In the great game of golf, we use 14 golf clubs, each with their own characteristics. One of these characteristics is the carry distance of each club, which depends on both the club type, and you as a golfer.
Therefore, knowing there are 14 clubs in golf, you may wonder: what is the average carry distance for each golf club type?
In this article, we will tell you exactly the average carry distance for each golf club type, including for drivers, irons, and more.
What Is The Average Carry Distance For Each Golf Club Type?
The average carry distances for a somewhat experienced adult male golfer are: driver: 250 yards; 3-Wood: 225 yards; 3-Iron: 200 yards; 4-Iron: 190 yards; 5-Iron: 180 yards; 6-Iron: 165 yards; 7-Iron: 150 yards; 8-Iron: 140 yards; 9-Iron: 130 yards; Pitching Wedge: 115 yards; Putter: 15 yards.
Carry distance in golf is defined as how far you can shoot a golf ball from one point to the point where it stops. Carry distance is usually measured in golf.
Every golf club type we use, including the driver, irons, woods, and more, has special characteristics that make it best suited for a specific situation. This is the reason why we can carry up to 14 golf clubs in our golf bag. These characteristics have a huge influence on carry distance in golf.
Therefore, it should come with no surprise that a decent golfer can get a larger carry distance by hitting a golf ball with a driver than with a putter.
The carry distance of your golf clubs will depend on various factors, such as your strength, how much power you can generate, the club head speed, how good your technique is, and the type of golf club you choose.
This goes to show that average carry distances are probably not the carry distances you will personally hit around.
Average carry distances are just a random benchmark that you should not focus too much on. Instead, you should focus on improving the carry distances that you typically average with each club type.
Nevertheless, seeing a sample of average carry distances with different club types can give you an idea of the difference in yardage to expect from one club to the next.
Therefore, down below, you can see average carry distance numbers for different golf clubs. These figures assume you perform full swings with power.
Note: these carry distances are sampled from somewhat experienced adult men. If you are elderly, female, a child/teen, or inexperienced at golf, you should expect lower benchmarks.
| Golf Club Type | Carry Distance (yards) |
| Driver | 230-270 |
| 3-Wood | 195-250 |
| 2-Hybrid | 190-235 |
| 5-Wood | 175-195 |
| 3-Iron | 175-225 |
| 4-Iron | 165-210 |
| 5-Iron | 155-200 |
| 6-Iron | 145-185 |
| 7-Iron | 130-175 |
| 8-Iron | 120-160 |
| 9-Iron | 110-150 |
| Pitching Wedge | 100-135 |
| 52 Degree Wedge | 75-110 |
| 56 Degree Wedge | 65-90 |
| Putter | 10-15 |
Remember that the statistics in the chart above are unlikely to directly reflect where you should be at in your golf journey. Becoming a good golfer is a long road that takes many years before you can reach or surpass the numbers in this chart.
To illustrate this, note that many professional male golfers carry the golf ball with a driver way past 300 yards. How ever, their average is just a little below 300 yards with a driver, which is not that much better than the upper echelon in the chart above.
If you manage to consistently use the driver to hit golf balls past 200 yards, you are already becoming pretty decent at golf.
Another note on why you should not compare yourself with the pros: there is a video online of Joe Miller, Long Drive champion, using a putter to tee off the golf ball. How far did he hit it? 50 yards? 80 yards? 100 yards? No, he drove the ball 306 yards. With a putter.
Instead of comparing yourself with pros or the chart above, compare your previous carry distances to your next shots in order to know if you are making good progress. Focus on beating yourself rather than beating this chart, and you will beat this chart a lot faster.
There are a few other golf club types in existence not mentioned in the chart above, but you can estimate their expected carry distance based on similar clubs. Furthermore, you can check out the manufacturers’ website to find more useful information.
You may also notice that the numbers of numbered golf clubs within a single type (woods, irons, etc) do correlate with their carry distance. The lower the number, the higher carry distance.
For example, a 3-Iron will have a much larger carry distance than a 9-Iron, assuming you hit both shots with correct and similar swing technique. This is due to many elements in the construction of the clubs, including shaft length, shaft flex, and loft.
Conclusion
There you go! After reading this article, you discovered the average carry distances of each type of golf club. Use this knowledge to your advantage to know which club to select based on how far you are from the flag!
Over time, as you practice, you will get a better idea of exactly how far your carry distance really is, as we have given you average distances in this guide, and yours may vary. You can also improve your carry distance over time if you practice hard and smart.
Do you know your own carry distances? How far do you hit your driver? Let us know in the comments down below!
