Palm Beach Gardens, FL ….
Russel Knox has a ‘new club’ in his bag and he’s the Long-Distance Driving World No. 1.
Knox begun working at the start of the New Year with Justin James and a fellow Jacksonville resident.
James, 29 captured the 2017 World Long Drive Championship with a booming drive of 435-yards in Oklahoma, and as world’s longest he currently competes in events sanctioned by the World Long Drive Association.
The World No. 1 Long Drive champion Justin James with Scotland’s Russell Knox
James said: “My longest drive was 458-yards out in Arizona but I just knuckled that one so good.”
Knox and James were out together during Wednesday’s Pro-Am ahead of today’s (THUS) starting Honda Classic and an event Knox finished runner-up in 2013 and then T3rd a year later on the PGA National course at sun-splashed Palm Beach Gardens.
And it was clear that Knox has clearly benefitted in length, as well as accuracy, off the tee.
Knox said: “Justin and his father live close to us in Jacksonville and while Justin is the World No. 1 in the long drive, his father Gerry is a former Long Drive world champion.
“It was Gerry who said to me ‘you just have to meet my son’ and since working with Justin, who also is a qualified fitness trainer, I’ve probably picked-up about 20-yards since Justin and I have been working together.
“I’ve also picked-up a minimum of around five miles/hour ball speed whereas I’ve noticed on the range I am kind of 10 miles/hour quicker but then that will take a while to transfer to the course.
“I look back at the start of my career and I was extremely straight. I wasn’t long and more on the shorter side but then I was extremely accurate and that was a huge plus for me.
“Of course, my game has changed slightly since I’ve been on tour while my body was still growing in becoming a man (laughing) but seriously Justin is also helping me out training-wise”.
A check of Knox’s PGA Tour reveals after a dozen events on the 2019/20 wraparound schedule he is currently ranked 117th in ‘Driving’ with an average drive of 297.2 yards from 86 measured drives.
At the end of the 2019 season he was ranked 139th in ‘Driving’ with an average drive of 289.2 yards.
In 2012, and the Scot’s first full PGA Tour, Knox was averaging 285.8 yards and ranked 132nd in ‘Driving’.
He said: “The thing is I haven’t driven the ball well the last couple of years but now with Justin’s assistance I am much longer, and if I can be longer and be straighter off the tee then who knows.
“It’s the reason why I have not done so well in recent years but now in managing to hit the ball longer and straighter it opens up a whole new world to me.
“I’ve enjoyed working with Justin and while I have had the immediate reward but it’s been good so far and I feel like I’m close to being really good.
“The thing is also I’ve done this long enough but I was playing with too much stress and I basically said to myself I did not want to play golf feeling all tight and stressed for now reason.
“You are going to feel like that as it is a nerve-wracking game but I needed to find a little more fun in it and working with Justin has helped.”
Knox tees-off in round one of the $US7m event at 5.05pm UK time.
