Las Vegas, Nevada (August 4, 2013)–The buzz is quickly building for the 2013 RE/MAX World Long Drive Championship that will be held at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway on October 30. Eight of the world's biggest hitters–who make it to Las Vegas after qualifying in Mesquite, Nevada in September–will descend on the Speedway for the final event live on Golf Channel. And as proof of how powerful these big hitters are, two recent world champions each broke the golf simulators on the set of Golf Channel in the past year. The videos have earned millions of views, making them among the most-watched moments in Golf Channel history. Read on for the video. –By Brian Hurlburt, Follow @LVGolfInsider
First, Jamie Sadlowski took down the monitor–hitting his ball through the net and the screen–and several months later he was followed by current world champion Ryan Winther. He one-upped Sadlowski by ripping his drive through plywood placed in front of the net and screen in addition to the netting and screen behind the wood. And, he said, that swing was only his "warm-up" swing, but the monitor measured the blast at 333 yards with a swing speed of 133 MPH.
Sadlowski's moment came in 2012 when he was challenged to a a long drive contest by Morning Drive host Gary Williams. Sadlowski, the World Champion in 2008 and 2009, was given the honor of hitting first and blew his tee shot through the netting and the simulator screen, prompting Williams to break down in amazement and laughter before saying, "this contest, people, is over! He just broke our simulator!" Williams then commented about how Sadlowski had warned Golf Channel staff that he may break it due his powerful swing speeds.
The swing and ball speeds that the world's longest hitters generate approach 150 MPH and 225 MPH respectively. The average male golfer has a swing speed of about 93 MPH while the biggest hitting PGA Tour pros can get swings speed up to about 130 MPH when they are off the course and just trying to mash it. Check out more video of Sadlowski and Winther now.
The qualifying rounds in Mesquite, Nevada, take place September 18-27. Golf Channel will be taping the action and then running a series of shows leading up to the live October 30 event in Las Vegas. The Finals are winner-take-all with the final hitter walking away with $250,000. Tickets are free for the Las Vegas Finals and can be printed by clicking this link to the official website of Long Drivers of America. Get your free tickets now!