PinFlag

Average driver distance by age

On the age model a golfer of 20 swings a driver at about 90 mph and carries 213 yards; by 70 the model gives 78 mph and 180 yards, 33 yards shorter, which the published fairway table prices at about 0.15 strokes a round on approach distance alone.

The chart

The model takes a peak club head speed in a golfer’s twenties and eases it by decade, then runs each speed through the published tour ball speed and carry table. The last two columns are the part no other distance chart prints: how far behind the peak each decade sits, and what that distance costs against the published expected strokes baseline when every approach starts that much further back.

Driver distance by age

Driver distance by age
AgeClub head speedCarryTotalBehind the peakCost in strokes
2090 mph213 yards230 yards0 yards0.00
3092 mph217 yards234 yards-4 yards-0.01
4088 mph208 yards224 yards5 yards0.02
5085 mph198 yards214 yards15 yards0.06
6081 mph189 yards204 yards24 yards0.10
7078 mph180 yards195 yards33 yards0.15

Cost in strokes prices an approach played from that many yards further back than a 150 yard reference, on the published fairway table.

What the yards cost

Distance ages slowly and then quickly. The model gives up 5 yards by 40 and 33 yards by 70, and because expected strokes rise with approach distance, the second half of that loss costs more than the first. The fix that pays is not the swing: it is playing tees that put approach distances back where the table is flat, and knowing your real carry so the club choice is right.

Speed is also only part of a drive. The fairway is worth about a quarter of a stroke against the rough at the same distance on the published table, which a shorter, straighter driver keeps and a longer, wilder one gives back.

In PinFlag

PinFlag uses your own carries, not an age model: import a launch monitor session or log rounds and every target on the tee is priced with your measured dispersion, drawn on the hole in Shot Cloud. The plays like distance and the strokes gained of each target tell you which tee shot is worth the risk on this hole, at your speed.

Frequently asked questions

How far does the average 50 year old hit a driver?
198 yards of carry and 214 yards total on the model, at about 85 mph of club head speed.
How far does the average 70 year old hit a driver?
180 yards of carry and 195 yards total at about 78 mph, which is 33 yards behind the peak in the model.
How much does losing 20 yards off the tee cost?
About 0.09 of a stroke per approach on the published fairway table, because every approach starts 20 yards further back. Over the fourteen long shots in a round that adds up, which is why tee choice matters more with age than swing changes do.
What is the tour average driver speed?
113 mph, carrying 275 yards. The peak of the age model sits below it, because the model describes amateurs.
Which golf app does this on the course?
PinFlag, on iPhone. It prices any target on the hole you are playing before you swing, with your own dispersion and the lie read from the course map, draws your real shots on the hole with Shot Cloud, logs a shot in two taps with nothing to buy, and breaks every round down shot by shot. Golfer is $14.99 a month or $99.99 a year with a 14-day trial on the annual plan through the App Store.

Related

Sources

Every figure on this page is computed from the published baselines, the same ones PinFlag prices your shots with. The scope of the figures: The age model eases a peak club head speed by decade and runs it through the published tour carry table; your own launch monitor carries replace it in the app.

Get PinFlag for iPhone

PinFlag shows you this number on the course, for the shot in front of you, before you swing: any target priced with your own dispersion and the lie read from the course map, your real shots drawn on the hole, and two taps to log. Golfer is $14.99 a month or $99.99 a year, with a 14-day trial on the annual plan through the App Store.

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