back and DRIVES the ball, is about 340, but his actual stat was less because he frequently played 5-wood off the tee, about 285 yards or so. His name was James H. McLean if you want to look him up. I don't think he is currently playing though he did 5-6 years on the Nationwide Tour and a few years part time on the PGA tour.

Cory Pavin, regarded as one of the shortest hitters in competitive golf for years (official average of about 260) and says he can reach the green at the 12th at St Andrews with even a moderate tailwind if he reaches back and swings at it. That hole is 320-some yards in competition, if I'm not mistaken.

Anyway. The point is that most amateurs reach back and try to pound every drive. They also tend to only report those with pretty solid contact when counting their "average".

The tour pro often hits shorter clubs and frequently lays off his swing to 80% in order to hit more fairways and work the ball.

Although I agree some people exagerate, I think it's not absurd for an amateur to average close to 300.

I personally average about 270 at sea level, but that's a nice smooth swing, not a rip. When I'm swinging really well, it's probably 10-15 more. I rarely reach back for everything though. I have hit 380+ and can hit 300+ on command if I reach back, swing hard and make good contact. I rarely reach back to hit like that unless my swing is really on, because I'm liable to miss the fairway and I'd rather hit the short stuff at 270 than be in the trees at 310. Of course, I have been as low as a +3.5 handicap, so I may be an exception.

[msd3075]

So what's your excuse for not being able to play under par with typically 100 or less yards to go?

Both of my home courses are very penalizing if you are not in the fairway. At Hardscrabble, it's because you have to be very accurate off the tee to have the proper angle to hit at its small greens. At Champions, there really isn't any rough; your either in the fairway or in the pine trees with nothing really in between. Basically what I'm trying to say is that it's when I miss the fairway that causes bogeys on my scorecard.