Dustin Johnson smashes record for longest drive on PGA Tour (but it won't count)
Tiger Woods once called Dustin Johnson “stupid long” off the tee.
There’s stupid long and then there’s the drive Johnson hit at the WGC-Dell Match Play tournament Friday.
On the 12th hole at the Austin Country Club, where the event was played, Johnson blasted a drive that blew away the official record.
It traveled 489 yards, leaving him with just a chip shot into the 575-yard par 5 hole.
Unfortunately for Johnson, that monster drive doesn’t count as the longest ever recorded at a PGA Tour event.
Since this happened at a match play event, it is not considered the longest official drive. As SB Nation noted, because match play events have different scoring and rules (like gimmes), and don’t always require the player to go 18 holes, the stats are not considered official PGA Tour stats.
Davis Love still holds the official mark with the 476-yard drive he hit during the 2004 Mercedes Championship at the Plantation Course at Kapalua Resort in Hawaii.
Drives of 400-plus yards are not uncommon at the 12th hole at the Austin Country Club. The downhill hole lends itself to some pretty good carry.
While no video of Johnson’s blast was captured on television, you can get a sense for the hole from these 400-plus yarders that Rory McIlroy, Johnson and Jon Rahm hit at the event last year.
McIlroy’s went 410 yards, Johnson’s went 424 yards and Rahm’s went 438 yards.
Three drives that went 400+ yards …
This 12th hole is pretty fun.
410 yards: Rory McIlroy
424 yards: Dustin Johnson
438 yards: Jon Rahm#TOURVault pic.twitter.com/GjVql3oa2v— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) March 21, 2018
The one Johnson hit Friday went almost 50 yards farther than Rahm’s.
In the absence of video, one reporter walked off Johnson’s 489-yard drive and identified its landing spot.
Here’s Johnson setting up for the 85-yard chip shot onto the green.
!!! Longest drive on Tour this year. DJ just hit one 489 yards.
4 .. 8 … 9 pic.twitter.com/3YiSQrLQrw
— Cork Gaines, Ph.D. (@CorkGaines) March 23, 2018
As impressive as it was, Johnson’s drive isn’t the longest ever recorded on Tour.
In 2002, Woods nailed a 498-yard drive on the 18th in the Mercedes Championship at Kapalua. It’s also listed as unofficial.
In 2002 on The Plantation Course, @TigerWoods hit the longest drive ever on the PGA TOUR: a 498 yard (!!!!) drive 😱
Welcome back to competitive golf, Tiger. pic.twitter.com/9uZb7Izicb
— The Sentry (@TheSentry) November 28, 2017
So, officially, Love’s 476-yard record stands.
For now.
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