Driver distance for 12yo girl?

[Golfquant]

played with a girl who was hitting it 210-220yds off the tee; wasn't sure whether that was pretty typical for avg to above avg tournament players that age

Edited May 27 by Golfquant

[ShortGolfer]

I wish I could hit it that far off the tee! 

[Medson]

11-13 yo is a transitional period for girls. You got girls, and you got young women. There’s nothing typical for this period. 

[Golfquant]

1 hour ago, Medson said:

11-13 yo is a transitional period for girls. You got girls, and you got young women. There’s nothing typical for this period. 

that makes sense

 

I was impressed nonetheless

[MRx747]

My son just turned 12 and he plays 9 holes with a couple girls his age once to twice a month, pretty normal size compare to other girls their age, I see their carry distance around 165-180 yards, sadly when they hit it well its about the same as my sons average off the tee lol

[MB19]

13 hours ago, Golfquant said:

played with a girl who was hitting it 210-220yds off the tee; wasn't sure whether that was pretty typical for avg to above avg tournament players that age

No, this is about 90% for 12yo tournament-level girls per a chart we got at a USKG Regional.  It's pretty long.

 

That said...

 

10 hours ago, Medson said:

11-13 yo is a transitional period for girls. You got girls, and you got young women. There’s nothing typical for this period. 

In this pretty broad age range, you'll find girls who roll it out to 170 and girls who carry it 230+... girls who are 4'7/70 lbs and girls who are 6'/150.

 

 

 

[mrshinsa]

5 hours ago, MRx747 said:

My son just turned 12 and he plays 9 holes with a couple girls his age once to twice a month, pretty normal size compare to other girls their age, I see their carry distance around 165-180 yards, sadly when they hit it well its about the same as my sons average off the tee lol

Girls reach puberty much earlier than boys do.   I wouldn't think much of it until he turns 14, and he starts using stiff flex shafts.

[Golfquant]

8 hours ago, MB19 said:

No, this is about 90% for 12yo tournament-level girls per a chart we got at a USKG Regional.  It's pretty long.

 

That said...

 

In this pretty broad age range, you'll find girls who roll it out to 170 and girls who carry it 230+... girls who are 4'7/70 lbs and girls who are 6'/150.

 

 

 

she wasn't a big girl - maybe 5'2-3"

 

she said she doesn't play tournament golf bc it was "too asian" - ironic since she herself was

Edited May 28 by Golfquant

[MB19]

5 hours ago, Golfquant said:

she wasn't a big girl - maybe 5'2-3"

 

she said she doesn't play tournament golf bc it was "too asian" - ironic since she herself was

The serious tournament grind isn’t for most 12 yo girls—even if they are talented enough to hold their own against girls who play dozens of events each year.

[jayslaysongolf]

A 12-14 only needs to drive about 200 yards.  For the most part the way courses are set up for girl it doesn’t help the girls who it way longer.  M

 

The longer girls end up not using drivers off of tees and then coming in with just as long as other and end up with higher scores. 

 

Boy are different they get away with better setups.  

[jayslaysongolf]

3 minutes ago, MB19 said:

The serious tournament grind isn’t for most 12 yo girls—even if they are talented enough to hold their own against girls who play dozens of events each year.

I agree however JGS thinks it matters. a lot girls who did well at 12 are coasting now and getting beat by kids who can’t climb the rankings.

 

My advice and it not just for girl is if you want to be ranked high as a junior you need to  be playing the biggest events sooner then later.

Edited May 28 by jayslaysongolf

[MB19]

4 minutes ago, jayslaysongolf said:

I agree however JGS thinks it matters. a lot girls who did well at 12 are coasting now and getting beat by kids who can’t climb the rankings.

 

My advice and it not just for girl is if you want to be ranked high as a junior you need to  be playing the biggest events sooner then later.

I never said the tournament grind didn’t matter for rankings.  Each family is different, though, and mine isn’t built to play rankings game to the nth degree via the required multi-day gauntlet.  Maybe that changes down the road, but probably not.

