"A wedge from 155 yards"

The one hole i dont like there is that silly downhill par 5. However could you hit your drive you cant get on in two. Even if you hit a perfect lay up you still have a great big bloody tree to contend with!

I used to play off 4 and have taken the game up again after 20 years. I am hacking round in the mid to high 80's playing with borrowed clubs, that have stiff shafts. I can barely hit my hat with them due to back problems (that caused me to give up originally). I haven't kept up with modern technology (never hit metal woods before), but I think I will need to change my clubs if I want to improve a little.

Mr.Angry     18 Aug 13 22:14 
Where did you get that 26 celcius figure from?

Got the figure from a nike tour rep. Have heard it from others as well. I suspect there will be some variation depending on where you play.

I don't doubt that a good big hitting amateur could  hit their best drive longer than lots of pros.

No offence intended ronsk. Maybe there is a bit of confusion over your average and longest drives. I just find it hard to believe that a good handicapper who by their own admission tries to hit long drives all the time can find an extra 40 yards on some shots.An extra 40 yards through the air is a lot. Roughly 1 in 5 shots going 315 through the air when most of their other shots are going 275 which is pretty impressive in itself. Lets say you were measuring the longest drives of pros who were hitting it as hard as they could. I doubt they could find an extra 40 yards in 1 in 5 of their shots.

If someone says they can hit it 315 through the air ( 1 in 5 times ) the assumption is that they mean in completely neutral conditions with no wind and on flat fairways. For a bit of fun I would happily lay you evens you cant. You could have as many shots as you wanted but the terms would be you have to hit 20% of drives 315 yards or more.

315 through the air is massive.

No one on the PGA Tour is doing that. In fact Luke List is the longest at an average of 306. Bare in mind that distance will include some run and is being hit at temperatures much higher than in the UK.

Mr Eboue     18 Aug 13 22:41 
The one hole i dont like there is that silly downhill par 5. However could you hit your drive you cant get on in two. Even if you hit a perfect lay up you still have a great big bloody tree to contend with!

---------------------------------

Sounds like the 11th. It's a very poorly designed hole, but there are a few at Heythrop. We walked the course as neither of us are fans of 'buggie golf' and it's a very tough walk. However, whilst walking, you do get a real feel for the way the layout has been thought through, and in my view, they could have done a much better job with the such a huge property.

Front nine is way better than the back, in my view.

paddletoe     Joined: 24 Jul 07
Replies: 4111 19 Aug 13 14:04 
I don't doubt that a good big hitting amateur could  hit their best drive longer than lots of pros.

No offence intended ronsk. Maybe there is a bit of confusion over your average and longest drives. I just find it hard to believe that a good handicapper who by their own admission tries to hit long drives all the time can find an extra 40 yards on some shots.An extra 40 yards through the air is a lot. Roughly 1 in 5 shots going 315 through the air when most of their other shots are going 275 which is pretty impressive in itself. Lets say you were measuring the longest drives of pros who were hitting it as hard as they could. I doubt they could find an extra 40 yards in 1 in 5 of their shots.

If someone says they can hit it 315 through the air ( 1 in 5 times ) the assumption is that they mean in completely neutral conditions with no wind and on flat fairways. For a bit of fun I would happily lay you evens you cant. You could have as many shots as you wanted but the terms would be you have to hit 20% of drives 315 yards or more.

------------------------------------------------

No idea where you're based, fella. If you want to play 18 with me sometime you're more than welcome!

Mighty Whites 2008     19 Aug 13 14:54 
315 through the air is massive.

No one on the PGA Tour is doing that. In fact Luke List is the longest at an average of 306. Bare in mind that distance will include some run and is being hit at temperatures much higher than in the UK.

--------------------------------------

How many times??!! I'm not talking AVERAGES!!!!

Do you really believe that PGA Tour pro's aren't hitting the ball 315 through the air with some of their drives???

Bit of carry info to add to the debate.

http://www.pgatour.com/stats/stat.02409.html

according to hans link around 30 pga pros have a longest carry of 315 or more.

It doesn't say how many of those are at altitude though.

If you are carrying it 315 20% of the time - 2 or 3 times a round then that is impressive especially in England.

