du Preez: 6-Foot-9, 144 M.P.H Clubhead Speed, 212 M.P.H. Ball Speed

The Desert Sun’s Shad Powers files a look at James Hart du Preez, a 26-year-old South African making his PGA Tour debut at the American Express. Du Preez is 6-foot9, 260 pounds and led the Sunshine Tour last year in driving distance. His average? 373.1 yards.

His combination of clubhead speed and raw power — his fastest clubhead speed is 144 miles per hour and his fastest ball speed is 212 miles per hour — has become the stuff of legend. His exploits are popular on YouTube as videos of him hitting tee shots have hundreds of thousands of views.

But he doesn’t like to be pigeon-holed as just a long-drive specialist.

“When people see me, obviously they don’t see 6-9 golfers come around very often so the first thing they gravitate towards is the long-hitting,” du Preez said. “But funny enough putting is the best part of my game and has been since I was a little kid. I didn’t grow until late in my life until about 16 or 17 so before then I never hit the ball far so I had to learn how to score chipping and putting.”

Check out the column as it’s a fun read, but I’d be remiss in not copying these “stock yardages” of du Preez: