Nicolai Hojgaard: 3 keys to hit the ball further

Nicolai Hojgaard is one of the longest hitters in professional golf. Here’s how he gets the most from his golf swing.

The DP World Tour winner who is now plying his trade on the PGA Tour is known for his incredible distance off the tee. Last year on the European circuit, the Dane averaged 317 yards off the tee. No matter how you cut it, that’s a long way.

As we know, hitting the ball a long way from the tee is particularly important at any level of the game. And we have the stats to prove it. Thanks to the team at Shot Scope, we know that scratch golfers have a performance average of 285 yards from the tee with their driver. When we look at a 15 handicap player, that number falls to 238 yards. Although there are other important facets, being able to hit the ball far is clearly advantageous.

With that in mind, bunkered.co.uk caught up with Hojgaard, to ask how he hits the ball so far, and what we can learn from him. He had three key pieces of advice that we can all take to the golf course.

1. Find the centre of the face

The number one key for hitting the ball a long way is to consistently hit the middle of the club face. A centred strike is so underrated and not talked about enough.

If you can consistently hit the middle every time, you’re going to gain yardage, and although I do have a lot of speed and that is something I work on, the most important thing I think about every week on every shot is to hit the centre of the face.

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2. Don’t let your set-up slip

For me, the first thing I look for to ensure I’m going to strike the ball well and hit a good shot is a solid set-up. A strong set-up leads to good swings.

Sometimes I’ll get sloppy in my set-up and the lines between my feet, my hips, my shoulders, my eyes, and my arms won’t match up.

But I know that if I get those things to be on track then I’ve got the best possible chance of hitting a good shot.

• How tracking my stats with Shot Scope helped my golf

3. Tempo is key – don’t rush

As much as you can’t see it in the pictures, getting a solid tempo on my shot is very important to me. I don’t want to get too ahead of myself in my swing, I just need to keep a good rhythm and finish my swing properly, but not to rush it.

The worst thing I can do is get a feeling of being short and fast, because then I get rushed and out of sync.

You need to be patient in your swing and not rush the shot.

This piece of advice first appeared in issue 209 of bunkered. To subscribe to the magazine, click here. 

Lewis Fraser As bunkered’s Performance Editor, Lewis oversees the content that’s designed to make you a better player. From the latest gear to tuition, nutrition, strategy and more, he’s the man. A graduate of the University of Stirling, Lewis joined bunkered in 2021. Formerly a caddie at Castle Stuart Golf Links, he is a member of Bathgate Golf Club where he plays off four.

Performance Editor