Know your Distances like a Pro

Know your clubs and know your way around the course

All Tour Pros know the yardage of every club in their bag. Dustin Johnson and Jordan Spieth the two top players on The PGA Tour are dialed in on every club.
In order to get as close as possible to your target, you need to first know the distance. Once you know this information you can select the proper club to hit the ball that distance. The best way for you to find this out is to go to your local Pro who has a TrackMan or some other type of Launch monitor. Start with the highest lofted club in your bag. That might be a lob or sand wedge. Hit a minimum of five shots. Take the average distance and that will give you a good idea of how far you hit that club.
Continue doing this with every club in your bag. Each time writing down the average distance of the club. This entire process will take about an hour. Once you are done you will have a chart that looks like the one below.

LW- 85 SW – 100 PW- 115
9I – 125 8I – 135 7I – 150
6I – 165 5I -175 4Hy – 185 3Hy 200
5W- 220 3W – 240 D- 265

Now when you are on the course you can check to see what your yardage is off the tee and to the green. To get even more precise you can check yardage to the front , back and middle of the green.
Off the tee you can check how far it is to carry a hazard like water or a fairway bunker. This will help you manage your game better and chart your way around the course.
In turn you will hit into trouble less and get closer to your target more often. This will lead to lower scores and of course more fun. It will also boost your confidence. We all know that you hit your best shots when your are confident. So if you know that you are 160 yards from the center of the green and you hit a 6 iron 165 you can choke up a half inch and make a full swing with confidence. The result will always be better than if you we guessing. So head on out to your local Pro who has a launch monitor and check all the clubs in your bag so the next time you hit the links you give yourself the best chance to shoot better scores.