The old airfield at NMSI Wroughton, near Swindon, provided a perfect venue for the London Golf Show and Long Drivers of Europe promotion which gathered eight of Europe’s biggest hitters together in an attempt to extend Slater’s existing 720-yard world record. And with the wind behind the participants, the crowd and gathered media were not to be disappointed.
First, Londoner Adam Stacey grabbed a new world record when his fourth effort travelled a fantastic 744 yards. But Slater, from Warrington, was not prepared to give up his record without a fight.
His first effort at 723 yards was three yards past his previous best. But his third rolled on and on to a staggering 884 yards. “I wanted my record back,” said a delighted Slater, with a nod of modest acknowledgement to Stacey.
“You’ve got five of the biggest hitters in Europe here and two of the biggest in the world. But I wanted it. Nobody had cleared 700 yards before I did it last year; and nobody had beaten 800 yards until I did it.
“And I did it with a borrowed club,” he added with a huge grin, holding aloft the driver borrowed from, of all people, Adam Stacey. His new record was achieved with a Cobra XX Speed, with a loft of just 4½º.
The London Golf Show returns to ExCeL, London, from April 27-30, and will cover an area the size of five football pitches, with a four-day retail exhibition aimed at all standards of golfer. www.londongolfshow.com
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