What percentage of your 315 yard drives go straight?

interesting stat for those who were saying earlier that Tiger can't hit it as far as the other guys.

4th in average carry and 4th in longest carry.

First of all this figure of 20% is utter nonsense! I said that on average I hit one or two big drives per round. Taking yesterday's round as an example, I hit driver 13 times. I nailed two. By my calculations that is less than this phantom 20% figure.

A large percentage of my longer drives go very straight. When I drive the ball well I hit it straight. When I'm struggling I hit a cut and occasionally hit the double-cross hook.

I think the point is that roughly 50% of the PGA pros havn't hit a 300 yrd carry all season.

Exactly what does that prove, please?

I'll take the all season back.

And replace it with the 1000's of drives that have been measured.

2 from 13 is 15%. An outstanding feat on mild summers day. Put in context only 30 tour pros have managed the feat once or more this year including their trips to altitude destinations.

If you hit it long and straight then how you are off 8 is beyond me.

You need to have a word with lfc. He believes long straight driving is the key to the game and anyone who can master it will be top of the world.

Doesn't prove anything.

Apart from 50% of the best golfers in the world would struggle to carry it 300yrds.

I hit it long and straight approximately 15% of the time. The clue is there for anyone with half a brain!

not struggle hans, can't or at least haven't managed to in the last 8months.

Lies, damn lies & statistics, Super Hans!

At first glimpse I see Jeff Overton, a renowned short hitter, with a carry yardage of 317 yards.

It's all yawn inducing stuff, sadly!

ronsk if you are bombing it off the tee the lengths you state i find it hard to work out how you are of 8. Even your shorter drives are going to leave you with a wedge or high iron into most greens. Most par 5s are going to be in reach in two as well.

Overton is one of the biggest hitters on tour

It's a pointless debate unless you make the effort to see it for yourself, isn't it?

Mighty Whites 2008     19 Aug 13 16:21 
Overton is one of the biggest hitters on tour

--------------------

What??

Last three years... 58th, 68th & 55th in driving distance on Tour.

just looking at his stats he has fallen down the driving distance charts last few years still hits it a decent distance but certainly no longer long.

The driving distance stat can be misleading as it is measured on a particular hole and some may sometimes hit woods, hybrids or irons. This certainly affects Tiger

top 26 06 -08. 18th 2010.

He is hitting an average ten yards less now than 5 years ago which suggests more 3 woods and less drivers

The guys on Tour are hitting the ball huge distances these days. I would suggest the "biggest hitters" (your words) are in the top 10 or 15 in the rankings. Just my opinion!

I thought the distance stat was measured on two holes. One into the wind and one downwind.

the distance they are hitting it is clear to see including carry.

There are around 30 pros who have hit a 315 yard carry including at altitude where it can go 10% further.

I though Overton was longer than the stats suggest he is. That said he has had seasons where he has hit it around 300 yards on average which i class as a big hit.

It's not a witch hunt Ronsk.

Just throwing a few stats in to add to an interesting debate.

You may be one of the longest hitting amateurs in the country. But being a punter, i'm sure you would also treat the claim with a healthy scepticism.

yes think it might be two. There is no guarantee a driver is used though.

I certainly would Super Hans, but as I say, It's a pointless debate unless someone is prepared to take a look!

I'll send Norris McWhirter down.

Gl.

He must be dead by now, surely??

10 years dead.

Got hit on the head by a tee shot on a short par 4.

Shame! I'd have carried it way over his head!!

My 20% figure was an estimate based on you using the driver no more than 10 times from the tee box during a round. I did not include the times you may have used the driver off the deck during a round but we can adjust the percentages if you would rather hit your ball off the ground without a tee.

I don't hit driver off the deck. As I said in a previous post, It's not a shot I can play.

It would not be impossible, but based on how far the biggest hitting pros can hit the driver in much more favourable air conditions in american and some other places a 315 carry twice per round in british conditions is going some. Don't doubt your a good golfer and a big hitter but come on your exaggerating a wee bit here!

Read every post I have made. It may help you understand that I don't!

