Perhaps you just crushed the ball off the tee on your favorite par 5. As you line up your approach shot, you squint to see that the green is slightly further away than you once remembered.

You’re not alone. Golfers at every level are noticing courses have increased in distance, and nobody has it worse than those on the PGA Tour.

Why Are Courses Getting Longer?

Managers of golf courses are making these adjustments to account for the increase in average distance off the tee. In less than 20 years, the average drive distance on the PGA tour has increased by over 22 yards. But what is causing this increase?

Well, things like clubhead/face technology, shaft Technology, ball Improvements, player athleticism, and swing feedback training have all contributed to more distance.

As for how this will affect golf, for most casual players, the changes will not be too drastic. It’s unlikely that your home course is going to be reconstructing new greens just to extend the overall length. Where you may see some changes is on the tee box, but, if it makes you feel any better, studies have shown that distance is not as closely correlated to higher scores as much as difficulty factors like narrow fairways, small greens, and foliage.

In conclusion, yes, courses are getting longer. Will this affect your score by more than 1 or 2 strokes? Probably not. If you’d like to learn a little bit more about the changing course length epidemic, check out the infographic below by At The Tee!