Compare Your Golf Club Distances to PGA Pros
See How You Stack Up Against the Pros
Ever wondered how your driver or 7-iron compares to the average on Tour?
This calculator compares your bag directly against 2023 PGA Tour Trackman Averages. To get an accurate result, enter your 'Stock' carry below. This is the distance you reliably hit the ball with a smooth, normal swing, not your absolute maximum drive.
We will adjust your numbers based on your consistency profile to show you the real difference between your game and the pros.
What is Your "Real Average"
Most golfers overestimate their yardages because they base them on their "Stock Carry," that single, perfectly struck shot that felt great coming off the face. However, your score is determined by your average, not your best.
This calculator uses a proprietary efficiency algorithm to convert your potential stock yardage into a realistic on-course average by accounting for three critical variables:
- Strike Quality (Smash Factor): Amateur golfers rarely hit the center of the face as consistently as a Pro. A mishit off the toe or heel reduces ball speed significantly. We apply an efficiency penalty based on the handicap range you selected to reflect this reality.
- Ball Flight (Vector Efficiency): A straight shot travels the shortest distance to the target. If you selected a "Slice" or "Hook," you are losing forward distance to side-spin. Our model subtracts yardage to account for this inefficient flight path.
- Ball Trajectory (Landing Angle): Distance isn't just about speed; it's about launch. Shots that "Balloon" (spin too much) or "Run" (launch too low) fail to carry hazards and hold greens. The calculator adjusts your carry number to reflect these common trajectory issues.
Understanding Your Gapping Analysis
If the calculator flagged issues in the Gapping Analysis box, here is what those warnings mean for your game:
- "Bunching" (The Most Common Amateur Issue):
This occurs when two clubs (often the 4-iron and 5-iron) travel roughly the same distance. This happens because most amateurs generate enough clubhead speed to launch a 7-iron properly, but lack the speed to get a 4-iron high enough in the air. The result is a low, running shot that lands short.
The Fix: A golf club fitter can replace "bunched" long irons with Hybrids or High-Loft Fairway Woods, which are engineered to launch higher and carry further at your specific swing speed.
- "Gap Alert" (Over 18 Yards):
If you have a massive yardage gap between two clubs, you are likely forced to swing "too hard" with the shorter club or "take something off" the longer one. Both lead to inconsistency.
The Fix: A loft and lie adjustment machine can often fix this in minutes by bending your irons to space them out evenly (e.g., 4° of loft between each club).
- "Inverted" (Negative Gap):
If a shorter club goes further than a longer club, it indicates a severe equipment mismatch. This is likely a shaft that is too heavy or stiff in the longer club, preventing you from loading it properly.
Using This Data to Improve Your Game
While it is fun to compare your numbers against the best players in the world, the goal of this tool is not to make you feel like you need to hit it as far as a PGA Tour Pro.
PGA Pros play golf as a full-time job with equipment perfectly tuned to their biomechanics. Instead of chasing their distance, focus on chasing their efficiency. To do that, here are some tips:
- Don't Swing Harder, Fit Smarter: The easiest way to gain distance isn't the gym; it's the workshop. Optimizing your launch angle and spin rate with a driver fitting can often unlock 10–20 yards of carry without changing your swing speed.
- Trust Your "Real Average": Next time you approach a green, play the yardage shown in the "Real Avg" column, not your "Stock" number. You will find yourself pin-high more often, rather than coming up short in bunkers.
- Fill the Void: If this tool showed you have a 30-yard gap between your Driver and 3-Wood (or 3-Wood and Hybrid), you are missing a scoring club. A club fitting session can identify the exact club configuration needed to fill that hole in your bag.
Data Source & Methodology
The PGA Tour baseline comparison data used in this tool is sourced from TrackMan's latest 2023 PGA Tour Averages, which tracks real-time performance metrics during tournament play.
The yardages listed are Carry Distances, the distance the ball travels through the air before landing. Roll is not factored.
To provide context on why Pro numbers are so high, consider the launch conditions they achieve:
- Driver: 115 mph Club Speed / 10.4° Launch Angle / 2,545 rpm Spin Rate
- 7 Iron: 92 mph Club Speed / 16.1° Launch Angle / 7,124 rpm Spin Rate
- Pitching Wedge: 84 mph Club Speed / 23.7° Launch Angle / 9,316 rpm Spin Rate
Note: Amateur data is modeled based on general launch monitor observations regarding smash factor retention and off-center strike penalties relative to handicap levels.