Ronsk I hope you are reading my posts in the same light hearted spirit I am writing them. If you can hit the ball as far as you say that's phenomenal. Just trying to add some context to show how unusual it would be for an amateur to be able to hit the ball that long.

Not likely to need a driver off the deck with 315 yard carries off the tee

What I find strange is that people are so amazed! I play golf with a few big hitters, and whilst most are very similar to me in as much as they manage it relatively rarely, each of them is capable of hitting it out there 300+ on the fly.

Last year I came across a 22 year old lad (played off 6), in the National Matchplay Championship, who hit it 300+ with greater regularity than I do. He had been playing from the age of 13 and had never got lower than 5. His long game was excellent, yet his wedge game was that of a double figure handicapper. I asked him why he felt he couldn't perform with his wedges, as he obviously had plenty of practice with them. His answer? 'Don't know, never really thought about it'... This is the sort of stuff that amazes me, not a claim that someone can smash the occasional driver!

The sceptic in me would say even a fairly long hitter who might be able to get a ball to fly close to 300 could NEVER hit it 315 if we are talking about driving distance in COMPLETELY NEUTRAL conditions. Unless your getting some help with he conditions I don't see how you can find that extra distance which is a lot when your talking about already hitting it close to 300. Maybe I am wrong but that's my view. Lots of factors in golf can fool someone into thinking they are hitting it longer than they are. That's a more plausible explaination of finding that extra distance.

There was a guy on here a few years back who entered long driving competitions, those guys hit it a long long way

Very little bearing on handicap or ability

...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Long_drive

Read that link Donny but its very unclear. On the one hand it starts by using a baseline of how far pga pros hit the ball and its cleat they are talking about distance through the air. On the other hand at the end of the article when referring to long hitting records they are talking about ways to get the ball to roll faster when it hits the ground. Is the world record really 500 yards plus through the air which the article seems to initially suggest?

I don't know, there are links at the bottom if you can be bothered that might make it clearer, but I doubt it's all carry

The guy who was on hear was hitting it outrageous distances, I wish I could bring the thread back for you

Ronsk does not have live in cloud cuckoo land!!!!

..

https://www.hititlonger.com/index.php?/blog/article/ryan-winther-breaks-world-record-for-carry-distance/

Wonder how far the same shot would have went in British conditions in Novemeber and played from on a non elevated tee.

Apologies if someone has already made this point as I have not read every post on this thread.  The Stats for long driving on the Tours are calculated by selecting 2 holes (par 4s or 5s) one as directly in to the wind as poss and one directly with the wind as poss) taking the carry distance of both and averaging it.  So a Colsearts figure of 306 might equate to c. 350 carry with the wind and c. 250 carry into the wind.  That is pretty crucial when everyone is talking about how far they hit it when it is probably not often in tot he teeth of a wind.  Many will be talking when it was a nice following wind.  The sweet spot is the biggest nightmare for me - don't know when it's coming (once or twice a round) and 25 yds through the green........

Yes, think that point was mentioned inside but probably not as clearly as you made it. With those stats for the pros you would also need to factor in that on some holes players might not take out driver and give it the full treatment. I would imagine most of the pros maximum carry distance would be greater than their stats if they were giving their driver the full treatment in the way ronsk does and not having to worry about making the cut!. Nothing personal against Ronsk by the way. Against that however, ball carry will be longer in most American conditions than in the England.

But for the purpose of this debate I think its been established that if someone says they can hit a ball a certain distance its a meaningless statement unless they are talking about being able to do so in completely neutral conditions. No wind and no elevation on fairway. Otherwise you could just chose a downhill hole with a big wind behind you.

Can Ronsk really carry the ball 315 in those neutral conditions in England. It is possible but I would bet against it all day long.

No way can you carry it in the air over 300 yards in calm english conditions.

When you get a tough summers day in Scotland the pros are lucky to to fly it 240.

A 300 yard carry is huge.  Your ball must be in the air for ever before it drops.

I could only carry it 300 in a 30 mile an hour helping wind.

I have drove 350 yard greens, but that was in a gale on a brick hard fairway.

Ronsk, get a mate to film 15 drives and post it on you tube.

I will give you a grand if any of them fly 300 yards in the air.

I can't, so no one can.

