Golf can be a game of inches, feet and yards. Durango native Sean Johnson knows this very well. Last year in October, Johnson lost out on the World Long Drive World Championship by one yard against long drive legend Kyle Berkshire.
On Sunday, Aug. 11 in Atlanta, Johnson was on the right side of a one yard title-deciding margin. He won his first World Long Drive World Championship by one yard over second-place Jack Smith. This was his first long drive event win and his first world championship.
“It still doesn’t feel real,” Johnson said. “It’s one of those accomplishments you always set your eyes on and set your goal to be. It doesn’t happen for many people so the fact that it happened still feels like a dream. When I sit down by myself and think about it, it’s pretty darn cool. I’m proud of myself for how many sports I’ve played in my life. The big thing with sports is how much you fail. It’s not about how much you succeed. So finally having the success to become a world champion and being the best in the sport is pretty gratifying.”
Johnson, 30, moved to Durango when he was six years old and lived there until he went to Colorado Springs for high school hockey. He played baseball in college at Ole Miss. His parents still live in Durango.
He won the championship with a 411-yard drive. Johnson was higher ranked than Smith so he chose to go second. Smith hit his six balls and on his fifth ball he went 410 yards, according to Johnson.
It wasn’t a good start for Johnson because he hit his first three balls of the final round out of bounds. He hit his fourth ball 409 yards and then the fifth ball 411 yards.
But it wasn’t over. In long drive, if a player hits a ball over 350 yards, they get a minute of bonus time to hit three balls. So although Johnson chose to go second, he still had to wait to see if Smith could beat his 411 in the bonus round after. Smith could not and Johnson was the champion.
As of Thursday, Johnson said he still had 100 text messages to respond to and 10-15 phone calls to return to people who’ve congratulated him on his accomplishment.
Although Johnson won with a 411-yard drive in the finals, he did better in the quarterfinals with a 422-yard bomb and then in the semifinals he one 426 yards which was the longest drive of the day.
Johnson said in the earlier rounds there was a little bit more downwind which allowed him to get a little more out of the ball. He also said it was a tight grid to hit and depending on where the ball was placed, it could get more roll than other spots.
Right before Christmas, Johnson quit his job in California selling wine to move to Charlotte, North Carolina, to get back into baseball. He’s a pitching coach there. Johnson also wanted to be closer to his long drive coach Bobby Peterson.
“I give a lot of credit to Bobby Peterson and the work that he’s put in with me,” Johnson said. “There’s no way I’d be the long driver I am without him. He just has so much knowledge. I’m lucky enough to be coachable enough to retain the knowledge and apply it to myself.”
Johnson also credited his success this year to a change in equipment. He used to use a super flexible shaft which was a lot harder to be consistent with. Now he uses a regular flex shaft that made an immediate difference in bringing the spin on the ball down and dispersion down. Johnson now uses the flexible shaft as a training tool.
The next World Long Drive event is in March so Johnson has plenty of time to soak in his world championship win.
For more information on Johnson’s journey click here.
bkelly@durangoherald.com
