What percentage of golfers can drive 250 yards?
Shot Scope has been tracking millions of real golf shots around the world over the last several years. If you look at the distribution of driving distances amongst their users, you'll see that only 29% can hit it more than 250 yards. The largest segment of golfers is driving the ball between 200-224 yards.
With only 10% hitting the ball over 275 yards on average, it really shows that this is the minority amongst amateur golfers.
According to the MyGolfSpy website, only around 4 percent of golfers have ever been able to drive a golf ball 300 yards. And another 11 percent of them can drive a ball 275 yards or further (but not quite 300 yards). To put it differently: 96 percent of golfers have never been able to do reach the 300-yard milestone.
The average driving distance across all ages of golfers is 219 yards. Golfers under the age of 30 typically hit the ball the longest (238 yards) and distance declines by around 10 yards every ten years. Swing speeds normally decrease as you age and that's where the decrease in yardage comes from.
This may come as shock to you, but 270 to 300 yards is a long way! The average drive on the PGA Tour isn't 300 yards. Yet, there's a group of Golfers – a massive group of 90 and 100 Shooters – that believe they can hit the ball 270 to 300 yards.
The recommended handicap allowance for all individual stroke play formats of play is set at 95% for medium-sized field net events, of at least 30 players. For a field size of fewer than 30 players, the recommendation would be to increase the handicap allowance to 100%.
Rice conducts lots of studies using launch data, which you can read on his website, and tells golfers that if they want to hit the ball over 300 yards, they need to swing their driver about 108 mph.
Any drive over 219 yards by a male amateur is a 'good' drive as it is above average. A golfer driving over 241 yards hits the ball longer than 75% of amateurs while a player hitting over 258 yards is in the top 10%. Any drives over 267 yards are achieved by only 5%. Only 0.1% of amateurs drive the ball over 300 yards.
Jack Nicklaus led the tour in driving distance through the midway point of 1970. He averaged 270 yards off the tee. In 128th place was South African golfer Gary Player. A member of golf's big three alongside Nicklaus and Palmer, Player's average tee shot distance was 231 yards.
Tiger Woods distance varies from club to club. According to Golf Digest, Tiger hits the driver an average of 285 yards with carry. His long irons (2- to 4-iron) range from 250 to 200 yards. His middle irons (5, 6, 7) range from 208 to 172 yards.
How far should a 95 mph driver swing go?
This average swing speed is attributed to the average distance of approximately 214 yards, which does satisfy the average golfer's appetite for driving distance. But, if you're looking to increase your distance, speed might not be everything after all.
Launch Monitor Numbers: The Recipe for 300 Yard Drives
Swing Speed: 105 MPH or more. It is possible to hit 300 yard drives with a swing speed slightly under 105 MPH, but that would require everything else working in your favor. Launch Angle: 12-15 degrees.

Tiger Woods – 498 yards at the 2002 Mercedes Championship.
Golfers with a handicap between 13 and 20 average 200 yards.
According to data from the National Golf Foundation, only 26 percent of all golfers shoot below 90 consistently on regulation 18-hole courses; 45 percent of all golfers average more than 100 strokes per round.”
Bryson DeChambeau's average driving distance in 2021 was 323.7 yards (295 metres).
Not all golfers can hit a 300-yard drive. This is because not all players have the club head speed necessary to hit the ball 300 yards. You must be able to swing the club close to 110 miles per hour if you plan on getting the ball to go 300 yards.
In 2013, there were 19 drives of 400 yards or more, and the longest was by Phil Mickelson at Doral, a slick 450-yarder. In 2012, there were actually 67 drives longer than 400 yards, the longest by Gary Woodland. In 2011, it was Dustin Johnson with what you'd think was the record of 463, but it isn't.
Rule of 75. The rule of 75 applies to a player who meets the following criteria: Over 75 years of age. Has an index that normally qualifies them to compete in the A-flight and therefore play from the pine tees.
When the 10-shot rule is in effect, it means that golfers who are within 10 strokes of the lead at the time the cut is made do make the cut and continue playing.
What is the 2 and 2 rule in golf?
According to a new rule on the PGA Tour, if your ball is within two club-lengths of a sprinkler head and that sprinkler head is within two club-lengths from the green, you may take relief if your line is obstructed.
If you do that, you will be able to strike the ball further. These results were discovered in research by Golf Digest for a 100 mph swing... 258 yards on a center hit. 243 yards, 1/2 inch off-center.
If your swing speed is 100 mph, your distance potential could be as high as 270 yards. But most golfers are woefully short of their potential. Two-thirds of the players in our survey weren't within 15 yards of their potential driving distance, and half of those were 30 or more yards short of optimum.
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Average Driver Distance By Age.
Age Range | Average Driver Distance |
---|---|
40-50 | 220 yards |
50-60 | 211 yards |
60+ | 196 yards |
All Golfers | 219 yards |
The short answer to this question is yes, 200 yards is a good driver distance for an average recreational player. Still, if you can't hit 200 yards each time, that doesn't mean that you don't match up.