FFS, the long-drive champions have a clubhead speed of 150mhp.  Most tour pros are about 110mph, big hitters 120mph+.

In August, 1913, playing on the Old Course at Herne Bay, England, a 182-lb. Englishman, Edward Bliss--aged 50 and with a 12 handicap--hit the longest drive in golf history: 445 yards


I know- its been bettered since- but still.....

Mr Bliss starred in a carry on film.

Carry on Loving. 


http://youtu.be/dvwX8ACSq08

ronsk

I am happy to meet you at any club in the UK and offer you 10/1 (max bet £100) that you cannot pitch a ball 315+ yards with 50 shots. Do you know how far that is on the fly?

I don't doubt that you can reach par 4's that are 330 ish but I'm very confident that you will pitch it about 270 ish and get ground yardage for the rest.

Will be interested in your thoughts.

Hold on , not only can ronsk carry it over 300 yds, his latest post claims most of the people he plays with can as well !!

FFS, I was close to having him bite at evens! Now people are offering 10/1.

To be fair to Ronsk its very easy to think your hitting the ball further than you are if you have conditions in your favour. But if your flying it 275 most of the time you hit a good shot ( and that's long in itself ) it defies belief that you can get the odd one to fly 40 yards more in similar conditions. Just not happening.

Good luck with your golf Ronsk. I would not fancy playing you for a bet off scratch as you probably are a very good player. Your just not flying a ball 315.

post up the swing on youtube? i reckon hes telling the truth why wud he lie. if hes a long hitter then mi**** can still be going a  good distance. cud quiet easily be 40y shorter than when he flushes it.

In a match on Saturday we played against a guy who left his partner a 53yard shot on a 467 yard hole,  my partner hit a reasonable enough drive and I had 207 left, tees where well back and pin was just behind centre, course was playing a fair bit longer than it would have been before the rain we have had lately, this shot would possibly got the green a few weeks back?
On the plus side for the length the hole is slightly downhill from about 300yards out, but not massively. I played against this same person a couple of years back and he drove the 375 yard first hole, completely flat hole.
Anyway all I really want to say is that at no other hole did he knock it more than about 20yards past my partners drive, guess he would have averaged about 280 to 300 on the rest of his tee shots.
Oh and to finish with I am happy to report that we won the hole, tho not the game.

I play with a lad who is very long. Long drive guys say he could compete on their circuit if he worked at it, but his interests are elsewhere. His swing speed is 140mph, and sometimes a few mph over that, as verified many times on differing trackman devices. Its amazing to witness him playing a straight flat Par 560yd 5 in pretty neutral conditions and hit Driver + PW to the green. He definitely carries it well over 300yds, and his longer hits with bounce and roll are close to 400yds on a good day (as measured with a laser not the hole yardage markets). But, he sprays it, and has a 12 handicap.
We played a mess about 9-hole 1 club the other day, the long hitting lad, me and two lads from the pro shop. I took a 2 iron, the pro shop lads took 6 irons, the long hitting lad took a stock 34 inch putter alone. On 490yd Par 5 the long hitting lad flew it 30yds over the green on his second shot, the ball was going higher than I can hit a wedge. He comfortable knocks it to the end of the range with a putter and thats 285yds. Its fun, its a sideshow, and amazing to watch, but it isnt really golf :) There are some people who really do hit the ball a long way, but they are pretty few and far between.

Just to confirm, 285 with a putter?

Where is the course, down the side on Box Hill?

May i also add the word "impossible" to my last post....thanks

http://72strokes.com/2011/03/can-you-hit-a-300yd-drive-with-your-putter/

3.10m on the vid.

Not impossible.

stilts-m     20 Aug 13 21:28 
ronsk

I am happy to meet you at any club in the UK and offer you 10/1 (max bet £100) that you cannot pitch a ball 315+ yards with 50 shots. Do you know how far that is on the fly?

I don't doubt that you can reach par 4's that are 330 ish but I'm very confident that you will pitch it about 270 ish and get ground yardage for the rest.

Will be interested in your thoughts.

-------------------------------------------

If you're happy to travel to Oxfordshire I am happy to meet up and play.

