Kyle Berkshire (born November 1, 1996) is an American golfer who competes as a professional long drive athlete. He has won the World Long Drive Championship on three occasions, in 2019, 2021 and 2023.
Personal life edit
Originally from Crofton, Maryland, Berkshire resides in Orlando, Florida. He attended Archbishop Spalding High School in Maryland where he helped the Spalding golf team win two match play and two stroke play MIAA state championships. The team went 31-2-1 in match play during Berkshire's four years including undefeated seasons in 2014 and 2015.[1] He went to the University of North Texas for two years,[2][3] before transferring to the University of Central Florida.[4]
Long drive career edit
After reaching the semifinals at the Volvik World Long Drive Championship in 2017, Berkshire in 2018 earned his first World Long Drive victory, winning at the WinStar Midwest Slam in Oklahoma. On September 4, 2019 Berkshire won the 44th World Long Drive Championship in Thackerville, Oklahoma, defeating Tim Burke in the final.[5]
During the pandemic, Comcast shut down the World Long Drive Association in 2020. Players and coach Bobby Peterson formed a new sanctioning body, the Professional Long Drivers Association, where Berkshire won the inaugural PLDA season-ending championship in 2020 at 383 yards.[6] He defended the PLDA Championship (now the PLDA World Championship) in 2021, now having won three consecutive season-ending long drive tour championships.
In December 2021, Berkshire set a new world record for indoor ball speed with 233.4 miles per hour (375.6 km/h).[7]
In October 2023, shortly before the World Long Drive Championship, Berkshire had set a new record for ball speed at 241.6 mph, as well as the longest golf drive ever fully verified at 579.63 yards.[8] On October 22, Berkshire defeated Sean Johnson in the final to claim his fourth season-ending championship match.[9]
References edit
- ^ "Golf: Spalding golfers win MIAA A Conference". Capital Gazette. Retrieved 2019-03-05.
- ^ "Kyle Berkshire hoping long drives, Bryson DeChambeau's help result in tour stints". ESPN. Associated Press. October 21, 2020. Retrieved December 28, 2021.
- ^ "Kyle Berkshire - Men's Golf". University of North Texas Athletics. Retrieved 2019-03-05.
- ^ Dovsek, Averee (January 1, 2021). "World Long Drive champ Kyle Berkshire admits his long hair is a handicap, but he has 'an emotional attachment'". Golfweek. USA Today. Retrieved December 28, 2021.
- ^ Myers, Alex (September 5, 2019). "In least-shocking news ever, Kyle Berkshire wins the World Long Drive Championship". Golf Digest. Retrieved December 28, 2021.
- ^ PLDA 2020 Final
- ^ Chivers, Matt (December 23, 2021). "Long drive champion Kyle Berkshire shatters record for ball speed. In June 2022 he set a new outdoor ball speed of 232.6 mph at Mickelson National golf club in Calgary, Alberta". GolfMagic. Retrieved December 28, 2021.
- ^ Dolch, Craig (November 13, 2023). "579 yards: World Long Drive champion Kyle Berkshire sets world record, screaming 'That's it!'". Aol. Retrieved December 27, 2023.
- ^ Dovsel, Averee (October 22, 2023). "Three winners crowned at 2023 World Long Drive Championships, including Kyle Berkshire". USA Today: Golfweek. Retrieved December 27, 2023.