Insider: Stanley finds short game, not distance is key

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Stan Badz/PGA TOUR

Kyle Stanley averages nearly 320 yards off the tee, but knows strokes are shaved around the green.

When he was in college, Kyle Stanley could usually match up anybody when it came to length off the tee.

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Now in his first full season on the Nationwide Tour, the former Clemson All-America doesn't care all that much about how far he can hit.

"I think it's about the least important stat in golf," