Get Up and Go

European Tour pros shatter world record for fastest hole played

October 16, 2021

The European Tour is back at it. Their social channels have become regular stops for exotic golf feats of strength, speed, and persistence, whether it’s hitting golf balls into speeding cars or day-long hole-in-one challenges.

This week at Valderrama, they pulled four of their players together from four different continents to try and break a Guinness World Record for the fastest golf hole played. The record had been just a tick under 28 seconds. This was not the European Tour’s first rodeo for this speed stunt, and they’ve done this four-man relay at Valderrama before pitting two different countries against each other.

The foursome this week included Sean Crocker of the United States, Min Woo Lee of Australia, Wilco Nienaber of South Africa, and Nicolai Hojgaard of Denmark. Nienaber, who may be the biggest hitting pro out there, sensibly took the driving duties, while the expletive-prone American, Crocker, hit the approach shots. It took many arduous reps and prompted many groans and curse words, but these world-class pros started to get the hang of it. After a few close calls, they shattered the old record.

Nienaber’s length is certainly an advantage, but the fulcrum of this operation rests with the approach shot. It’s got to be stuffed and Crocker, who was hitting wedges with some spin that elongated the process, converted.

Is this the most important accomplishment? No. Do you wonder at least once why this exists? Yes. But it makes for an entertaining watch and it’s certainly a feat that you and three of your hack friends could not pull off at your local spot.