Minimum driving distance to compete professionally.

[itching4scratch]

Is 250yd carry enough to compete?

[allin]

Yes, there are tour pros who only average about 250 carry.  Being 20 yards shorter than average means you better be  a good middle long iron player and have a top notch short game.

[MikeLowry5]

Super good middle, long iron player....

It is hard to believe that there will be guys in the future that are short hitters with the equipment and length of the courses now.  It seems to be that there is more of a premium for distance off the tee than there is for control; even with the new grooves.

I cannot think of a younger player that is that short as of now.  There may be one, but their name does not stick out in my head.

[delav]

Guys like Mark Wilson are proof that you don't need to hit it big to compete.  His average is 279, carry is likely in the 240-250 neighborhood.

[itching4scratch]

Originally Posted by delav

Guys like Mark Wilson are proof that you don't need to hit it big to compete.  His average is 279, carry is likely in the 240-250 neighborhood.

Good Point!

Originally Posted by MikeLowry5

It seems to be that there is more of a premium for distance off the tee than there is for control; even with the new grooves.

That's what it seems like.  I'd still rather be 270 in the fairway than 330 in the pine needles :)

[The_Pharaoh]

Originally Posted by itching4scratch

That's what it seems like.  I'd still rather be 270 in the fairway than 330 in the pine needles :)

It completely depends on the length of the hole and the thickness of the pine needles!!

[MikeLowry5]

What about 330yds in the rough with a clear shot and a lob wedge to the green?  That's what guys like Bubba Watson and Dustin Johnson are looking at on 400yds+ par 4's.  The equipment and design of the courses (seems as if one is dictated by the other) seems to be swallowing up the shorter hitters.

Keep in mind that these guys missing the fairway still have clear shots out of the rough more times than not.  Now my 330yd drive, its in the pine trees, which also sit 100' below the elevated tee box I needed to bomb it 330 :)

[johnthejoiner]

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.

[turtleback]

Originally Posted by allin

Yes, there are tour pros who only average about 250 carry.  Being 20 yards shorter than average means you better be  a good middle long iron player and have a top notch short game.

Not any more.  The last (192nd) position on the PGA Tour was Mike Weir at 268.

And the last (138th) position last year on the Nationwide tour was 271.

250 barely gets you in the top 80 on the Champions tour nowadays.

[Harmonious]

Originally Posted by turtleback

Not any more.  The last (192nd) position on the PGA Tour was Mike Weir at 268.

And the last (138th) position last year on the Nationwide tour was 271.

250 barely gets you in the top 80 on the Champions tour nowadays.

250 carry probably equates to 270-275 total distance, with the fairways cut as close as they are on tour.

[GaijinGolfer]

IMO, unless you only want to win no-name tournaments or play on the Nationwide Tour then 250 yards isnt enough.  Nowdays, to compete you NEED to be hitting your drives 300 yards.

[The_Pharaoh]

Originally Posted by Harmonious

250 carry probably equates to 270-275 total distance, with the fairways cut as close as they are on tour.

Which simply isn't going to cut it, especially when it's wet! Minimum is to carry it 275 yards if you wish to compete i.e. make enough money to live on.

[04v8s4]

Dustin Johnson carries his 3i about 250!

That being said...I think you can still compete if you carry 250.  I wouldn't think you'd be in the top of the group...unless your iron play and shortgame were among the best!

[max power]

This seems to be true.  I can carry it about 250, and a 7000 yard course starts feeling awfully long.  It seems everything the pros play is 7200-7700.

Originally Posted by TitleistWI

IMO, unless you only want to win no-name tournaments or play on the Nationwide Tour then 250 yards isnt enough.  Nowdays, to compete you NEED to be hitting your drives 300 yards.

[saevel25]

you don't need 300 to compete, thats just idiotic.... Maybe 285-290 total driving, not carry would get you competing.

[shortstop20]

The PGA Tour average is 285 yards. You can certainly "make a living" hitting it shorter than that.

Have you looked at the size of PGA Tour purses lately?

[Shorty]

IMO, unless you only want to win no-name tournaments or play on the Nationwide Tour then 250 yards isnt enough.  Nowdays, to compete you NEED to be hitting your drives 300 yards.

Do you seriously think that there are players on the Nationwide Tour hitting it less than 250? If there were, they would not have a hope in hell. In fact, there are more 300+ hitters on the Nationwide Tour than the PGA Tour. 2006 was the only year in the last decade when this wasn't the case. The linked article explains why, but the idea of being able to compete on the Nationwide Tour as a sub 250 yard hitter is ludicrous. http://www.pgatour.com/2010/h/10/13/dell-insider-nationwide/index.html

[Bastid]

You could easily survive not being a long hitter on the tour, but the rest of your game had better be pretty damn sharp! The thing that kept guys like Corey Pavin and Jeff Sluman around is their complete game. Yeah they hit it nowhere off the tee, but their iron / wedge / short game / putting were extremely good.

Remember when Tiger was dominating the tour? He was bombing the ball AND hitting close AND making the putts. You put all three of those together and you usually end up in good position. If you're sub-par on one part of your game, the other parts better compensate for it.