We were at an event a few weeks back, and a friend of my daughter’s was leading after D1 of the event.  This was on the heels of a USKG Regional a few months back win and a great showing at an AJGA Junior AS Qualifier the week before.  The girl ended up third in a very stacked upper-half of the field after a poor (for her) D2.

 

She was devastated, crying after leaving the podium celebration (this is a really good kid, very unusual to see her like this).  At 12, she’s one of the very best her age in the country—but on this day she just didn’t have it.  
 

How much is too much, ya know?

 

 

[jayslaysongolf]

8 minutes ago, MB19 said:

I never said the tournament grind didn’t matter for rankings.  Each family is different, though, and mine isn’t built to play rankings game to the nth degree via the required multi-day gauntlet.  Maybe that changes down the road, but probably not.

We were at an event a few weeks back, and a friend of my daughter’s was leading after D1 of the event.  This was on the heels of a USKG Regional a few months back win and a great showing at an AJGA Junior AS Qualifier the week before.  The girl ended up third in a very stacked upper-half of the field after a poor (for her) D2.

 

She was devastated, crying after leaving the podium celebration (this is a really good kid, very unusual to see her like this).  At 12, she’s one of the very best her age in the country—but on this day she just didn’t have it.  
 

How much is too much, ya know?

 

 

Yep and that girl will run from golf.   Golf is strange some days the numbers go your way and other days it just doesn’t.

 

It’s the hardest thing to understand in golf.

 

 

[MB19]

12 minutes ago, jayslaysongolf said:

Yep and that girl will run from golf.   Golf is strange some days the numbers go your way and other days it just doesn’t.

 

It’s the hardest thing to understand in golf.

 

 

I hope she sticks with it, but I equally hope they cut back on some events to not burn her out.

[darter79]

22 hours ago, jayslaysongolf said:

A 12-14 only needs to drive about 200 yards.  For the most part the way courses are set up for girl it doesn’t help the girls who it way longer.  M

 

The longer girls end up not using drivers off of tees and then coming in with just as long as other and end up with higher scores. 

 

Boy are different they get away with better setups.  

this is about as far from truth of anything I've read on here. If you are only hitting driver 200 means you probably only carry it 185. Playing 6000 with 400 yard par 4s or even 380 par 4s. Yeah you need a lot more in the tank than a 200 yard driver. Hell even playing events at 5700 you are going to see the 375 hole. 525 par 5s.  Good luck on those 185 par 3s hitting it 200. 

 

Distance isnt as important in the girls game but saying you only need 200 there is no truth to that at all 

Edited May 29 by darter79

[darter79]

On 5/27/2024 at 7:11 AM, Golfquant said:

played with a girl who was hitting it 210-220yds off the tee; wasn't sure whether that was pretty typical for avg to above avg tournament players that age

I would say that is what above avg tournament players would have at 12. My daughter is 13 so I know quite a few. A year ago they were at that or longer. 

[jayslaysongolf]

On 5/29/2024 at 10:40 AM, darter79 said:

this is about as far from truth of anything I've read on here. If you are only hitting driver 200 means you probably only carry it 185. Playing 6000 with 400 yard par 4s or even 380 par 4s. Yeah you need a lot more in the tank than a 200 yard driver. Hell even playing events at 5700 you are going to see the 375 hole. 525 par 5s.  Good luck on those 185 par 3s hitting it 200. 

 

Distance isnt as important in the girls game but saying you only need 200 there is no truth to that at all 

 

12-13 year girls usually play around 5500 yards or less 200 yards is plenty to play at that length.

 

 

Once they get older you need about 230 yards.

[darter79]

2 hours ago, jayslaysongolf said:

 

12-13 year girls usually play around 5500 yards or less 200 yards is plenty to play at that length.

