I am regularly hitting the ball over 300 yards off the tee and have significantly improved on the scorecard because of it. If you want to know how to get more distance in golf, there are three ways to do it.
Optimize your Equipment
Efficiency in your swing mechanics
Increase swing speed
I’ll break down each of these in more detail below.
I have been on a quest over the last couple of years to get more distance and have been seeing significant results. I am routinely hitting the ball well over 300 yards on the course and have seen improvements from every club in my bag.
Check out this 346-yard drive on the sim, with 318 carry and 116 swing speed.
This is the result of a lot of hard work in getting my swing speed up, but early on I saw immediate improvements through optimizing my equipment and swing mechanics.
Equipment Optimization
From the selection of the right golf ball to fine-tuning your driver’s settings, you can instantly experience added distance off the tee. This truly is the simplest thing you can do to increase your distance.
Golf Ball Selection
I have done a lot of work testing various golf balls, and have read a lot of independent studies that have done the same. Selecting the right golf ball can be critical if you want more distance.
Most golf ball fitters believe it is best to start around the green and find the ball that feels best and reacts the way you want. The thing is, a lot of balls will feel great and react the way you want around the green. But not all of them will perform the same off the tee!
Golf balls perform differently at varying swing speeds. The longest golf ball for a golfer with a 90mph swing speed is not the longest for a golfer with a 100mph swing speed. They really do perform differently. Trajectory is another major factor, some are designed to fly higher while others are designed to fly lower.
So what’s the bottom line?
I have three resources to help you find the best ball for distance, for your swing.
I have built a swing speed calculator that estimates your swing speed based on your current driver distance. It’s pretty accurate! 👉 Swing speed and distance calculator
I have put together a list of the top 3 golf balls for distance in three different swing speed categories, you can find the swing speed calculator on this page too. 👉 Best distance golf balls
I have built a golf ball selector tool that accounts for your trajectory, and preferences on feel, budget, and distance. 👉 Golf ball fitting quiz
Optimizing your Driver
Although you can certainly go out and buy the newest $600 driver and probably add a few yards of distance, it’s much cheaper to adjust what you currently have.
One of the main factors that contributes to overall distance is ball spin. Ball spin is affected by swing speed and loft. The faster you swing, the lower your loft setting should be.
But, we also need to account for swing mechanics here. If your golf swing does not have you hitting up on the ball much, you may need a higher loft. If you do hit up on the ball well, and swing hard, you will certainly benefit from a lower loft.
Here are some rough guidelines for loft settings
90 MPH swing speed = 12 degree loft
100 MPH swing speed = 10.5 degree loft
110 MPH swing speed = 9 degree loft
It’s best to head to the range or visit a local golf shop to work through optimizing your driver. Use the guidelines above and see what the results are. You can make some adjustments and see how it goes. Within about 20 minutes, you should be able to find what works best for your swing.
If you plan on buying a new driver, choosing the right club and shaft flex is critical.
I have put together a couple of resources to help you with this as well.
Shaft flex recommendation based on your estimated swing speed. 👉 Recommended shaft flex
I have built a driver selector tool to help you find the best driver based on your skill level and preferences. 👉 Driver Selection quiz
Efficient Swing Mechanics
From proper alignment to efficient body rotation, swing mechanics play a significant role in your ability to maximize distance off the tee. You’ve likely heard that you need to “hit up on the ball”, but what is the best angle of attack for your swing speed and loft settings?
Setting up with good posture is critical, followed by good rotation and efficient ball striking.
The best things you can do here are
Take a video of your swing
Find your impact location on the club face
When taking a video you’ll want two angles. One down the line, and another from the front. For each, you’ll want the camera setup at the height of your hands and you’ll want to ensure the club is in view for the entire swing.
Here are a couple of screenshots from videos I have taken of myself, this should give you a reference on the camera angles.
I certainly don’t have the best posture, but the front view shows my ball alignment even with my front heel. I am also tilting my upper body to facilitate hitting up on it.
Finding impact location can be done by spraying some foot powder spray on your club face. You’ll notice a trend pretty quickly and can use the information to make adjustments to your swing or stance.
The best thing I have done for my golf game is following a program from professional golfers, Piers Ward and Andy Proudman. You can sign up for a free trial at meandmygolf.com
Increasing your Swing Speed
Okay, you’ve perfectly optimized your equipment and found the best angle of attack to get maximum distance….now what? The delimiting factor in distance truly is club head speed. I’ll dive into techniques and training tips to help you maximize club speed!
Flexibility Training
Increasing flexibility and core strength is something you can work on without paying a dime. Dr. Chris Collier specializes in mobility and flexibility training for golfers. He has a full library of golf performance and mobility exercises.
Elite Chiropractic and Performance
I have found his video on “Thorax Opener with Hip Lift Off” to be especially helpful for my game. It simply shows you how to perform the stretch and has absolutely helped me gain more mobility and rotation, leading to higher swing speed and more distance.
Swing Speed Training
Related – Best swing speed training devices
Of all the tips I have shared so far, the thing that gave me more club head speed and a powerful golf swing is absolutely the swing speed training I have done.
There are a couple of options here, but you really need to give them some time to give you more speed.
The Free Approach
Not interested in buying an expensive swing speed training aid – I get it. I started off this way myself.
Do some overspeed sessions a couple of times per week, ideally spaced out enough to give yourself some time to recover. After getting warmed up and set to take full driver swings, try to hit the ball as hard as you possibly can. Just crush it! Don’t worry where it goes or how badly you hit it…trust me, you’ll hit some really bad shots.
Pro Tip – Use an old driver for this
Now try to hit it harder and harder. If you have a swing speed device you can instantly see your progress. Try gaining another couple of MPH in your swing. I would spend anywhere from 20 – 30 minutes just trying to swing faster and faster.
Again, a couple of times per week is sufficient. Within a handful of weeks you’ll notice your hitting the ball further on the golf course, but it won’t feel like you are swinging any different.
Buying a Swing Speed Training Aid
There are plenty of swing speed trainers on the market, and I have tried a couple of them. No question, the best one by far is The Stack System. It’s not just a training aid, it is a full training program that adjusts along the way based on your progress and numbers.
Here are reviews of some of the best swing speed trainers on the market.
Dr. Sasho MacKenzie is a co-founder of the Stack System and has taken an evidence-based approach to swing speed training. Sasho is a Biomechanics Advisor and Engineering Consultant for Ping, has over 20 peer-reviewed articles published in scientific journals, and has worked extensively with Tour Players and professional golf coaches.
You don’t just buy the stack system because it is the highest quality swing speed trainer on the market, you buy it to get access to the training program that was built with evidence-based data and that adjusts based on your progress. Simply follow the program – it is the best and fastest way to gain more clubhead speed!
Big Tees Golf Exclusive Deal
The Best Speed Training System Available to Golfers!
10% off with Coupon Code
BIGTEESGOLF
Final Thoughts
The three main things you can do to get more distance in golf are
Optimizing your Equipment
Gaining efficiency in your swing mechanics
Increasing your swing speed
Optimizing your equipment and swing mechanics can provide an immediate impact on your overall distance. But once you max those out, the only thing you can do to add distance is to increase your swing speed.
Choosing the right golf ball can be easy with our golf ball selector tool. Then fine-tune your driver loft settings following the guidelines above. If you want to get into some swing speed work, I would highly recommend it. It has helped me significantly over the last couple of seasons.
If you have any questions, I’d be happy to chat, just shoot me an email. bigteesgolf@gmail.com
Good luck on the course!