Pro Distances

[Region3]

Over the last couple of days I've been flitting around Youtube and have found it interesting watching the players themselves talking about their game, and I've heard a couple of them mention their club yardages.

Frankly I was surprised... they are human after all.

Els - PW - 134
Woods - 8i - 158
Woods - 4i - 212

I just thought it was interesting, and no, I don't stand at level crossings with a camera

 

[kid2]

Saw these too Region and it amused me..... There very normal....Probably bordering on what most Joe Averages hit....

 

[MizunoGreyhound]

Agree with that for irons, but it`s with the big sticks that the pros hit it so much further.

Also, some of the pros are able to hit obscene distances with their irons according to tv commentary. I wonder if it is factually accurate or whether the lofts the pros use are so much stronger?

 

[doubletripledouble]

But you've got to remember that 'most' golf you see on TV is at places where the temperature is a little bit hotter than here equating to the ball going further.
Drivers the pro's use also are a lower degree than ours in general.

But the pro's do hit it a good bit further than us because of swing speed. Villegas plays 7.5 in his irons.

 

[Region3]

The pro's can swing much harder than they do, but what's the point? They'd much rather hit a 7 iron 170 +/- 3yds than a 9 iron 170 +/- 8yds.
It's only some of us idiots with ego's that want to swing within 5% of flat out every time

I wouldn't say they were average Joe's yardages, but certainly not as far as I'd imagined.
Mind you, with some of the driver distances quoted on here I could be very wrong.

 

[Tiger]

This is interesting as I've decided to go to the range today and hit smoother shots with my 3 - 7 iron until my accuracy and consistency improves and take note of the new approximate distances I'm hitting and use those on course.

Now I can hit my 3 wood better my iron play is less about distance off the tee and more about positioning so I'm hoping that by dialing down the power I'll get more accuracy. I found it difficult before because I was trying to take the skin off the ball on the tee to keep up with everyone else.

I'll let you know how I get on on the course Saturday evening.

 

[chrisd]

They'd much rather hit a 7 iron 170 +/- 3yds than a 9 iron 170 +/- 8yds.

Thats quite right, I remember when Tiger Woods first appeared on the scene he was hitting a p/w about 170yds but realised three things, firstly he was not very accurate as he was swinging out of control,secondly, he didn't have clubs that would do the "normal" short club distances and, thirdly his back would be wrecked before he was 25.



Chris

 

[HomerJSimpson]

The point is they have the power to muscle an 8 iron 170+ if they need to. Also, they have optimum fit in everything so these "average" distances are probably acheived at no more than 80% effort where you and I swinging flat out to get close to these.

The only way hit 150 yard 8 irons is if I thin it and it bounces down the cart path

 

[Oddsocks]

Like stated above I've noticed one more club and a three quarter swing it much better for consistency and accuracy. It's trying to keep the mentality. That a 6i 3/4 hit is the right thing when every one on the tee is holding a 7i or 8i

 

[HawkeyeMS]

Very true homer. Watch the pro's on tv hitting short to mid irons, watch the length of their swings and see how often they get the club anywhere close to parallel at the top. The longer you make your swing, the more room there is for error. To hit an 8i 160 yards which is what I've been doing in warm weather I have to put a full turn on it. The pro boys are doing that with a 3/4 swing.

 

[chrisd]

I had a 9 hole practice on Wednesday evening and because I felt that I was starting to hit the ball too hard and was becoming erratic, I swung much slower, nice rhythm back and through. I hit loads more greens in regulation and didn't need and extra club - so it definitely makes sense


Chris

 

[Oddsocks]

chris, its funny you say that. when i was having lessons last year my pro run a couple of tests with me with a wedge (normal pitch)

full swing massacre style - 110-115 yards (irratic flight and contact)

3/4 swing punch shot style - 115-120 yards (clean crisp contact with constant flight pattern and pitching area.

the think is at 6.2 with a solid build i dont need this maacre swing, my pro was under the same understanding as you. the longer the back swing the bigger room for error, so ideally my backswing should be about 6 inchs long,

Just wish i could get this shorter punchy swing working on my 4i & 5i

 

[Adrena1in]

I seem to have noticed this a bit more of late. Not long ago the commentator would be saying, "172 yard par 3, blah-de-blah is going with a 7I", and I would be thinking, 'WOW!'. Nowadays the distances do seem a bit more akin to us mere mortals.

What the pros can say for sure is that 19 times out of 20 they will get within a few yards of those distances. If I hit 20 shots with my 7I, the furthest might be about 170, the shortest about 120, and there'll be a 50 yard side-to-side spread amoung them too.

 

[Robobum]

"Ben Hogan was once playing in a pro-am where one of his partners asked him all day what club he was using. Finally, on the eighteenth hole, a long par 3, after hitting his regulation shot, Hogan proceeded to put a ball on the green with every club in his bag. He looked at his astonished amateur partner and told him that it didn't matter what club he used, but rather what the shot had to be in order to make club selection."

 

[Hendy]

"Ben Hogan was once playing in a pro-am where one of his partners asked him all day what club he was using. Finally, on the eighteenth hole, a long par 3, after hitting his regulation shot, Hogan proceeded to put a ball on the green with every club in his bag. He looked at his astonished amateur partner and told him that it didn't matter what club he used, but rather what the shot had to be in order to make club selection."

Thats a good statment there... and does make good sense

 

[USER1999]

I was watching a bit of the Codgers stuff at Carnoustie, and they were showing Langer (he of the I hit my 7i 153 yards exactly), and he was 210 from the pin. What did he hit? 7 iron.

They still knock it out there.

 

[Oddsocks]

"Ben Hogan was once playing in a pro-am where one of his partners asked him all day what club he was using. Finally, on the eighteenth hole, a long par 3, after hitting his regulation shot, Hogan proceeded to put a ball on the green with every club in his bag. He looked at his astonished amateur partner and told him that it didn't matter what club he used, but rather what the shot had to be in order to make club selection."

alot of amatures also close the face alot on their irons which gives fake distances as it were. 2 players spring to mind who hit wedges between p/w 140-150 but their flight is so low, get them at 70 yards and their screwed as they havent got a clue what to hit.

Both players now purposely play short on alot of par 4's just so they can hit a full wedge from 130+ i love it when we're on par 4 about 350-370, a 280 yard drive screws their head and almost certainly delivers them a double bogey.

 

[Screwback]

When the pros say they hit a club X amount of yards thats how far they carry it not how far it ends up when its landed 50 short and ran up like amatuers ball striking...

 

[JustOne]

alot of amatures also close the face alot on their irons which gives fake distances as it were. 2 players spring to mind who hit wedges between p/w 140-150 but their flight is so low, get them at 70 yards and their screwed as they havent got a clue what to hit.

I'd say it was exactly the opposite. The pro's deloft the clubface as the left wrist bows, however amateurs tend to unhinge the wrists on the downswing - adding loft.

70yds is a low flighted, punched 60° wedge loaded with spin

 

[chrisd]

I read an interesting story a little while back about a golfer who was doing a charity golf thing where he was playing something like 6 consecutive rounds in a day. He was a low h/capper and they recorded properly each round to make sure that, as time went on, he didnt just chip and charge round as he got tired.

One of the interesting things that came out was that, where we would guess that his scores would go up markedly as he tired, in fact, the opposite happened. As he tired his swing slowed and his last rounds were his best ones - proving that a slower, easier, more rhythmic swing will generally improve most golf swings.


Chris