It makes sense that we all want to know how to drive long off the tee. After all, more distance gives us shorter and easier approach shots to the green. Most of the golf swing instruction e-books offer to teach us how to add more distance. Most of them promise an extra few yards or so.

These guidebooks, however, are designed for the recreational or beginner golfer. They teach you all about the golf swing; the grip, setup, backswing, downswing, and follow through. But if you are a competent golfer that is just looking for more in depth information about how to drive long, you will learn more from the distance golf experts.

The Long Drivers of America

The first website that you should check out is the Long Drivers of America. They are the golf association that runs the Remax Long Drive Championship. They are into learning the power golf swing for attaining maximum golf distance. So, if you want to participate in the Re/Max World Long Drive Championship, then you need to visit the LDA website.

Mike Austin And The Worlds Longest Drive

Unbelievably, the Worlds longest golf drive has not been broken since 1974. Golfing legend, Mike Austin, holds the Guinness World Record for longest drive in a tournament. His record breaking 515-yard drive was accomplished at the 1974 U.S. National Senior Open in Las Vegas - at the age of 64!

Austin managed that incredible drive using a 43.5 inch long steel-shafted driver with a wood-head! So clearly, the golfing equipment doesn't have as much to do with how far you can drive the ball as the technique. However, the long drive champions nowadays like to use 2X or 3X, extra-stiff shafts that are up to 50 inches in length, and that have lofts that are as low as 5 or 6 degrees.

Learning How To Drive Long

For most of us, we just want to learn how to drive long and to improve our general golf game. Even if you have a decent grip and swing, it doesn't necessarily mean that you will have a good golf distance off the tee. The major factor that you need to improve is your golf club head speed. Every 1 mph of increased golf swing speed translates into about 2.5 yards of distance. If you increase your swing speed, you'll increase your distance.

Obviously, there are other factors to perfect if you want to learn how to drive long. Golf flexibility and fitness training will improve your overall golf game, as well as your distance. Another important area of your game that you should know about is the mental game of golf. These areas of golf are usually ignored by most golfers, but they are crucial if you want to take your game to the next level.

A Distance Golf Instructor

To learn how to drive long properly, you need a golf instructor who knows what it takes to achieve distance golf. If you are actually driving the ball 200 yards or less, then adding only a few yards to your drives won't help you too much. Find someone that used to shoot in the 90's, who learned how to hit 350 to 430 yard drives, and who can now score in the 60's and 70's.