Greg Norman was the World’s Number 1 golfer for 331 weeks through the 1980s and 1990s. He was a prolific winner and racked up an astonishing 88 victories as a professional. He’s regarded as something of an underachiever when it comes to Major success – He was twice an Open champion but suffered a number of unfortunate near misses in the game’s biggest events. Norman’s reputation as a “nearly man” in the Majors overshadows his tremendous consistency in the big events. Through his career he recorded 30 top-10 finishes in Major championships including eight top-five finishes at Augusta.
Norman was famous for his ability with the driver. He was both powerful and accurate and extremely consistent in finding the sweet spot of the smaller headed weapons players used in the 1980s and 1990s. He was one of the longest hitters on the world scene, but how far did Greg Norman drive the golf ball?
Let’s consider a 10-year period when Norman was really at the peak of his powers – from 1987 to 1996. During that time he won 13 times on the PGA Tour and picked up 21 further titles around the world. During those 10 years, he was never outside of the World’s Top-10.
Looking at the PGA Tour stats for that 10-year spell of excellence, Norman’s average driving distance was 275.4 yards. He was ranked a best of second in driving distance in 1991 and was in the top-10 for driving distance in 6 of the 10 years.
275.4 yards may not seem that far in comparison to the huge distance players hit the ball today, but you have to put it into context in terms of the equipment being used back in the 1990s. If you think that to be one of the top-10 drivers on the PGA Tour in 2023, you need to be averaging over 313 yards, you get some idea of how far a Greg Norman in his prime might hit the ball in current conditions. Techniques may have changed, but Norman was a power player and it would be safe to say that, with modern kit and course conditioning, he might well have averaged over 300 yards from the tee.
It should also be noted that, alongside his power, Norman was a highly accurate driver of the ball. In the 10 years between 1987 and 1996, Norman ranked in the top-50 on the PGA Tour for driving accuracy six times. He managed to get the ball out there, but he also managed to keep the ball straight and that was a fundamental key to his success in the latter part of the 20th century.
How far did Greg Norman drive the golf ball? Well, the PGA Tour's stats show that when at the peak of his powers, in the late 1980s and through the early and mid 1990s, he was averaging about 275 yards off the tee.
