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If you’re like most golfers, chances are you want to “hit bombs” in the words of Phil Mickelson. There isn’t much more satisfying than launching a drive deep past your friends and into the abyss. Hitting it long means shorter clubs into the greens and hopefully, better scores on a more consistent basis.
Personally, I would rather hit it long, even if it’s not as accurate, because I know percentages are in my favor. Playing a wedge from the rough is easier than a 7-iron from the fairway.
So, how do you hit it longer… Is there a secret? Do you need to weight train daily, upgrade your equipment? Can mere mortals join the ranks of the 300+ yard club like the best players in the world?
We’ll cover all that and more in this blog post.
The short answer is yes, you can hit it longer but it will take getting out of your comfort zone. My motto is “Do something different, to get different results.”
In your quest to add more distance, you will likely need to change some things up but once you get past the uncomfortable changes, you can hit it longer than ever. Follow these seven strategies to start hitting it longer than ever.
The grip is the foundation of a golf swing since it’s the only part of your body that guides the club. How you grip it plays a big role in shot shape and power. If you want more distance, you want to first check your grip.
There are three grip types; strong, neutral, or weak. Each style makes it easier to hit certain shots. If your goal is distance above all else, you want to develop a neutral or strong grip (this is not about grip pressure either, more on that later).
A strong grip will help you gain distance on drives and every shot in the bag. If you’re in a “weak” position now, spend time getting to neutral. Then, strengthen a little more so that more of your left hand is on the grip.
Just remember, this could take some time to feel comfortable so stay patient!
When you want to hit it hard and long, it’s easy to grip the club too tight. But too much grip pressure actually will make it more difficult to hit it long as it will add tension to your arms and upper body.
Instead of gripping the club to death, dial back and grip it strong enough to maintain control of the club but keep your forearms relaxed. Plus, make sure to keep moderate pressure consistently throughout the swing.
Once your grip is strong enough, the next thing you want to evaluate is your setup position. Without the right setup, it’s nearly impossible to hit bombs past your golf buddies.
To gain more power, start by looking at:
Once your body is set up, don’t forget the tee height either. If you want to hit it long, you need to tee it up high so you can swing up on the ball.
Once you have the right address position, everything becomes easier. That’s why setup is so important, it helps sequence your swing for maximum consistency and power.
To hit it long, you also need a full shoulder turn. Ensure that your left shoulder turns underneath your chin to get the club to parallel position. But you don’t need as much hip turn as you might think, instead, focus on shoulders as the hips will naturally rotate on their own.
To hit your driver as long as possible, you need to remember there is only one point in the swing for acceleration. That’s at impact – not the takeaway or transition.
The goal of a powerful golf swing is to generate speed throughout the swing so that it’s at peak speed at impact. This comes down to tempo, a slight pause at the top of your backswing, and unwinding your lower body.
Just remember, there can only be one time of max acceleration and it needs to happen at impact, not before.
Bryson DeChambeau changed his body dramatically in 2020 and it led to massive gains on the golf course. While you don’t need to drink seven protein shakes a day like Bryson, hitting the gym and doing compound movements can help you add distance to your drives.
A good example of this is Rory McIlroy. He’s not even 5’10” and weighs around 160 pounds but he is one of the longest players on tour (and probably pound for pound the longest). He’s attributed a lot of his success towards hitting the gym regularly.
When you get to the gym, focus on the big muscle groups like legs, back, and chest. I know most guys don’t like “leg day” at the gym, but don’t skip it, your gains on the golf course depend on strong, powerful muscles in your legs!
I wanted to include the equipment piece towards the end of the article so you focus on fundamentals first. Once you nail the basics, then you can look to upgrading your equipment to get even more distance.
Specifically, you want to look at the driver, shaft, and golf ball.
The final tip to you to learn how to hit longer drives is with the help of speed training. Never forget, distance comes from speed. The more speed you can generate in your swing, the longer the golf ball will fly in the air.
The most popular way to start speed training is with Super Speed Golf. This company pretty much invented speed training with their revolutionary training aids.
As the company said on their website, “How we move as human beings is controlled by the brain. OverSpeed Training takes a known motion like the golf swing and speeds up the reaction speed of your muscles when you make the motion. This works by using clubs slightly lighter than your driver, reducing the dynamic resistance of your swing, and allowing your body to move much faster than normal.”
Simply follow their training regimen (which doesn’t take long) and with enough repetition, you’ll see big results!
Hitting longer drives is possible and something you can start doing sooner rather than later.
Some of these tips will give you immediate results like changing your ball, setup position, and getting a better grip on the club. While other tips like speed training and exercise, might take some more time to reap the rewards.
The good news is that you can keep gaining distance, even as you get older. Phil Mickelson is a great example – despite being 50 years old, he’s hitting it as far as ever.
What’s your biggest tip to hitting longer drives off the tee?
Let us know in the comments below!
