[Kim Maengnyeong's Golf English Conversation] "Watson's Longest Drive Tips"

Bubba Watson is popular for his powerful long drives.

This is the secret behind the long drives of left-handed golfer Bubba Watson.

Watson is known as a long hitter on the PGA Tour alongside the 'Hulk' Bryson DeChambeau and Dustin Johnson (both from the USA). I had the chance to meet him as a simultaneous interpreter during the 2015 Presidents Cup held at Jack Nicklaus Golf Club in Songdo, Incheon. Watson hit a 424-yard drive at the 2014 WGC-Bridgestone Invitational.

He stands 6.3 feet (1.91m) tall with a lean build. He is self-taught in golf, and his unorthodox swing is intriguing. His unique upright swing involves the club head passing the lowest point of the swing path and then striking the ball on the way up. He maintains a tee height of 1.89 inches for his drives, which is about 1 inch (2.54cm) higher than the average tee height of 0.78 inches used by typical professional players.

Watson's launch angle on his drives is also 15 degrees, roughly 4 degrees higher than the PGA Tour average of 11 degrees. His club head speed reaches 120 mph (193 km/h), whereas most single-digit handicap golfers swing around 90 mph (145 km/h). To reduce backspin, he uses a 44.5-inch Matrix shafted Ping G400 LST driver with an 8.5-degree loft in Peak color. This shaft length is actually 0.5 inches shorter than the 45-inch shafts used by amateur golfers.

His drives stay in the air for about 7 seconds before descending to achieve maximum distance, compared to about 3 seconds for amateur golfers. Regarding the secret to his long drives, he emphasized, "You have to hit the ball precisely on the sweet spot." Watson actually hits the sweet spot about 8 to 9 times out of 10. He can freely control the ball flight, producing straight shots as well as fades and draws at will. This skill has helped him secure 12 PGA Tour wins in total.

A(golfer): How far was the longest drive you ever hit?

B(Watson): About 315 yards on average but sometimes drive about 420 yards with the wind behind me.

A: I wish I could hit long drives like you. Could you share simple tips for me?

B: Four things golfers need to do to hit longer drives: upward angle of attack, place 60% of your weight on your right side, hit the ball on the center of the face (sweet spot), and create swing speed.

Written and photographed by Kim Maengnyeong, Golf Columnist