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Mark Bylsma Aims to Beat World Long Drive Record

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AUSTRALIAN golfer Mark Bylsma is preparing himself for a tilt at the world record for the longest drive in history.

Bylsma is Australia’s answer to Happy Gilmore. A monster of a man with a monster of a drive, he stands at 196 centimetres, weighs 160 kilograms and can bench press 180kg. And when he hits a golf ball, it stays hit.

1996 Film Happy Gilmore starring Adam Sandler facts: A would-be hockey player who unfortunately can’t skate transforms his slap-shot into a 400-yard golf drive in this slapstick comedy. Joining the pro tour to win enough money to get his grandma’s house out of hock, this unsportsmanlike sportsman enrages the staid establishment with his on-course shenanigans.

Such as the time he teed off at Duntryleague, in Orange, two years ago. He stepped up to the first tee, wound up and hit the green - on a par five, 415 metres away. The strike, an Australian record of 401m, is considered the greatest shot in this nation’s golf history. But the former chef isn’t satisfied. He’s hungry for a crack at the world’s longest drive, a 658m effort by Briton Paul Slater on the tarmac at Heathrow Airport.

“If I set the stage and get the right conditions I can definitely crack it, hold the world record,” Bylsma told The Sun-Herald.

“It’s about hiring the airport, getting the right conditions and then getting the job done.

“Stuart Appleby and Robert Allenby tried to break it a couple of years ago. Appleby came pretty close and I can definitely hit the ball a lot longer than those guys.”

Indeed, the man known as “Boomer” can hit the ball harder than pretty much anyone. Tiger Woods is one of the longest hitters off the tee in professional golf, courtesy of a swing speed of up to 204kmh - about 39kmh behind Bylsma.

“Tiger hits it about 300m - he’s about a football field behind me,” Bylsma said.

That’s why the Aussie’s confident he’ll have his name alongside the all-time record when he attempts it in the new year. He was hoping to have a crack at it earlier, but work commitments - he runs Penrith’s Pioneer Tavern - and the impending arrival of a baby forced him to put his ambition on hold. Getting in some practice could be an issue, however.

The biggest king of swing since Dean Martin and Frank Sinatra, Bylsma has been banned from most driving ranges because they aren’t long enough.

“I tend to hit them over the back net on to freeways,” he said. “I lose a lot of golf balls. I normally leave about 350m before I tee off [on course]. I don’t want to hit anyone. That would definitely make a mess.”

So what’s the secret to belting the ball so damn far?

“It’s a combination of strength and technique,” he said. “Physics definitely plays a part in the game. There’s no point being built like Arnold Schwarzenegger if you can’t turn your shoulders or hip flexors. I try to hold a rhythm, be strong and explosive through the ball but hold a rhythm, let the club do the work.

I try to be super aggressive.”

Byslma’s driver alone is enough to intimidate a golf ball into another postcode: 3x stiff and 12 grams heavier than standard. And a menacing head with a six-degree loft.

He plans to take it to the World Long Drive Championship in the US next year. The last time he was there, in 2005, he finished 28th out of 140.

As well as the lure of setting a new world record, $US125,000 ($139,000) prizemoney is in the offing.

Source: The Sun-Herald