The Longest Drivers in Golf Today

By: Liam Moore | Fri 11 Aug 2023

There’s always been truth in the saying driving for show and putting for dough, but how much more important has performance off the tee become in the modern game?

Due to unbelievable breakthroughs in technology, professional golfers are enjoying a boost to their driver yardages thanks to manufacturers.

So, whilst putting remains an important skill for scoring, being long with the big stick is increasingly advantageous.

PGA Tour

Rory McIlroy - 325.8 Yards

Rory McIlroy

(Image Credit: Kevin Diss Photography)

Unsurprisingly, Rory McIlroy leads the PGA Tour in total driving distance, accumulating an impressive 325.8-yard average. The driver has been a weapon for McIlroy throughout this career, as he often leans on the big stick to open scoring opportunities for himself. His monumental length off the tee helped him earn two more PGA Tour victories this season - CJ Cup and Genesis Scottish Open - but yet another year has passed with no major glory for the Northern Irishman.

Brandon Matthews - 321.2 Yards

Brandon Matthews is a relatively new name for PGA Tour fans, but committed followers of the professional game will recognise him from his time on the PGA Tour Latinoamerica and now the Korn Ferry Tour. Matthews averages 321.2 yards off the tee, which is only four yards away from the powerhouse that is McIlroy. Matthews, who turned 29 in July, enjoyed a bit of a breakout season last year after recording his first win on the Korn Ferry Tour before making the cut at the U.S. Open.

Cameron Young - 317.1 Yards

Cameron Young demonstrated that he belonged at this level when he first won his PGA Tour card in readiness for the 2021-22 season. During his rookie year, he finished T3 at the PGA Championship and runner-up at The Open Championship. What has enabled him to get such a foothold on the professional circuit is his performance with the driver. Young is ranked 3rd on the PGA Tour for total distance, averaging 317.1 yards per drive. As long as he keeps striping his driver, expect to see Young around for the long-haul.

DP World Tour

Wilco Nienaber - 336.1 Yards

Wilco Nienaber enjoyed a glittering amateur career, winning several events in South Africa before representing the country at the 2018 Eisenhower Trophy. The 23-year-old made his debut on the European Tour back in 2018, shooting consecutive 69s to make the cut as an amateur. Nienaber averages 336.1 yards from the tee, which is comfortably the greatest on the DP World Tour this year. Whilst he’s yet to add to his maiden professional win on the Sunshine Tour, the South African seemingly has all the tools to mix with the world’s best.

Alejandro Del Rey - 328.3 Yards

Alejandro Del Rey only turned professional in 2020 but he has made quite the impact since transitioning. He secured the first professional victory of his career at the Big Green Egg German Challenge on the Challenge Tour. He finished 22nd in the playoffs that year which saw him narrowly miss out on a full touring card for the DP World Tour. However, the bomber has played a lot on tour this year, largely thanks to his T3 finish at the Singapore Classic back in February 2023. The Spainard also qualified for the U.S. Open and the experience was rounded off when Jon Rahm asked him for a practice round.

Niklas Norgaard - 325.5 Yards

Niklas Norgaard has always been known for his length off the tee, but despite gaining a significant advantage when in the fairway, he is yet to add to his three Nordic League victories earned throughout a nine-year period (2011 to 2020). Whilst the Dane ranks 4th in driving distance, his ranking of 144th in driving accuracy paints the picture well. It just goes to show that whilst length off the tee remains an important tool, accuracy will always be essential for success.

LIV Golf

Peter Uihlein - 326.9 Yards

If you were surprised to not see Bryson DeChambeau top this list, you were not the only one! Peter Uihlein is an absolute weapon off the tee after averaging an impressive 326.9 yards in total distance this year on LIV Golf. He has two professional wins in his career, both of which came on the Challenge Tour, and he lost in the 2013 Alfred Dunhill Links Championship via a playoff. He’s still yet to win on LIV Golf, but a runner-up and four top 10 finishes indicates an inaugural victory may not be too far away.

Dean Burmester - 317.8 Yards

Dean Burmester was not one of the original LIV Golf defectors, as the South African joined the tour in February 2023. However, it was evidently a good decision as the South African has racked up more than $5 million in prize money - and he can thank his performance with the driver for that! Burmester is officially the second longest off the tee on LIV Golf, which helped him to a top 3 finish this year.

LPGA

Xiaowen Yin - 278.9 Yards

There aren’t many better ways to announce yourself than topping the driving distance rankings in your debut season. Did we also not mention that Xiaowen Yin is only 18 years old? The Chinese superstar is yet to win on the LPGA this season but she does boast a best result of T38 to date. The next job for Yin will be to work on her overall game, but if she is topping driving distance at just 18 years old, how good will she be when she matures as a professional?

Ladies European Tour

Anne Van Dam - 294.2 Yards

Leading the Ladies European Tour in driving distance is Anne Van Dam, and she’s nearly five whole yards ahead of second place. Van Dam experienced a glorious start to her career, picking up seven titles in the space of three years. However, her last victory came back in 2019 and the Dutch golfer is yet to add more glory. The 27-year-old did finish T2 at the Jabra Ladies Open earlier this season, so another triumph could be on the horizon.

Through new technology, driving distance has become a very helpful tool for golfers who are looking to assert their dominance.

However, a few on this list prove that without the accuracy, distance can be deemed fairly redundant if you’re constantly in difficult positions.