How far?! Rickie Fowler records one of golf’s longest-ever drives at Gullane

Okay, so the hot, dry weather of late has left the majority of the country’s courses nice and firm, and conducive to hitting the ball further than usual.

Even so, you’ve got to give a hat tip to Rickie Fowler for recording one of the longest drives in the history of professional golf yesterday.

• Hot weather makes Scotland’s courses change COLOUR!

Playing in the penultimate round of the Scottish Open at Gullane, Fowler – who is looking to secure back-to-back victories at the East Lothian course following his win there in 2015 – unleashed an eye-popping 458-yard drive on the tenth hole.

That’s right: FOUR-HUNDRED AND FIFTY-EIGHT YARDS.

Don’t believe us? Watch it for yourself…

Fowler isn’t particularly regarded as one of the game’s bigger hitters. He currently ranks 85th on the PGA Tour this season in the driving distance category, averaging 297.1 yards off the tee.

Still, his Gullane effort is comfortably longer than the longest drive recorded on the PGA Tour this year. 

• Fowler primed for back-to-back Gullane glory

• Watch Patrick Reed come a cropper in Gullane bunker

Dustin Johnson shares that honour with Hudson Swafford after both players knocked it 430 yards on the 12th and seventh holes respectively during the Sentry Tournament of Champions at the start of the season.

According to PGA Tour data, the ‘official’ longest drive in its history belongs to Davis Love III, who hit a 476-yard drive on at Kapalua’s Plantation Course in the 2004 Mercedes Championship. 

The longest recorded drive is Dustin Johnson’s 489-yard effort on the day three of match play in the 2018 WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play. 

The European Tour doesn’t publish records for longest drives. 

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