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Will we ever see 400 yard tour drives as a norm in our lifetime?

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Mystery Meat

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With tour course condtions continually improving equipment/fitness and teaching as well. I'm convinced we will see guys possibly climbing or reaching the 400 yard drive barrier on tour. As hard as it seems to grasp this I think it will happen. This has no bearing on the amateur game at all, as our distances can never be compared to a tour player



Anyone agree or disagree ?

And do you believe the tour should look at reducing the length of the ball for tour players? To make the older courses more of a challenge for them
 
The bearing it has on the amateur game is course length. The few people who can actually hit this far with a reasonable amount of accuracy are in a tiny minority, yet any new golf course being built is not accommodate the average golfers. Consider the average male golfer drives the ball around 210 - 220 yds and the average woman around 175 yds. It is to accommodate the professionals. We spent a ton of tax money here in Pierce County to build Chambers Bay in the hopes of attracting a major tournament. Well with enough lobbying it happened: the US Open - I guarantee they won't be back, and the course is a real ***** to play for those of us who paid for it (we get discounted green fees of $85 which is more than I can afford on my social security). The course isn't ready, either - of course they'll just chop down the greens and fairways for the tournament.

Golf is not growing in popularity.

I think the technology is about topped out. If they limit the ball or any tech for the pros, the USGA will slap those limits on everyone, and I can kiss my 240 yd drive goodbye.
 
The top driving distances in the PGA haven't really increased since 2003.
 
InTheRough said:
The bearing it has on the amateur game is course length. The few people who can actually hit this far with a reasonable amount of accuracy are in a tiny minority, yet any new golf course being built is not accommodate the average golfers. Consider the average male golfer drives the ball around 210 - 220 yds and the average woman around 175 yds. It is to accommodate the professionals. We spent a ton of tax money here in Pierce County to build Chambers Bay in the hopes of attracting a major tournament. Well with enough lobbying it happened: the US Open - I guarantee they won't be back, and the course is a real ***** to play for those of us who paid for it (we get discounted green fees of $85 which is more than I can afford on my social security). The course isn't ready, either - of course they'll just chop down the greens and fairways for the tournament.

Golf is not growing in popularity.

I think the technology is about topped out. If they limit the ball or any tech for the pros, the USGA will slap those limits on everyone, and I can kiss my 240 yd drive goodbye.
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I could not agree more that 1% of golfers, it that, is driving golf course design. Sadly, the amateur who hits it 230 thinks they hit it 270 thus giving them the game to play from the 7000 yard tees.
 
No, we won't.
 
I do not think we will, from my understanding the average distance has been the same for around 10 years


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InTheRough said:
The bearing it has on the amateur game is course length. The few people who can actually hit this far with a reasonable amount of accuracy are in a tiny minority, yet any new golf course being built is not accommodate the average golfers. Consider the average male golfer drives the ball around 210 - 220 yds and the average woman around 175 yds. It is to accommodate the professionals. We spent a ton of tax money here in Pierce County to build Chambers Bay in the hopes of attracting a major tournament. Well with enough lobbying it happened: the US Open - I guarantee they won't be back, and the course is a real ***** to play for those of us who paid for it (we get discounted green fees of $85 which is more than I can afford on my social security). The course isn't ready, either - of course they'll just chop down the greens and fairways for the tournament.

Golf is not growing in popularity.

I think the technology is about topped out. If they limit the ball or any tech for the pros, the USGA will slap those limits on everyone, and I can kiss my 240 yd drive goodbye.
Click to expand...

why would course length affect average golfer play? there are plenty of tees for everyone. chambers bay has tees ranging from 5200 to 7200. they even tell you where to play depending on how long you hit your drive. the problem is the egos of middle aged white men who won't play from appropriate tees.
 