 

 

Once they get older you need about 230 yards.

yeah not remotely true. Most girls are reported as 13-18 or even 11-18 they play one set of boxes. Unless you are playing HJGT.  Shortest yardage I've seen is 5600 with most closer to 5800+ and bigger events at 6000. 

[MB19]

47 minutes ago, darter79 said:

yeah not remotely true. Most girls are reported as 13-18 or even 11-18 they play one set of boxes. Unless you are playing HJGT.  Shortest yardage I've seen is 5600 with most closer to 5800+ and bigger events at 6000. 

The recent USKG Girls Invitational at Osprey Point, 12yo girls played 5163 and 13-18 played 5539.  I do realize this is short compared to, say, an AJGA junior qualifier, but for the 12yo it was about 800yd more than the USKG local series in the area. 

 

It's funny, we were eating breakfast next to a girl who just aged into the 13-18 division and we could hear her complaining to her father that it wasn't fair that she had to play in a field with a girl who could drive 300.  Whether or not there was such a girl in that field remains to be seen, but it's just a fact of life that as younger juniors enter tournaments with older kids there will be large gaps in physical and social development.

 

At a birthday bash recently, I met a couple from VA whose son competed in AJGA years back.  They had a "life isn't always fair" talk with their then-13yo son after his first AJGA, when he was paired with a kid who drove himself to the event in a muscle car and had a beard.  Their 13yo was outdriven by 50 yd every hole, but hung in there with his play around the greens.

 

There are definitely 12/13 yo kids out there who can hang with most any upper teen in length, but the mortal 12/13 yo kids are definitely in for a rude awakening once they see how long better and older juniors can be in better tournaments.

[Golfquant]

On 5/30/2024 at 2:42 PM, darter79 said:

yeah not remotely true. Most girls are reported as 13-18 or even 11-18 they play one set of boxes. Unless you are playing HJGT.  Shortest yardage I've seen is 5600 with most closer to 5800+ and bigger events at 6000. 

just curious - how many events for 12yo girls are 6000+?  this seems very long and not representative of distances for even top 5% of golfers

 

even the AJGA Junior AS (12-15yo) and IMG Junior Worlds (11-12yo) are around 5600-5700

Edited June 1 by Golfquant

[darter79]

On 6/1/2024 at 6:36 AM, Golfquant said:

just curious - how many events for 12yo girls are 6000+?  this seems very long and not representative of distances for even top 5% of golfers

 

even the AJGA Junior AS (12-15yo) and IMG Junior Worlds (11-12yo) are around 5600-5700

 Most tours are 11-18 in some cases 13-18. AJGA all stars are 5700 range. How many are 6000 depends on your location. Not saying 6000 is the norm but 5000 isn't either. And I wouldn't use IMG as a reference for yardage. Look up local tours in your area most in the girls division are going to be 57-5900. If you happen to be in an area that offers younger and different yardages that a good learning curve there but most don't because girls fields are just flat out smaller so they combine everything for rankings. So 11-18 or whatever the age cut off is play the same tee box. 

[Esage]

My daughter is 11 and plays competitively. She averages 185 carry with driver, can occasional get one out 200 yards with roll. I would say that on the tours she plays, her yardage with driver is on par with most of the top girls in the 9-11 age bracket.

[MB19]

2 hours ago, Esage said:

My daughter is 11 and plays competitively. She averages 185 carry with driver, can occasional get one out 200 yards with roll. I would say that on the tours she plays, her yardage with driver is on par with most of the top girls in the 9-11 age bracket.

Objectively, she's about where she needs to be at 11.

 

Big speed jumps happen 12/13 it seems, pending puberty.

[MB19]

On 6/1/2024 at 7:36 AM, Golfquant said:

just curious - how many events for 12yo girls are 6000+?  this seems very long and not representative of distances for even top 5% of golfers

 

even the AJGA Junior AS (12-15yo) and IMG Junior Worlds (11-12yo) are around 5600-5700

One of the top 13 yo girls here in FL racked up 68 points in the drive portion of DCP yesterday.

