How Far Should I Hit My Driver?

The PGA Tour average is 275 yards of carry with the driver, the LPGA Tour average is 218 yards of carry with the driver, so the average amateur should hit their driver around 230-235 yard assuming a swing speed of around 98 miles per hour.

See chart below for complete breakdown:

DRIVER	Ball Speed	Swing Speed	Carry
PGA Tour Average	167	113	275
LPGA Tour Average	140	94	218
Average Amateur Golfer	145	98	235

In recent years, the speed of the golf swing and the distance that a golf ball is being hit has become a major talking point in the golf world. We are witnessing professional golfers hitting drivers of 360 yards and greater.

Let’s be honest, everyone wants more distance. We all think that extra 10-20 yards could be the game changer for us.

When Bryson DeChambeau drastically changed his game, it made all golfers stop and think if they could add distance to their game. It has been proven the importance of distance and now Bryson has proven that distance can be added.

While many golfers won’t want to go to the extreme that Bryson did, there are some great options to increase swing speed.

Three long hitters in their prime: Justin Thomas, Fred Couples and Tiger Woods!

Many people are confused on how far they should be able to hit their driver. The majority of golfers do not have any clue how fast they swing, how much ball speed they create, the spin rate on their driver or have a realistic idea of far they truly carry the golf ball with a driver.

All of these factors play a major role on how far one can hit their driver.

The key factors in distance include:

Swing speed
Ball speed
Spin rate

Launch angle
Smash factor

How Far Should I Hit My Driver

As far as you can but by swinging under control. The key is to train for speed with SuperSpeed Golf!

Nobody can deny the need for speed in the game of golf. The game at the professional level is currently lopsided towards the longest hitters.

Gone are the days of simply trying to hit the fairway, a golfer must now be able to hit the ball long and far and then get it on the green and make their putts.

The short game remains ever as important, but analytics have proven to us that professional golfers are just as good from 80 yards out of the rough as they are from 120 in the fairway.

So if the driver travels 40 yards further than a 3 wood, what is the point of even hitting the 3 wood off the tee if there is not a major hazard or other barrier preventing the golfer from hitting the driver?

There are many factors that influence how far a driver carries. Below we will break down and discuss the importance and then leave you with a checklist to help you increase your golf swing speed to maximize your driver distance and start to take shots off your total score.

One of the first problems that many amateurs overestimate how far they actually hit a driver. Here is how to find out your swing speed.

How to determine golf swing speed.

Key Factor #1 – Club Speed

Club speed is the number one determining factor in how far the driver will carry. Even with the best spin rate, launch angle and smash factor numbers the golfer can’t produce distance without adequate speed.

The best golfers on the PGA Tour are now swing in in the upper 120’s in miles per hour. It is realistic for the average amateur golfer to swing just over 100 miles per hour and push themselves towards the 105-106 range.

If you are physically gifted and already have some speed, getting to the 113 tour average is attainable.

There are different factors that influence swing speed. They include:

Overall strength

Overall speed in muscles
The minds confidence that it can keep you safe
Swing mechanics

Equipment

In order to train four of these five, I would highly recommend the SuperSpeed Golf System. This system has you train every other day and the training only takes 10-15 minutes.

You are provided with three different swing clubs that are color coded based on weight. You simply follow the protocol which trains your mind and body to swing faster.

This overspeed approach is utilized by many golfers on the PGA Tour including Phil Mickelson. We have seen Phil gain quality distance over the past several years even has he pushed and eventually reached 50 years of age.

These SuperSpeed Swing Clubs can be found in many golf bags and actually work. In my own personal experience I went from an average swing speed of between 98-100 to 104-106. This 5% increase is a typical result as golfers can expect to see between 5-8% of increase in their swing speed.

SuperSpeed Swing System can help you experience a 5-8% in swing speed!

I now need to stick with this training system and push myself to get to the 110 number. This would change my game drastically and set me up for more birdies on many of the courses that I play.

The overall ease to use this system and affordability of it make it a must have for every golfer.

Even if you are someone that doesn’t want to gain distance (not sure who falls in this category), but want to make sure you don’t lose distance as you age, then this is a great tool to ensure is part of equipment to help you get better.

Gone are the days of just being ok with losing distance. Take charge of your golf game and check out SuperSpeed Golf!

Key Factor #2 – Ball Speed

Ball speed is mostly impacted by the swing speed, which is the importance of a training system like the SuperSpeed Golf System. We have to get you generating enough club speed to make sure your ball speed is up there.

However, there are other factors that end up influencing your speed ball and mainly that number one factor is where you hit the ball on the club face.

You can bring 120 miles per hour of club speed, but if you hit the ball on the toe or the heel, you won’t maximize your club speed and your ball speed will drastically decrease leaving you short by 20-30 yards of what should have happened.

Working on hitting the ball on the center of the clubface will go a long way in maximizing the swing speed that you already have.

The great part about the SuperSpeed Golf System is that it has been proven to help improve your mechanics, which will lead to more center face shots, thus increasing your total carry and distance.

Stop settling for being a poor or weak driver of the golf club. Take action in your game and start playing better.

