Nicolai Højgaard Is One Of The Biggest Hitters In World Golf... Here, He Shares His Exclusive Tips For Longer Drives
The Danish superstar consistently ranks inside the top five for driving distance, and his best tips can help you add extra yards off the tee...
It's been quite a year for Nicolai Højgaard. A victorious Ryder Cup debut in Rome was swiftly followed by the DP World Tour Championship title and the award of a PGA Tour card all before his 23rd birthday.
The achievements listed above should come as no surprise, especially considering the Danish sensation has a secret weapon that he wields to great effect - his driver.
Saying that Nicolai is long off-the-tee would be underselling it, as he ranked in the top-five for driving distance on the DP World Tour in each of the past two seasons. He also ranks 8th in the world for the same metric over the past 12 months across all professional tours.
With that in mind, who better to give advice on how to crush it with the driver than Højgaard himself, which he did exclusively in an interview with Golf Monthly. Here he shares his top four checkpoints that you can use to gain extra yards off the tee...
1) Set-up For Speed And Control
Your stance and the way you set up to the ball with an athletic posture is crucial. You need good balance and stability in your feet because you’re moving a touch more than with your irons. You need to load the right side in the backswing and move into the left side in the downswing to create speed and power. The ball is just inside the front foot and the shaft is pretty vertical to help you hit slightly up on the ball.
2) High Arms In The Backswing
I try to get my arms high in the backswing, so when I swing down the club falls naturally into place. This helps prevent too much of a slice for amateurs, because it stops you having to come ‘over the top’ if your backswing is too low and on the inside. Higher hands also enable you to create more speed because the swing is longer.
3) Left Leg Starts The Downswing
One of the drills I do is to finish my backswing and feel like I’m starting the downswing with my left knee moving a touch towards the target. From there, I rotate, which helps to shallow the club out so it attacks the ball from the inside and the clubhead is on the way up when I hit the ball.
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4) Push From The Ground Up
I feel like I’m pushing up and away from the ground through my feet. Build speed in your downswing instead of going too hard from the top, because you want to create the power through the hitting area. I use my core quite a lot and feel everything is engaged.
Barry Plummer is our Staff Writer, joining in January 2024 after seven years as a PE Teacher. He now writes about instruction, working closely with Golf Monthly's Top 50 Coaches to provide hints and tips about all aspects of the game. As someone who came into golf at a later age, Barry is very passionate about supporting the growth of the game and creating opportunities for everyone to access it. A member at Sand Moor Golf Club in Leeds, he looks forward to getting out on the course at least once a week and making up for lost time in the pursuit of a respectable handicap.
Barry is currently playing:
Driver: Ping G425
Hybrid: TaylorMade Stealth 4 Hybrid
Irons: Mizuno JPX 921 4-PW
Wedges: TaylorMade RAC 60, Callaway Jaws MD5 54
Putter: TaylorMade Spider Tour
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