Looking at this from an amateur prospective when playing the courses (occasionally) that held a tour event it is rather demoralizing. By playing tees more meant for most of us , just the thought of sets of tees 50 or more yards back really tests our manhood..IMHO . Not sure about you guys, but when I do things I enjoy doing them on a fair and even playing field. By playing the up tees I feel like I'm cheating myself even though I shoot better and makes the round more relaxing .
may not fit the context of the thread I made , but kinda how I personally feel about playing the course the same as everyone else. So I guess if we hit short, don't tee it forward just learn how to hit farher

My 2 cents
 
I once had a chance to play Doral's Blue Monster. Unfortunately I was paired with a double bogey golfer who played from the PGA tees because he wanted to test himself against the best in the world. After 2 holes where he and his 9 yo son, also playing from the tips, took double digits I began drinking beer. Needless to say it was a very long day.
 
I figure that the course is difficult enough until I start breaking 80. Then I'll move back to make it more challenging.
 
Nope.

DistanceStats.jpg
 
dethman said:
why would course length affect average golfer play? there are plenty of tees for everyone. chambers bay has tees ranging from 5200 to 7200. they even tell you where to play depending on how long you hit your drive. the problem is the egos of middle aged white men who won't play from appropriate tees.
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So middle aged black men play from the correct tee boxes? Interesting comment :D
 
Ole Gray said:
So middle aged black men play from the correct tee boxes? Interesting comment :D
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I played with a 70 yo woman (ethnicity unimportant) who played the white tees with me. I got her by a few strokes.
 
Blazer said:
I played with a 70 yo woman (ethnicity unimportant) who played the white tees with me. I got her by a few strokes.
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Some of them old gals can whack it pretty good huh? :thumb:
 
Will we ever see 400 yard tour drives as a norm in our lifetime? Not me, but then again I am old as dirt.
oldman.gif
 
InTheRough said:
The bearing it has on the amateur game is course length. The few people who can actually hit this far with a reasonable amount of accuracy are in a tiny minority, yet any new golf course being built is not accommodate the average golfers. Consider the average male golfer drives the ball around 210 - 220 yds and the average woman around 175 yds. It is to accommodate the professionals. We spent a ton of tax money here in Pierce County to build Chambers Bay in the hopes of attracting a major tournament. Well with enough lobbying it happened: the US Open - I guarantee they won't be back, and the course is a real ***** to play for those of us who paid for it (we get discounted green fees of $85 which is more than I can afford on my social security). The course isn't ready, either - of course they'll just chop down the greens and fairways for the tournament.

Golf is not growing in popularity.

I think the technology is about topped out. If they limit the ball or any tech for the pros, the USGA will slap those limits on everyone, and I can kiss my 240 yd drive goodbye.
Click to expand...

funny how this thread quickly went the way of tee choice which is not the topic nor the answer. (just saying)

My answer is "no" I don't think we will see that as a norm ever. I do think that technology can bring us there for sure and probably can already do it, however, the limitations which must not be surpassed will keep it no longer than where it is now if not bring it down some.

But there is also another thing about if we'd ever hypothetically see 400 a norm. And that thing is accuracy. It would be one thing if 400 distance would ever be an average yet imo quite another thing to ever see enough consistency for it being well enough in play often enough to ever make it worthwhile.

To be honest, I find the long game (for me) has gotten kind of boring. The infatuation with it I feel only lasts so long. It was enjoyable watching J.S. play and win the M not being one of the longer hitters.

And BTW imo there are plenty of amateurs who do have tour distances. More people than most think, playing mostly as a single I run into them more often than people think. Its just that like so many amateurs their entire game is not good enough to be a pro. people often confuse long with good and they are two very different things.
In fact I would argue there are more amateurs around who can hit "above average tour length" than tour pro's. There are only so many players on tour at a given time yet millions of amateurs. Just by sheer numbers even though a small percentage still adds up to way more than the amount of tour pros hitting above tour average distances.
 
Don't see it happening. Tour players are long but 400 is a long way. We may see a drive that gets that far in a british open due to wind and conditions but to see anywhere near consistent 400 won't happen
 
I'm going to have to say, no, as well. With the technology being at the tip of what it can be now, based on rules in place...there's not way. Look at the World Long Drive guys, they punch it out that far, but not ALL the time.
 
