Russell Henley has suggested how he feels about the idea of chasing more distance to try and keep up with the majority of PGA Tour players.
Henley has undoubtedly been one of the most impressive players on tour in recent years. He is now up to fifth in the world rankings following his victory at the Charles Schwab Challenge this past week.
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The 37-year-old is something of a throwback in this era where distance is often king.
Russell Henley says whether he is tempted to chase more distance
Russell Henley is 145th on the PGA Tour for driving distance this season, with the six-time winner averaging 294.3 yards.
He is, however, 49th for strokes gained off the tee, largely due to his incredible accuracy. No-one has been better at finding the fairway this year.
There have been plenty of players who have looked to adapt to the modern game and add significant distance. Even world number one Scottie Scheffler has added four yards off the tee from last year.
Photo by Sam Hodde/Getty Images
And when asked by CBS Sports whether he is inclined to try and find more power, Henley admitted that it has certainly crossed his mind.
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“Yeah, I think I’m tempted to do it. I feel like if I was to try and gain distance, and let’s just say I gained eight yards, which I think would be significant with the strokes gained stuff, I also don’t exactly know that to be true or not, but if I gained eight yards, but I missed one and a half more fairways a round, am I really gaining something from that? That’s the battle I have,” he said.
“And I’ve started to try and ramp up workouts a little bit, go a little heavier with weight. But an issue I have is during the season, when you go on a three-week stretch, it’s hard to be consistently lifting heavier and gaining muscle. I also struggle to eat a lot. I feel like I eat a normal amount, but I guess eating enough when it’s like 95 degrees and you’re sweating, it’s hard not to lose weight really. That’s kind of where I’m at with it.
“I definitely think at the age I’m at, I need to do something to fight against where the game seems like it’s going. But I still haven’t figured out how to do that. When I swing up on it, I don’t feel like that promotes a lot of my best face control. That’s what I think the first thing is, to get higher launch, but I like seeing it flat. I like seeing a flat ball.”
Russell Henley reflects on Ryder Cup disappointment and contending at The Masters
Henley has won in each of the last two PGA Tour seasons. He also managed to register his best ever finish at The Masters back in April as he finished tied for third.
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For the more casual golf fan, however, Henley may be best-known for being the player who opened the door for Shane Lowry to retain the Ryder Cup for Europe at Bethpage last September.
Henley had the match under control as Team USA threatened to produce one of the greatest comebacks of all-time. However, Lowry was able to rally late on and earn the crucial half point.
Henley was asked about being in contention at The Masters earlier this year. And he suggested that his performance was particularly satisfying due to the Ryder Cup disappointment.
“I think the Ryder Cup I felt more pressure than that [at The Masters]. I felt like I was in a really good place on that Sunday. I feel like God gave me a peace about it, I felt very content if it worked out or not,” he said.
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“But I was also frustrated that I didn’t convert a couple of those putts. The one on 17 was a little tricky, but just the fact I gave myself so many, and some of them were 20-footers, like the one on 11 and the one on 16 were longer putts, but if I hit them a little harder, they might go in. So I kind of look back at that tournament and just get a little bit frustrated that I didn’t convert more of those, because I felt like I was in the right mindset.
“And then, not finishing off my match with Shane Lowry at the Ryder Cup, that one hurt a lot. And I think some of that emotion came out on Sunday making those putts down the stretch. I wanted to prove to myself that I could do it again. I’ve made clutch putts, but not executing on those in contention have just been bugging me a little bit.”
Henley was one of three American players who only managed to contribute half a point in New York. He was on the losing side in both of his matches alongside Scottie Scheffler.
The pair had looked superb together at the Presidents Cup the previous year. However, they failed to replicate that success at Bethpage.
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And Henley clearly feels responsible for the team’s struggles.
“It was just hard because you’re on a team. You want to do well for your country, and I at least just wanted to play well and at least win a point,” he said.
“I felt like I let Scottie down that first match. I didn’t putt well, just hit a couple of poor iron shots. It was just disappointing, because my game was in a good place and I just didn’t do it. You just look back and you just want to know that you helped the team and you at least played well. You played well and got beat versus just not having your stuff. I don’t know. I could probably talk about it a long time. Definitely, it hurt, and when I think about it, it still hurts for sure, just like when anybody loses the Ryder Cup.”
Henley will almost certainly get the opportunity to start to put things right at this year’s Presidents Cup. It should come as no surprise if he adds a seventh PGA Tour victory to his résumé before Medinah, too.
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