Hey guys,

[Stu]

Handicap=Distance??

Aloha.

I'm a fairly new golfer of about 2 years. I just started getting serious about getting better. I dont have a USGA handicap but I can consistently shoot mid 80s from the white tees. Not so good compared to alot of you. The only thing that saves me is my short game.

I was curious if any of you really low handicap guys dont hit the ball so far. I am 5'11" 185 lbs and on a good day I can put it out there about 265 with a driver. From what I have been reading on here most of you hit it 285+.

I know Corey Pavin made a living at around 280 or so, but I feel really insecure when I get put in a group that blasts it 30+ yards by me.

Any good tips?

Mahalo, Stu.

[nick01]

think of it this way u get to go firsy hit it close and put the pressure on them

[pitbull808]

Stu...playing in Hawaii...there are not many courses where you can roll a ball 260+. Most of the courses we have don't have the fairway conditions you might find on the mainland courses. Conditions being firmer fairways, grass types, and weather even during the summer months, the humidity has an effect on the ball.

 

If anything, you might be able to get a good roll on a few of the Ewa courses but anything on the Kaneohe/Kailua side, it's going to be too soft.

 

By the way..come check us out in the Hawaii Room. :)

[AcesAZ]

Hit it straight. The best player at my club is a +4 and I am consistantly 20-30 yards longer than him, but man he hardly ever misses a fairway and is deadly with his woods into par 5's. Oh and he is a great putter too. I need to go practice some more. :)

[Hungsolo]

amen brother. hit first, knock it close, and watch those "bombers" sweat their second shots.

 

plus, I don't think Corey Pavin ever got 280 regularly. I'd guess his average was around 260.

[Stu]

Corey only did 260 huh? Makes me feel a little better.

 

 

Thanks for the replies guys. I've always been curious if I was just one of those guys that no matter how good I get I just cant hit it far. It doesnt upset me that I dont it just confuses me.

 

I played with a guy in N.C. that was 20 yrs older than me and hit it about 20 yds in front of me. Talk about a ego slapper.

[Golfchicago]

Corey only did 260 huh? Makes me feel a little better.

 

 

Thanks for the replies guys. I've always been curious if I was just one of those guys that no matter how good I get I just cant hit it far. It doesnt upset me that I dont it just confuses me.

 

I played with a guy in N.C. that was 20 yrs older than me and hit it about 20 yds in front of me. Talk about a ego slapper.

Yeah I know for a fact Corey is only about 265 of the tee. A buddy of mine plays with Corey at Olympia when he is in town. He is about 260 to 265 off the tee.

Here is the key word....scoring. The emphasis should be on the short game not distance. Our egos always have us concerned about our long game that we need to put our energies into practicing getting the ball into the hole. Good luck!

[choeppner]

I think it can all be summed up by the old saying:

 

"DRIVER FOR SHOW PUTT FOR DOUGH'

 

I used to just wail it off the tee trying to get it out as far as I could. Now though, I back it down. I've found that I am more consistant when I tone it down and put it 270-280 down the middle. Now, it's not abnormal to see me hitting a rescue off the tee. My partners will be there bombing drivers, but at least I know where my ball will end up and that I know which shot to hit from there. It all boils down to course management.

 

-CHRIS-

[larrybud]

I was curious if any of you really low handicap guys dont hit the ball so far. I am 5'11" 185 lbs and on a good day I can put it out there about 265 with a driver. From what I have been reading on here most of you hit it 285+.

 

I know Corey Pavin made a living at around 280 or so, but I feel really insecure when I get put in a group that blasts it 30+ yards by me.

 

Any good tips?

 

The first tip is don't believe everything you read. Most people WAY over-estimate the distance they hit the golf ball. They remember that 1 out of 50 shot they make and think they do it that way all the time. There's a reason most hazards are put in FRONT of the green and not behind it!

 

I'm a 4 index, and on AVERAGE I hit drives that 243. I keep detailed stats and use a laser range finder to measure, so I know it's accurate. Sure, I can pound one out there occasionally that goes 270 or 280, but the crap drive that goes 220 puts that average in line quickly.

[pengster1970]

Exactly - another 4 handicap here, and I know my average carry is 240-250 (I know this from using my trusty bushnell). How much additional roll I get typically depends on the course conditions.

 

Granted this board has a lot of advanced golfers who can pound it >270, but that's getting towards the higher end of the spectrum. All I know is I have never felt like a short hitter with the many golfers I play with. Furthermore, no one really cares about how long you hit it (most people tend to be self absorbed about their own distances for whatever reason).

 

My advice is to keep it in play off the tee, and work on your short game.

[cdesana]

Hello,

 

The good news about a score card is there is no room on it for a picture, only the score made on the hole. As far as Pavin goes, he made a living for years hitting it far less than 280. In fact I think he was the shortest on tour a couple years in the 255 range.

 

Not to mention its how you use your distance, the trees are full of long hitters. But if you are more accurate with a faiway metal / hybrid or long iron and use those on the shorter par 4's, the fairway will typically allow for more chances for birdie.

 

CJD

[larrybud]

All I know is I have never felt like a short hitter with the many golfers I play with. Furthermore, no one really cares about how long you hit it (most people tend to be self absorbed about their own distances for whatever reason).

 

Right. I used to play golf with this guy that would "brag" about how far he hits his irons. Of course, they were delofted 10 degrees at impact and he would swing out of his shoes. So once in a while he could pound a sand wedge 136 yards on this little par 3 we'd play on the league. I'd hit a regular 9 iron.

[Stu]

Good stuff guys.

