Golf altitude distance calculator
Playing somewhere higher, or lower, than your home course? Thinner air means less drag, so the ball carries farther. Enter both elevations, or pick the courses, and see how every distance changes. Add the temperatures if they differ: warm air is thinner too.
Your distances at the destination
| At home | At the destination | Difference |
|---|
Carry distances, with the same swing and strike at both courses.
How we estimate it
We use the same air density model as our course forecasts. Air pressure falls with elevation, and warm air is less dense than cold air, so a ball meets less drag and lift and carries farther. We tuned the model to golf's measured rules of thumb: about 1.7% more carry per 1,000 feet, and a few yards more for a driver on a hot day than on a mild one.
Not included: wind, uphill or downhill holes, and how firm the fairways are, which changes roll. Course elevations come from the USGS for the course's location, so tees on a hilly course can sit a little above or below it. Every course page shows today's carry change from its forecast.