Big driving distance jump for teenage golfer?

[BobTheGoose]

Hi from a new registered user (I just registered but have viewed posts in this forum for a while). I have a question about the driver distance progression for junior golfers, and want to see if other parents have similar experience. My son just turned 14. His driver distance has been increasing at the steady pace of around 20 yards per year since age 10. But in the last year - mainly in the last 6 months, it has increased by 40+ yards!! I typically take him to an indoor facility that has TrackMan to practice, so the distance over the years are apple to apple comparisons. The carry distance progression in the last 4 years (measured at around his birthday) are:

11 years old: 172

12 years old: 191

13 years old: 211

14 years old: 255 (!!)

According to TrackMan, his swing speed is about 105 mph.

Have anyone seen similar driving distance "spurt" in your teenager golfers? I am happily surprised by this jump, and wonder if it is common in teenage boys. Thanks.

 

[golfer55082]

Wow that is awesome! What did he do? Has he grown a lot recently that contributes to the huge distance increase?

[iteachgolf]

Extremely common.

[jj9000]

> @golfer55082 said:

> Wow that is awesome! What did he do? Has he grown a lot recently that contributes to the huge distance increase?

 

Puberty.

[GolfSRQ]

My son did same thing. Age 13 was 220 on a good day. He turned 15 last week as is 265-285. Seems like he grew a foot during that time.

[BobTheGoose]

Yes I believe he has started puberty. Good to see what puberty has done for his game. (He is my oldest and there is no reference point for me regarding puberty and driving distance correlation...)

> @jj9000 said:

> > @golfer55082 said:

> > Wow that is awesome! What did he do? Has he grown a lot recently that contributes to the huge distance increase?

>

> Puberty.

 

 

[BrianMcG]

The power of testosterone.

[BobTheGoose]

He has played in the biggest golf tournaments of his age group ( IMG, USKG World, Future Masters) and his distance has always been about top 30% percentile. I feel that the indoors TrackMan carry numbers are bit lower than real world distances. Anyway, let’s do not digress and stay on the topic.

 

> @TigerMom said:

> There are some on this forum who would (mistakenly) claim your son’s distances at younger ages was below average

 

 

[leezer99]

> @GolfSRQ said:

> My son did same thing. Age 13 was 220 on a good day. He turned 15 last week as is 265-285. Seems like he grew a foot during that time.

 

He has three now?

[GolfSRQ]

> @leezer99 said:

> > @GolfSRQ said:

> > My son did same thing. Age 13 was 220 on a good day. He turned 15 last week as is 265-285. Seems like he grew a foot during that time.

>

> He has three now?

 

Seems like he has 3 mouths with the amount he eats these days.

 

[BeerPerHole]

That's a very good distance at his age. If he's on or near the fairway he's good to go!

[BobTheGoose]

> @BeerPerHole said:

> That's a very good distance at his age. If he's on or near the fairway he's good to go!

Thanks. Good to be assured and encouraged :)

[BeerPerHole]

> @BobTheGoose said:

> > @BeerPerHole said:

> > That's a very good distance at his age. If he's on or near the fairway he's good to go!

> Thanks. Good to be assured and encouraged :)

 

You bet. That distance is legit. He's going as far as I carry it. My son hit a drive so long in the fall that I won't mention it here (we don't talk about distance or fight club). But, he's actually gotten shorter with his drives while growing a few inches. Finally had him join me at the gym tonight and noticed his hamstrings are tight as piano strings during our warmup. So...we'll see if we can get focused again. Golf is a difficult sport... I just played football as a kid. No thinking. Just brute violence. Dumb...

[BobTheGoose]

I have seen a few people mentioning that the driving distance does not improve, or even becomes shorter, when kids grow during puberty. Regardless of the reasons, it must feel frustrating. I agree with another poster that the golf swings may need to change to accommodate the increased stature. People with experience and expertise on this topic pleas advise...

> @BeerPerHole said:

> > @BobTheGoose said:

> > > @BeerPerHole said:

> > > That's a very good distance at his age. If he's on or near the fairway he's good to go!

> > Thanks. Good to be assured and encouraged :)

>

> You bet. That distance is legit. He's going as far as I carry it. My son hit a drive so long in the fall that I won't mention it here (we don't talk about distance or fight club). But, he's actually gotten shorter with his drives while growing a few inches. Finally had him join me at the gym tonight and noticed his hamstrings are tight as piano strings during our warmup. So...we'll see if we can get focused again. Golf is a difficult sport... I just played football as a kid. No thinking. Just brute violence. Dumb...

 

 

[yellowlover519]

Re driving distances staying the same or getting shorter post puberty. Were they playing the same length shaft pre-puberty as post? While they should have gotten stronger, it could be they were playing a shaft too long pre-puberty (happens all the time to gain the most distance at young ages) and could hit the sweet spot with no room to go longer on the shaft, which now makes it harder hit the sweet spot bc they’re so used to swinging the much longer club? See if it’s a sweet spot issue with dry foot powder.

 

 

[tiger1873]

I have not seen the driver distance get shorter through puberty with my daughter. What I have seen is peak distance is not reliable distance.

 

Stamina is a real issue as well so getting a reliable average distance is almost impossible.

 

An example of what I have seen is this. I will see a good drive suddenly shoot an extra 10-20 yard and then we will not see that distance again. Then a week later we see the extra yards about 50% of the time and eventually it becomes the new norm.