Here at golfjourney365, we love the journey to try to get better and when we embraced the need for more speed, we enjoyed the journey and the results. Embrace the challenge and get to work!

Instead of hitting a ton of golf balls, make sure you are doing some training to gain distance!

Key Factor #3 – Spin Rate

An often overlooked element of hitting the driver and all clubs. Do you know what a quality spin rate is to maximize your swing speed? A gneral guideline is that most golfers should be in the 2,000 to 3,000 RPP spin rate range.

Once you start to get north of 3,000 RPM’s, the majority of golfers will start to lose distance.

Have you ever hit the shot that was center faced with normal swing speed, but it appears to balloon or not travel as far? Or have you ever hit the shot that seemed to just fly forever.

Chances are you didn’t swing a different speed and somehow find an extra 7 miles per hour in the middle of the round, but the reality is that your spin rate on the first shot was way too high and on the second shot you found your optimum spin rate.

I realized the importance of spin rate when I purchased my SkyTrak Launch Monitor and setup a golf simulator in my garage.

I was now golfing everyday and hitting shot after shot with a variety of clubs with instant feedback on the following:

Club speed
Ball Speed

Launch Angle
Spin Rate
Spin Axis

From watching these numbers closely, while swing speed and ball speed are vital, the spin rate is right there and on a highly spun shot, you can lose 20-30 yards with the driver.

Now as you get into your 8 iron and on up, a spin rate of 8,0000 or higher is normal as that spin helps control your distance and the spin on the green!

When you can maximize your swing speed, ball speed and spin rate, you are on the road to success. Spin rate can be impacted by several factors. They include:

Loft on the club
Angle of Attack
Shaft in the club

Making sure you have the right shaft in your driver is important. If your shaft is not right for you and has a kickpoint in the wrong place, it can add loft and increase spin rate.

Being able to experiment with my SkyTrak Launch Monitor has helped take 4-6 strokes off my scores.

Check out my full review on the SkyTrak Launch Monitor.

Did you know you can take the SkyTrak to the driving range or course and pair with your Ipad or Iphone for instant feedback on important swing analytics.

Or you can build a golf simulator in your garage, basement or home for under $7,000 and play golf year round. Don’t let the rain, snow, cold or time of day stop you from playing the game we all love. Setup the simulator in your place today.

Gone are the days of paying $30,000 for a golf simulator. Now it is affordable for most people and Rain or Shine golf offers Financing Options.

How to Build a Golf Simulator

Key Factor #4 – Launch Angle

While the Trackman data shows that the majority of PGA Tour players hit down on their driver, the conventional wisdom is that amateurs need to hit up slightly on the ball with the driver to maximize total distance. The reason PGA Tour players hit down on the ball is to control their start lines with ball.

Did you know that the more you hit down on the ball the more it will start to the right and the more you hit up on the ball the more it will start left (for right handed golfers)? This is something you should take into account when picking your target.

Regardless, hitting up on the ball slightly will help the total carry distance of your driver and help you reach your full potential!

Key Factor #5 – Smash Factor

Smash factor is ball speed divided by club speed. So if you have a ball speed of 155 and a club speed is 105 your smash factor would be 1.48. The smash factor is highest with the driver compared to other clubs in the bag due to the design of the club.

The smash factor is going to be influenced by the quality of the strike. The best way to increase your smash factor is a center face hit. We would recommend using impact tape to monitor where you are striking the club on the ball and utilize a launch monitor to compare where the club was hit and the ball speed produced.

Final Words

Golf is an amazing game. One that many of us love. It can treat us great one day and an amazing round takes place and the next day we struggle to find that same swing.

Adding speed to your game helps you become less dependent on being perfect in all the other areas of this game. While it doesn’t make the game easier, it does provide an advantage. It is worth exploring and training to add some speed to your game.

How Far Should I Hit My Driver? Hopefully you hit your driver farther 3 months from now then you do today! Let’s get going!

Here is a quick checklist you can utilize:

Am I training for speed with SuperSpeed Golf?

Do I have the proper equipment? Driver Length? Driver Shaft?
Do I know my current club speed and ball speed?
Do I know my spin rate?

Would a SkyTrak Launch Monitor help my game?
Am I hitting the ball on the sweet spot of the club?
Am I hitting down or up on the ball with the driver?

Take Action – What You Can Do Today to Get Better

What does this mean for you? I believe in the following recipe to get better:

1 – Improve your motion in the golf swing by identifying a golf instructor. Here are some options:

Here is a list of golf instructors that we have reviewed:

George Gankas

2 – Train to swing faster and improve your swing speed. Here are some options:

Looking to gain more Speed and Distance in your swing. Two Options:

3 – Understand course strategy and work to break through your next barrier. Here is a series on breaking through:

We have provided guides on how to break 100, 90, 80 and 70. Check out more below, if interested.

How to Break 70

4 – Practice Frequently

Did you know that I build a golf simulator in my garage and have played over 500 rounds of golf on my SkyTrak system? It has been a game changer and one worth checking out. Here are some of my other posts on golf simulators frequently asked questions:

Is a Golf Simulator Worth It?