How Far Would Peak Jack Nicklaus Hit The Ball With Modern Golf Equipment?

The Golden Bear is one of the greatest drivers of the golf ball in the history of the game. How far would he have hit it if he had access to best modern kit?

Jack Nicklaus driving
Jack Nicklaus driving at the 1966 PGA Championship
(Image credit: Getty Images)

The obvious answer to this question is – we’ll never know. At the peak of his powers Jack Nicklaus did not have access to modern golf equipment. Right, it was good to get that out of the way quickly, now we can get on with some conjecture!

What we do know is that Jack was a famously strong driver of the golf ball and was renowned as one of the longest hitters of his generation.

What we also do know is that when the PGA Tour first started keeping records for driving distance in 1980, Jack (who was 40 by then) ranked 10th for the season with an average of 269 yards. He also ranked 13th for driving accuracy – quite a blend of power and precision.

As a younger man, Jack could really shift it. Back in 1967, IBM kept records for driving distance at a selection of tournaments on the PGA Tour. Nicklaus was the longest player in those rankings with an average of 276 yards.

We also have one-off evidence of how far he could hit the ball. He drove through the green at St Andrews in the playoff for the 1970 Open Championship. Although conditions were favourable, that was still a blow of some 370 yards.

Nicklaus won a long-drive event at the time of the 1963 PGA Championship. His winning shot was of an impressive 341 yards.

Jack Nicklaus

Jack Nicklaus driving at the US Masters

(Image credit: Getty Images)

If we say then that Nicklaus was very much to the top of the list when it came to long drivers of the 1960s and 70s and he hit the ball around the 275 yard mark on average. With modern equipment, at least 10% could be added. He would surely have averaged well over 300 yards with a modern driver and modern golf balls.

Although Nicklaus was a fit young man in his prime, he wouldn’t have trained in such an intense way as the modern golf professional. Modern pros like Rory McIlroy undergo a rigorous physical programme to maximise their strength and speed.

If we hypothesised even further than we already have and said, if peak Jack Nicklaus was given modern equipment and underwent an intensive programme of modern physical fitness training, its highly likely that he would have been able to hit the ball a comparable distance to the leading drivers of the ball today. We’ve gone on a great journey of conjecture so let’s finish it by saying – Peak Jack with modern equipment and physical conditioning would hit the ball somewhere around the 320 yard mark on average.

Fergus Bisset
Contributing Editor

Fergus is Golf Monthly's resident expert on the history of the game and has written extensively on that subject. He has also worked with Golf Monthly to produce a podcast series. Called 18 Majors: The Golf History Show it offers new and in-depth perspectives on some of the most important moments in golf's long history. You can find all the details about it here.  

He is a golf obsessive and 1-handicapper. Growing up in the North East of Scotland, golf runs through his veins and his passion for the sport was bolstered during his time at St Andrews university studying history. He went on to earn a post graduate diploma from the London School of Journalism. Fergus has worked for Golf Monthly since 2004 and has written two books on the game; "Great Golf Debates" together with Jezz Ellwood of Golf Monthly and the history section of "The Ultimate Golf Book" together with Neil Tappin , also of Golf Monthly. 

Fergus once shanked a ball from just over Granny Clark's Wynd on the 18th of the Old Course that struck the St Andrews Golf Club and rebounded into the Valley of Sin, from where he saved par. Who says there's no golfing god?