Your 7-iron at 9,709 feet.
Where America's golf courses sit, and how far the same 7-iron flies at each. Plus the longest hole the pros play, the par 6, and the Miura set built around a number.
Distance, man. Nothing feels better than crushing a driver, and it's why I go back to it more than I should. This week's newsletter is all about distance: how far the same swing flies a mile up, the longest hole the pros play, and the par 6. Enjoy.
The Tour goes to sea level. Most of us already play there.
The PGA Tour is back on Thursday at Port Royal in Bermuda, where Adam Schenk defends the Butterfield Bermuda Championship he won last year at 12 under. It's an island course on the Atlantic, so the wind will matter far more than the air.
That got us wondering where the rest of golf sits. We have an elevation for every one of the 14,563 US courses we track, so we put them all on one map.
Seven courses in ten sit below 1,000 feet. Only 509 are at 5,000 feet or higher. 28 are below sea level: 17 in the California desert, 10 around New Orleans and one in Florida. The lowest is Furnace Creek in Death Valley, at 196 feet below. The highest is Copper Creek in Colorado, a nine-hole course at 9,709 feet.
Height matters because thinner air lets the ball fly farther. A published rule of thumb puts it at about 1.16% more carry for every 1,000 feet.
A 150-yard 7-iron at sea level carries about 159 at TPC Colorado's 5,181 feet and 167 at Copper Creek. Seventeen extra yards is more than a full club for most of us.
The takeaway: on a mountain trip, club down before the first tee and trust it. Coming home, do the opposite, or your first few greens will all come up short.
SEE THE HIGHEST COURSE WE TRACK →The longest hole the pros play is a par 5 in Colorado
TPC Colorado opened in 2018 north of Denver, in Berthoud, and it has become a regular stop on the Korn Ferry Tour. Its 13th is 773 yards from the back tee, billed as the longest hole in PGA TOUR golf. It's a par 5.
Two things make it less brutal than it sounds. The hole bends, and the straight line from the back tee to the middle of the green measures about 700 yards on our map. And the course sits at 5,181 feet, so by the same rule of thumb 773 yards plays more like 729 at sea level.
Most of us won't see the back tee. From the Gold tee the 13th is 660 yards, which plays more like 623 at sea level, and from the Blue it's 596. That's a long par 5 anywhere, but a normal three-shot hole.
The takeaway: the scary number on a mountain card is shorter than it looks. Take the elevation off before you decide whether you can get home in two.
SEE TPC COLORADO'S CARD AND MAP →Steph Curry's Miura set has a 6-iron called 30
Miura announced a limited iron set with Steph Curry last week. Only 300 sets are being made, and 30 of them come with a certificate Curry signed himself.
It's a mixed set. The 4, 5 and 6 are Miura's TC-202 cavity backs, and the 7 through the pitching wedge are MB-101 blades, all in a black finish with Dynamic Gold Tour Issue shafts. The 6-iron is bent to 30 degrees and stamped "30" on the sole instead of "6", for his jersey number.
The bend isn't only for show. Miura publishes the lofts for both lines, and putting them side by side shows why.
| Club | Head | Stock loft | In the Curry set |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4 | TC-202 | 23° | 23° |
| 5 | TC-202 | 26° | 26° |
| 6 | TC-202 | 29° | 30° |
| 7 | MB-101 | 34° | 34° |
| 8 | MB-101 | 38° | 38° |
| 9 | MB-101 | 42° | 42° |
| PW | MB-101 | 47° | 47° |
Left alone, the TC-202 6-iron at 29 degrees would sit 5 degrees from the MB-101 7-iron at 34. That's the widest gap in the set. At 30 it's 4, the same step as the irons around it.
The takeaway: if you mix two iron models in one bag, line up the lofts where they meet. A degree of bending at the joint is cheap, and it's what Miura did here.
SEE THE MIURA TC-202 →Seventeen courses still have a par 6
Par 6 sounds made up. It isn't, but it's rare. Of the 11,541 courses where we hold a full scorecard, 17 list a par 6 of 600 yards or more. That's about one course in 680.
The longest is at Meadows Farms in Locust Grove, Virginia: 841 yards from the Blue tee, with a pond in the fairway and another in front of the green. It's billed as the longest golf hole in the United States. Sun Valley in Missouri has one at 720 yards and Galla Creek in Arkansas at 682.
Here's the fun part. TPC Colorado's 773-yard par 5 is longer than every par 6 we hold but Meadows Farms.
The takeaway: a par 6 is three good shots and a wedge. Play it that way and a 6 on the card is a par you earned.
Counted from each course's longest tee whose hole pars add up to its par. Shorter par 6s on a card are usually a typo or a junior tee, so we left them out.
SEE THE MEADOWS FARMS CARD AND MAP →What's the highest course you've ever played?
Reply and tell us, and whether you clubbed down.
See you next week,
Blake