As a junior I knocked it over the back of a par 5 in two with a putter( I think I must have used a tee peg for the 2nd shot)and had 2 more putts for a 4 putt birdie. it ruined my Golden Goose putter tho, had about 20 degrees of loft after the first two shots

At the risk of being called a liar, again, my favourite feat was driving it pin-high, off the back sticks, on the 8th at The Oxfordshire. It was a totally freezing January day a few years ago and the first time I'd played the course. Unbeknownst to me the group in-front, who were walking off the green as the ball landed, contained the owner of the resort! He came up to us in the clubhouse asking who had hit the shot; I promptly apologised for hitting whilst they were still in the vicinity, but he said it wasn't an issue. He was just interested as nobody usually attempts the shot and was incredibly surprised that I wasn't a scratch golfer. It made my day!!

I await all the usual barracking!

ronsk, if I hit as far as you, I would be off plus 1, rather than 4.

Perhaps...

Perhaps... yes!

Less modestly (me), maybe you would be off plus 1, with my skills from 100 yards in!

FWIW, I am not far from you in South Warwickshire, & am happy to meet up for a fun game at a mutually convenient time & course.

Sounds good to me Saxon!

Lets get a market up on betfair first lads

Surely one of their suspend monkeys will be free that day !

Saxon - Rye Hill is a decent track (or it was last time I played it a few years back) and probably somewhere close to halfway between us, at a guess?

Rye Hill would be fine.  Just thinking of Heythrop Park, some guy on here suggested they do a Sunday twilight deal £20 a head including buggy which would also suit.
I could definitely play this Sunday, but probably not Sunday 1st Sept.

I was at Heythrop last Sunday and I'm there again this Friday!

Rye Hill have a twilight offer (after 3pm) for £20 each which includes a free pint afterwards! Could you make a weekday?

Yes, I could make a weekday, but will not know total availability until this Friday.

It would be nice to go to Rye Hill again, like you I have not played it for a long time.

Just noticed the offer is Monday through Wednesday only, if that suits?

Should be no problem, I will let you know further by this time on Friday.
GL

Good man.

ronsk, next week is proving troublesome, unless the deal applies to Bank Holiday Monday?

Otherwise, I could definitely play on Monday 2nd September, if that suits you.

2nd is no good for me, fella. Can do Tuesday 3rd, but that's the only day I'm free that week.

Don't think the deal applies to public holidays...

can i play...

No problem with me bito!

ronsk: Tuesday 3rd should be ok, but will let you know for certain by this Wednesday. Have a good weekend!

a bitofinterest     24 Aug 13 01:59 
can i play...

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Nothing would give me greater pleasure!

Look forward to it SF - enjoy your weekend too!

i play a singles match at an outing next sunday against a big hitting player of 14 im 23 by the way as i only play now and then for example 3 times this year,any thoughts on wud i cud practise this week to improve my game for sunday.also play a doubles match but need to play the guys myself as the guy in society i got drawn to play with has left the society and im not aloud any the guys who are already knocked out to make up my pair )

Saxon - My turn to be slightly awkward! I have had to change the date of a pre-arranged match from Thursday 5th to Tuesday 3rd, so can no longer make that date. Here are some dates that, as things stand, I'm certainly available and you can work your timetable around them.

Tuesday 10th, Wednesday 11th & Wednesday 18th.

I can make other days (especially Thursday's) if we were to decide to give the Rye Hill offer a miss go elsewhere?

Leave it with you for now.

Love the fact that " ronsk" can fly it further than these guys currently playing on my TV # betfairguysaregood

knew this game wudnt get going.

Welsh open shots.

Hole #1
Robert Rock tee = 285 yards.
Chris Wood tee = 330 yards.
Danny Willett tee = 330 yards.

Rocks approach = 10 feet pin.
Wood approach = 30 feet pin.
Willett approach = 3 feet pin.

Rock = par.
Wood = par.
Willett = birdie.

Accuracy of shot to pin is #1 importance, imo.  But you need a good solid repeatable swing to achieve that.

We never did get that game sorted, Saxon. I'm still bombing it if you're still a non-believer! ;0)

this thread was fun to read, thanks for the laughs guys, never read so much bollocks in my life

Some people truly are simple!