There are two forms of golfers: these chasing extra distance and people craving extra accuracy. Aaron Rai is firmly within the second camp.
On the time of writing, he’s hit 653 of 890 fairways this season, good for a 73.37 % driving accuracy fee. For comparability? The least correct driver on the PGA Tour (Frankie Capan) finds the golf green simply 42 % of the time.
What makes Rai’s driving stats so attention-grabbing isn’t simply how correct he’s, it’s what he’s utilizing to do it.
Aaron Rai’s driver setup: Not what you’d anticipate
Aaron Rai continues to be gaming a 2019 TaylorMade M6 driver with a Mitsubishi Diamana BB 73 TX shaft.
For context, the M6 received “Finest for Distance” in MyGolfSpy’s 2019 Most Needed Driver Check. It didn’t end prime of the charts for forgiveness however its mix of pace and consistency works for Rai.
What’s much more telling is that Rai isn’t afraid to interchange and improve tools. He performs the fashionable Qi10 fairway woods. He’s testing what’s on the market however has had no purpose to vary to one thing apart from the M6.
Longest versus most correct: How their seasons examine
The subsequent apparent query that involves thoughts is how vital it’s to hit fairways on the PGA Tour. We took the longest driver on Tour, Aldrich Potgieter, and in contrast him to Aaron Rai to see what their seasons appear like.
Clearly, there’s much more to it than distance versus accuracy off the tee however it’s nonetheless attention-grabbing to have a look.
Aaron Rai (Most Correct)
Driving Accuracy: 73.37%
Strokes Gained: Off-the-Tee: 0.390 (twenty second)
Membership Head Velocity: 113.38 mph (145th)
Common Driving Distance: 284.5 yards (162nd)
Official Cash: $2,771,710 (fiftieth)
High-10 Finishes: 1
Wins: 0
Aldrich Potgieter (Longest)
Driving Distance: 327.6 yards (1st)
Strokes Gained: Off-the-Tee: 0.686 (2nd)
Membership Head Velocity: 125.77 mph (2nd)
Driving Accuracy: 55.21% (137th)
Official Cash: $2,950,266 (forty seventh)
High-10 Finishes: 3
Wins: 1
So what will we be taught?
Regardless of Rai’s elite accuracy, Potgieter’s energy recreation has translated right into a stronger season total. He had extra top-10s, extra prize cash and a Tour win. That’s to not say Rai’s technique doesn’t work (his consistency off the tee continues to be among the many finest on the planet) however it does spotlight a reality most experts know nicely: hitting fairways is efficacious however distance wins extra typically.
Take a look at Rory McIlroy, the second-longest driver on Tour. He ranks 171st, 5 from the underside, for accuracy.
Last ideas
Aaron Rai could be one of many few gamers on Tour nonetheless gaming a six-year-old driver however there’s an excellent purpose: it performs for him.
If a membership provides you confidence and management, it doesn’t should be the most recent mannequin. Nevertheless, it in all probability is sensible to check it and see what the variations in stats would appear like. It’s one thing that Aaron Rai has seemingly finished each season.
The put up He’s The Most Correct Driver On The PGA Tour—However He’s Not Utilizing The Membership You’d Anticipate appeared first on MyGolfSpy.