 

I'm going to watch Tiger and the others at Poipu Bay in November so I guess I'll see what real distance is.

[smithg1053]

When I was much younger, I remember distinctly going out to play one Saturday morning as a single to a muni course in Austin, Texas where I lived at the time. I was put into a 3-some that was comprised of guys who appeared to me to be in their 60's+. Being much younger at the time, I bombed my drives, and not always straight, but generally kept it in play. I was smiling inwardly as I consistently put it by these 3 guys sometimes more than 100 yards. One guy had a good drive if he hit it 180 off the tee. Funny thing was I came out with the high score that day. These guys were not long...but they were dead down the middle of the fairway, and had DEADLY short games and were VERY good putters. They had little or no trouble making par on most every hole.

 

I can still hit a fairly long ball...for me an average drive is probably in the area of 275 yards, and if I am really going after one, I might get it out to 300 with rollout on a nice fairway. Certainly being able to be 270+ off the tee is nice, but not necessary. Some of the courses I play I might hit driver on 6 holes out of 18, and others more frequently. One hole on a course I frequent comes to mind that is 420 yards, but hitting driver, at least for me, puts me at risk as the fairway narrows considerably, and there are bunkers left and right in the landing area. I take a 3 wood or hybrid off the tee and take the bunkers out of play. It leaves me with a longer 2nd, but I play my irons well and know I am going to be on the green, and even if I am not, I have a good enough short game to know I am going to put it close enough to have a realistic chance to one putt the hole.

 

The real key is setting yourself up for the shot to the green, and then the execution of that shot. If you are a "so-so" driver as far as length is concerned however can keep it in the fairway, have a good solid iron game, good short game, and are a very good putter, you are going to score low. On the other hand, if you someone who hits it a mile and cannot hit your irons consistently, does not have a sound short game and are an average putter...well my money is on the first guy. Needless to say to hit the ball 300 yards and find it in the rough or the woods 50% of the time doesn't pose any advantages as far as I can see.

 

It has been said over and over on many of these and other boards, but it never ceases to amaze me when I am at the range to practice, how many people get a large bucket of balls and are pounding away with the driver and nothing else (and if they do happen to pull a wedge out, they try and swing it as fast as their driver!)...and then they leave. I will spend more time hitting shots with my 5 iron through my wedges than I will ever hit with my long irons and woods. And then I go to the practice bunker and putting green and many times spend more time there than I did on the range!

 

Personally for me, nothing will raise my frustration level on the golf course...except a 3-putt hole. THAT is upsetting to me! I know I am going to hit shots that don't happen as I intended...that is part of the game and we practice to minimize those, and to be able to recover from them. But to 3 putt? It only sends me back to the practice green next time to work harder. I have gotten to the point where I can depend on the fact that while a 3 putt hole for me is not impossible, it happens maybe once every 2 rounds of golf. I can't tell you how many strokes that simply being able to 2 putt every hole will save you.

 

You can get on a weight program, perhaps look at getting a driver fitted for your swing, a lesson or two and work towards hitting the ball longer off the tee, and don't get me wrong...being able to "put it out there" is nice. But putting it out there and not being able to follow-up won't improve your scores. Get your iron game rock solid, be able to hit your wedges from 100 yards in to within 20 feet of the pin consistently, be able to chip the ball within 3 feet of the hole 90% of the time, and become a VERY good putter first. If you feel like you need the ability to hit the ball 280 yards after that...go for it.

 

Just to put some perspective on it other than mine, I remember reading one of the golf magazines where they asked 4 PGA tour pros different questions. In one such article the question asked was "If you could steal any part of any player's game, what would it be?" 3 of the 4 tour pros said "Tiger Woods short game, including putting."

[rickiegolfer]

i have a friend that is a 3 handicap and he only hits it about 215-220 on average

[rustyputterguy]

ABSOLUTELY. I'm pretty damn sure the actual average here isn't anywhere close to 285+ ... in fact, on the Pro Tour, only the top 20 (in driving distance stats) have an average over 300. The top 88 have an average 290 or above. In other words, there's 112 players (in the 200 that are ranked) that hit in the 280's or below. The median point of the PGA Tour is 288. We do have some very commited amateurs on this board - but we certainly are not the Tour.

 

I volunteered for the US Am this last summer, marshalling, and one of the first things the USGA official said in a pre-tournament meeting was that these guys will hit it further than the pros you see. I'm sure there were doubters in the crowd when he said that, but they did hit it further. The PGA Championship was held at the same course a few years ago and by comparison the US Am guys hit it further. The eventual champion, Richie Ramsey, wasn't one of the real bombers, but always seemed in control. I'm just mentioning this because the thing to remember is all PGA pro's aren't out there trying to hit it a mile... it's fairways and greens, fairways and greens. The bombers and gougers are different of course, but that's not the majority of PGA pros. I'd bet most amateurs posting what seems like ridiculously high driving distances and swing speeds on here are posting their high end numbers and not their averages. They're not as in control as a PGA pro, and the PGA isn't the ultimate measuring stick on how far an amateur can hit it.

 

If you've only been playing a couple of years, additional distance is going to come. You're going to gain more by consistantly hitting the ball in the sweet spot than going out and trying to rip it. Like everyone is saying, get the short game down, then just work, with a swing coach, on getting so you hit the ball solidly on the majority of your shots.

[dlygrisse]

Look at it this way, if you 3 putt or fail to get up and down after hitting a 300 yard drive it costs you a stroke. If you Hit is 230 and in the fairway but knock it on the green and 2 putt form 40 feet it you make a par. Look what Tiger did in the British, he hit irons and fairway woods off the tee and killed everyone.