Record Breaking American Golf Long Drive Final Confirmed

With 400 yard bombs, Tour players and over 5000 entrants, The 2017 American Golf Long Drive Championship is breaking all records

Record Breaking American Golf Long Drive Final Confirmed

With 400 yard bombs, Tour players and over 5000 entrants, The 2017 American Golf Long Drive Championship is breaking all records

Record Breaking American Golf Long Drive Final Confirmed

With five qualifiers over 400 yards, record qualifying distances in each category and an unprecedented level of competition, American Golf has confirmed the line-up of competitors who will take on the reigning champions at the final of the American Golf Long Drive Championship.

With over 5000 golfers taking part over the past three months, qualification for the American Golf Long Drive Championship final has thrown up some incredible distances from the UK’s biggest hitters.

Topping the pile in the Under 45 category is 2016 finalist John McSloy from Glasgow who sent out a 415 yard monster, just ahead of 2016 runner-up Dave Evans, with 412.

389 yards is the cut off for U45 qualifiers this year, with the bottom players clinging on in a 4 way tie at a distance 6 yards further than the longest hit in last year’s final!

Record Breaking American Golf Long Drive Final Confirmed

In the Ladies Championship there will be some real competition for reigning champion and world No.3 Rebecca McGinley, after LET Tour player Carly Booth threw her hat in the ring at last chance qualifying in London.

After proceeding through to the regional final, Carly tops the ladies leaderboard with 304 yards.

The Over 45 qualifiers weren’t left behind in the record breaking statistics with Sean McCormack from Dunblane registering 387 yards, ahead of William Hunt-Tyrell’s 369.

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Pro golfers and past finalists pepper the qualifying field with five qualifiers registering 350+ and beaten 2016 finalist David Willmore creeping in at number 10 with 334 yards.

After watching qualifying come to a close at the Manchester Golf Show, Daniel Gathercole, Director of Marketing and Communications at American Golf commented, “The standard of qualifying this year has been incredible.

"To have over 5000 entrants has surpassed all our expectations and really shows the growing popularity of Long Drive since we introduced the Championship in 2015.

Record Breaking American Golf Long Drive Final Confirmed

Two-time Ladies European Tour winner Carly Booth broke the 300-yard mark in qualifying

"There's been record distances in every category, we’ve got finalists who flew in from Germany to just hit 6 balls to qualify, we’ve got Tour players, teaching Pro’s, one guy off +5 and a healthy dose of club golfers who just hit a very long ball.

This Championship really has brought every type of golfer together and we can’t wait to find our 3 Champions in front of Sky Sports’ cameras at Heythrop Park in August who’ll go on to represent the U.K. and American Golf at the World Championships.”

Qualifiers in the 3 categories will battle it out at new final venue – Heythrop Park in Oxfordshire – on Friday 4th August.

Spectator entry to the final will be completely free and all are welcome.

The Long Drive Championship is one part of American Golf’s drive to get more people hitting more balls and for 2017 those balls have been going a very long way!

Under 45 Category

Pos. / Player / Yards

1 John McSloy 415

2 David Evans 412

3 James Fawssett 405

Ladies Category

Pos. / Player / Yards

1 Carly Booth 304

T2 Ilona Stubley 274

T2 Sanni Kamarainen 274

Over 45 Category

Pos. / Player / Yards

1 Sean McCormack 387

2 William Hunt-Tyrell 369

3 Paul Slater 362

 

Elliott Heath
News Editor

Elliott Heath is our News Editor and has been with Golf Monthly since early 2016 after graduating with a degree in Sports Journalism. He manages the Golf Monthly news team as well as our large Facebook, Twitter and Instagram pages. He covered the 2022 Masters from Augusta National as well as five Open Championships on-site including the 150th at St Andrews. His first Open was in 2017 at Royal Birkdale, when he walked inside the ropes with Jordan Spieth during the Texan's memorable Claret Jug triumph. He has played 35 of our Top 100 golf courses, with his favourites being both Sunningdales, Woodhall Spa, Western Gailes, Old Head and Turnberry. He has been obsessed with the sport since the age of 8 and currently plays off of a six handicap. His golfing highlights are making albatross on the 9th hole on the Hotchkin Course at Woodhall Spa, shooting an under-par round, playing in the Aramco Team Series on the Ladies European Tour and making his one and only hole-in-one at the age of 15 - a long time ago now!

Elliott is currently playing:

Driver: Titleist TSR4

3 wood: Titleist TSi2

Hybrids: Titleist 816 H1

Irons: Mizuno MP5 5-PW

Wedges: Cleveland RTX ZipCore 50, 54, 58

Putter: Odyssey White Hot OG #5

Ball: Srixon Z Star XV