The BMW Championship being played at altitude in Colorado this week is making for some pretty astonishing yardage gains for PGA Tour pros - with Rory McIlroy's full yardage making for eye-watering reading.
The latest FedEx Cup Playoffs stop is at Castle Pines Golf Club, which sits around 6,200 feet above sea level at altitude that makes the golf ball just fly through the thinner air.
At a maximum of 8,130 yards, Castle Pines can be the longest course in PGA Tour history, but it may still not be long enough to contain the game's biggest hitters such as McIlroy.
After spanking a drive off the range during practice in Colorado, McIlroy's full stock yardages at this altitude have been collated - with some jaw-dropping numbers.
Averaging 319 yards off the tee so far in 2024, McIlroy can bomb a driver on full send at Castle Pines to a whopping 346 yards - and that's just the carry!
TaylorMade Golf did release a video on social media saying McIlroy had smoked a drive to an unbelievable 371 yards of carry, but even his stock yardage this week of 346 is impressive.
So is the 322 yards the Northern Irishman is able to carry his 3-wood at the greater altitude, while a 5-wood that can carry 300 yards is the stuff of make believe to most.
Rory McIlroy is carrying it 370 yards this week on the PGA Tour at 6,400 feet of elevation 😅pic.twitter.com/ZpSayNiVL2August 21, 2024
And the gains are right through the bag, with a 5-iron that can carry just under 250 yards (247) a weapon that few could ever dream of even on the PGA Tour.
Having an 8-iron that can carry 205 yards will be a great weapon in the BMW Championship and even the four-time Major champion's 9-iron can be ripped to 185 yards of carry.
There's a tournament to be won and FedEx Cup points to be gained this week, but there could also be long driving records broken at Castle Pines.
222-yard stock 7-iron?!Rory’s yardages will look a bit different this week at elevation 👀@TaylorMadeGolf | @McIlroyRory pic.twitter.com/IRKU0913x3August 21, 2024
Max Homa currently holds the record for the longest drive in PGA Tour history with his 477-yard effort at Kapalua's Plantation Course in Hawaii.
That's more like hitting off a cliff as four of the top 10 drives in the PGA Tour record books have some at that same venue - but if McIlroy or someone else can really wind one up then they could possibly threaten that top 10.
They'll need 455 yards or more at some point during competition to get into that top 10, but on the right hole with the right wind at this altitude it could be on.
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