Victor Schwamkrug shatters record at Shell Houston Open

BY iseekgolf.com | US PGA Tour | 2004 Shell Houston Open | General | 28 Apr 2004

Victor Schwamkrug, using a 7 Degree Spectrum Driver from SMT Golf, recorded a 429 Yard drive on the Par-5 No. 12 hole during the second round of The Shell Houston Open, which was by far the longest drive in Shell Houston Open history. The prodigious tee shot left him only 148 yards to the pin. From there he chipped to 10 feet and made a putt for eagle. Unfortunately, the hole was not one of those used as an official driving hole on the PGA Tour. That means the former University of Houston golfer’s drive will not count as the longest recorded in PGA records.

“I am thrilled with the quality of the heads that SMT is producing, in fact, I have turned down a lot of money from one of the major manufacturers, to use what I thought would give me the best results, and that decision was made easy by Mike and the folks at SMT Golf” Schwamkrug said. “I’m not really concerned with the accolades from the longest drive in the event, I’m more concerned with playing well and shooting good scores and becoming a better golfer.”

The longest measured drive on tour this season was 397 yards by Scott McCarron. Schwamkrug easily distanced himself from the previous longest drive in Shell Houston Open history, eclipsing the 381 yards by John Daly on the ninth hole in last year’s second round. Daly took the record that Hank Kuehne held for one day. Kuehne had a 380-yard drive on the 18th hole in the first round.

In what may be a PGA Tour first, Schwamkrug partnered up with SMT Golf and chose to carry not one but two SMT Drivers in his bag while competing in the Shell Houston Open held at the Redstone Golf Club in Houston, Texas April 19th thru the 25th. Schwamkrug, who averaged 339.3 yards in Driving Distance on the Nationwide Tour in 2003, the longest average of any player, on any Tour, carried a 7 Degree SMT Spectrum Driver with a 47" long Accuflex VS339 XXX-Stiff Shaft and a 10 Degree SMT Shinnecock Driver with a 44" long Accuflex Icon Tour Prototype Shaft.

“We are really very excited to have a player like Victor using our clubs on Tour,” said Mike Tait, designer of the SMT Line. “These guys can play any clubs they want, and for Victor to place his trust in our product to make a living is a huge compliment. We want to make sure that people know our drivers can and have benefited the average players as much or more than the Tour players and Long Drive competitors who use them. Exposure at a PGA Tour event like this does just that.”

Source – SMT Golf