Golfer Driving Distances… Are You Hitting It Farther?

It’s that time of the year again. Utilising over 20 million driver shots, our team has compiled the 2022 Arccos Distance Report.

And might we add, the timing is quite fitting, given the recent news of the USGA and R&A’s announcement about the impact distance is having on the game. Pros might be perceived as getting “longer” but one thing’s for sure, amateurs have stayed fairly consistent over the years. Golf Digest writer, Mike Stachura calls this out in his most recent article using Arccos data: What the latest research reveals about average golfer driving distances.

A further deep-dive into the millions of shots captured, our team deciphers not only distances, but also accuracy, filtering the data by age, handicap, and gender.

Stachura explains it best when it comes to the findings related to our age, “Among the other not-so-surprising-but-still-disheartening revelations: As you age, you get shorter (much shorter).” But it’s not all bad news as we get older. We might get a little shorter, but with older age, our accuracy does improve over time. 

You might be thinking now, “ok, age, great to know, but what about distance based on handicaps because … surely a 30 handicap hits it differently than a 5?”  You’re right! The data tends to match the idea; the lower the handicap, the farther you hit it. Based on the Arccos data, Stachura noted, “The average scratch player regardless of age, was about 50 yards longer than the average 22-handicapper.” So, in essence, better players are longer.

Take a glance at the Golf Digest article: What the latest research reveals about average golfer driving distances, to discover more about what Arccos’ 2022 Driver Distance Report has to reveal for men and women of different ages and handicaps. 

With over 650 million shots tracked and over 20 million driver shots analysed, to compile Arccos data, I think we can safely say, the truth lies within the numbers.