DawgDaddy said:
Will we ever see 400 yard tour drives as a norm in our lifetime? Not me, but then again I am old as dirt.
oldman.gif
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D.D. - I keep laughing :)
Dirt is friggin old

You were probably sewing your oats with a cave women after a good brisk Wooly Mammoth hunt .
 
Blazer said:
I once had a chance to play Doral's Blue Monster. Unfortunately I was paired with a double bogey golfer who played from the PGA tees because he wanted to test himself against the best in the world. After 2 holes where he and his 9 yo son, also playing from the tips, took double digits I began drinking beer. Needless to say it was a very long day.
Click to expand...
I had a similar experience with a guy at Old MacDonald who was working toward his Class A certificate. I tried to tell him about the wind and how hard it was but he wouldn't listen and insisted on playing from the back tees. It was a very long day highlight by the gentleman falling into a big waste bunker after his follow through.

I'm going against the grain and saying yes, we will see 400 yard drives.
 
emart2173 said:
Don't see it happening. Tour players are long but 400 is a long way. We may see a drive that gets that far in a british open due to wind and conditions but to see anywhere near consistent 400 won't happen
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Agent Jay said:
I'm going to have to say, no, as well. With the technology being at the tip of what it can be now, based on rules in place...there's not way. Look at the World Long Drive guys, they punch it out that far, but not ALL the time.
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Wont happen due to conformity but I would argue tech can already do it easily.
 
rollin said:
D.D. - I keep laughing :)
Dirt is friggin old

You were probably sewing your oats with a cave women after a good brisk Wooly Mammoth hunt .
Click to expand...

Don't knock Wooly Mammoth until you try one. Good eats IMO.
 
Considering only 30 players last year hit more than 50% of their drives over 300 yards and the average tour player only hits 30% of their drives over 300 yards, the question you should be asking is will 300 yard drives ever become the norm on the PGA Tour. I don't think we will see the middle ranked PGA Tour player be at that 50% over 300 yard mark anytime in the next 20 years. Put in another way, IMO the average driving distance on the PGA Tour will not exceed 300 yards anytime in the next 20 years.
 
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From a well known online instructor. And yes I'm a world class athlete if you want to know :)

used to tell my students 10 years ago that the tour is headed with players that can hit 350 yards when the players choose.
Now I'm telling my players they are headed to the 400 yard yard mark at will in the next 10 to 15 years. That will truly land lock up many tracks and would create some serious mismatches on the course. It is so coming as golf has not truly had a world class athlete put a peg in the ground and really have that intuition of how to play the game.

What if a Lebron James was a kid and was a golf nut like all of us? How far and good would he really be? How far would he hit it if he swung the the club like say a Rory?

People say Tiger is that and I would say Tiger is a good looking athlete, but he would even admit he's no freakish athlete like a Lebron, Jordan, ect. These are just examples any true world class athlete.

Their are some athletes out there if provided the opportunity, but far more important is that they would have to truly love the game first and foremost that would create some serious call to regulate the game a bit or make courses a true 8000 yards to make them use most of their irons in the bag.

I've been in the gym with most of the players on the tour and I have not seen anyone in there that I thought was a true world class athlete yet. The players body frames on the tour now in general are huge vs what it used to be just 10 years ago.
DJ is the best player I've seen in the gym to this date, but he's no world class athlete like I'm talking about, but he's a very good basic athlete and is the best athlete on the tour and just look at what he's been doing without good putting all year.

I will say this that many of the players now are trying to become the best athlete they can become for the future which shows their heart and desire and is why these guys are making each other better. iron sharpens iron

I have a tremendous amount of respect for any and all PGA Tour players before and that are currently out there so I don't want all this to sound disrepectful at all to these players. I just truly see the game is continuing to evolve with bigger, better and faster athletes that have the full skillset in all aspects of this great game.

I can remember that back in the day they said tall players were at a disadvantage and lifting weights golfers were at a disadvantage.

I'm not saying the game will eliminate the Ricky Fowlers or the smaller guys of the world I just believe you will see players slowly trickle in starting within 10 years or so that will be truly world class athletes both genetically and in their training.
 
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