Driving distance numbers from Arccos Golf show some fascinating insights into how far female golfers hit the ball, with the numbers based on over 20 million drives from golfers of all ages and abilities.
While the longest hitters on LPGA Tour bomb their drives around 280 yards on average, the numbers are unsurprisingly more modest at club level. The average drive of a handicap golfer in the women's game is 177 yards, which is actually down on 2018.
So while driving distance in the pro game continues to rise, the amateur game is bucking the trend - and it's the same in the men's game as we found at when looking at how far male golfers hit their drives.
How far female golfers drive the ball - last 5 years
- 2022: 177 yards
- 2021: 178 yards
- 2020: 181 yards
- 2019: 177 yards
- 2018: 179 yards
How far women hit their drives
The longest female golfers in the amateur are unsurprisingly women in their 20s with handicaps of scratch to 4.9. They average an impressive 244 yards with their drives.
The Arccos data shows distances for women in their 20s, 30s, 40s and 50s, and it is the players in their 20s who hit it longest in all handicap ranges barring the 5-9.9 category, where those in their 30s are the longest. Distance then decreases with age, with golfers in their 50s hitting it the shortest.
When it comes to the handicap ranges, it is again unsurprising to see that scratch to 4.9 handicappers hit the ball the furthest in all age categories, proving that technique leads to longer hitting.
For 0-4.9 handicappers, golfers in their 20s hit it 244 yards, women in their 30s average 238 yards and those in their 40s hit it 233 yards. From there, there is a huge drop off to golfers in their 50s, who average 201 yards - showing that from your forties to fifties there's a loss of 32 yards.
Women in their forties can almost keep up with their younger counterparts, with handicaps of scratch to 4.9 outdriving all women in their 20s and 30s with handicaps of five and above.
With the average hitting distance for women at 177 yards, it is players in their 30s with handicaps of 20-24.9 who are closest to that number with an average of 178 yards.
All women under 40 with handicaps below 25 hit it above average distance, with the longest hitters 67 yards longer than average. The shortest hitters are golfers in their 50s with handicaps of 30+, who average 136 yards off the tee - 41 yards behind the average distance.
In terms of losing distance with age, it is the scratch to 4.9 handicappers who see the biggest drop off. Golfers in their 20s hit it 43 yards longer than those in their 50s, off the same 0-4.9 handicap, whereas for 30+ handicappers the distance gap between 20s and 50s is 32 yards. This shows that the younger, more flexible golfers with handicaps of 0-4.9 are able to get more distance out of their games thanks to their flexibilty but also their technique.
How accurate are female golfers off the tee?
When it comes to accuracy, it is the older golfers who find more fairways. Less distance will inevitably mean less spin and perhaps less to go wrong.
The most accurate golfers are 0-4.9 handicappers in their 50s, who find 58% of fairways. Even 30+ handicappers in their 50s hit more than 50% of fairways, which is more than all golfers of all abilities under 50.
Interestingly, in the 40s age category it is the 30+ handicappers who are most accurate with 54% of fairways found on average. This is 3% higher than golfers of the same age with handicaps of 0-4.9 and evidence that less speed tends to equal more accuracy.
No players under the age of 40 find 50% of fairways.
The least accurate drivers of the ball in the women's game are 10-14.9 handicappers in their 30s and 30+ handicappers in their 20s, who have a driving accuracy of 44%. Overall, women are more accurate off the tee than men - with men in their 20s with 30+ handicaps finding just 35% of fairways for example.