 

Two drives in the 280-290 range, one in the 270-280 range.

 

There is a solid chance she is the longest 13 yo girl in the United States right now, but There are a few this age in TX alone who are 250-260, and likewise 3-4 in FL who are also that long.  My kids' pro teaches a top Canadian girl he says is also 260+, and she's still 12.  How many are in CA, VA, AZ and GA?

 

The longer yardage tournaments that pool in the 12-18yo together, they certainly don't have the kids who roll it out to 200 in mind.  

[Bizzle80]

My daughter is 11y and is still so small (4'7") so starting to fall behind in distance, but I am trying not to stress as I think once the growth spurt happens it will hopefully level out (I am 6'2" so assuming she will grow?). She swings fast and hits these beautiful tight draws still carrying 160 and TM lowered her loft to reduce spin plus she is getting a ton of roll here on firm/fast courses in Calif but I was talking to a dad in FL whose daughter same age is carrying 230+

 

Definitely some events this summer including Notah Begay, IMG and USK Worlds that I think will run long for her tho...

 

 

[MB19]

2 hours ago, Bizzle80 said:

My daughter is 11y and is still so small (4'7") so starting to fall behind in distance, but I am trying not to stress as I think once the growth spurt happens it will hopefully level out (I am 6'2" so assuming she will grow?). She swings fast and hits these beautiful tight draws still carrying 160 and TM lowered her loft to reduce spin plus she is getting a ton of roll here on firm/fast courses in Calif but I was talking to a dad in FL whose daughter same age is carrying 230+

 

Definitely some events this summer including Notah Begay, IMG and USK Worlds that I think will run long for her tho...

 

 

Carrying 230+? 

 

Not even the 13yo girl who just got a 68 in the drive portion of DCP carried 230+ regularly at 11 and she was already like 66" by then.

[MRx747]

4 hours ago, MB19 said:

Carrying 230+? 

 

Not even the 13yo girl who just got a 68 in the drive portion of DCP carried 230+ regularly at 11 and she was already like 66" by then.

I saw this girl who is 13 I believe from some Asia country carrying over 240-250 yards easily, but she was huge. Her dad said back in their home country, his daughter play with the Pros and out drivers most of them already. 

[MB19]

18 minutes ago, MRx747 said:

I saw this girl who is 13 I believe from some Asia country carrying over 240-250 yards easily, but she was huge. Her dad said back in their home country, his daughter play with the Pros and out drivers most of them already. 

13?  Sure, there is at least one forum member here whose daughter that age can carry 240—I’ve see the quad numbers.  The girl from Palm Beach rolling three out 280ish at DCP and the aforementioned girl are both 6’ with golf shoes.  These girls definitely exist.

 

But carrying 230+ at 11yo?  Did AC in GA even do that?

[jayslaysongolf]

9 hours ago, MB19 said:

13?  Sure, there is at least one forum member here whose daughter that age can carry 240—I’ve see the quad numbers.  The girl from Palm Beach rolling three out 280ish at DCP and the aforementioned girl are both 6’ with golf shoes.  These girls definitely exist.

 

But carrying 230+ at 11yo?  Did AC in GA even do that?

 

Driver distance for girls is like guys talking about the size of fish someone caught last weekend.

 

The total distance you see can be affected by so many conditions.  Go play on hard fast fairways that are like cement and you will see a bunch of  7 year olds drive 300 yards.

 

What is important is the average drive and the distance of their long irons.   Everyone talks about the outliers not the average drive off the tee which is almost certainly way less then what you hear.

 

most girls top out around 220 and they peak at about 13 and some even lose distance. very very few can carry it past 250.

 

The LPGA driving distance is way above average not the norm.  Most women can’t even drive 200 yards.

Edited June 6 by jayslaysongolf

[LawGenius305]

Dad's often exaggerate numbers. It is more frequent with girl's golf than boy's for whatever reason. Launch monitors can throw out bad results and have to recognize when they do then throw them out.