Slater Smashes Own World Record

Englishman Paul Slater extended his own world record for golf’s longest drive by a staggering 164 yards at NMSI Wroughton today (Saturday).

The old airfield, near Swindon, provided a perfect venue for the London Golf Show and Long Drivers of Europe promotion which gathered eight of Europe’s biggest hitters together in an attempt to extend Slater’s existing 720-yard world record.

And with the wind behind the participants, the crowd and gathered media were not to be disappointed.

First, Londoner Adam Stacey grabbed a new world record when his fourth effort travelled a fantastic 744 yards. But Slater, from Warrington, was not prepared to give up his record without a fight.

His first effort added three yards to his previous best, at 723 yards. But his third stunned the crowd by rolling on to a staggering 884 yards.
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“I wanted my record back,” said a delighted Slater, with a nod of modest acknowledgement to Stacey.

“You’ve got five of the biggest hitters in Europe here and two of the biggest in the world. But I wanted it. Nobody had cleared 700 yards before I did it last year; and nobody had beaten 800 yards until I did it.

“And I did it with a borrowed club,” he added with a huge grin, holding aloft the driver borrowed from, of all people, Adam Stacey.

His new record was achieved with a Cobra XX Speed, with a loft of just 4½º.

But Slater extended some sympathy to popular Welshman Chris Roberts, 20, who arrived on the tee after the world-record holder and fired the ball 735 and 760 yards.

Good enough for two world records on a previous day – but not today when the old record was beaten a staggering five times.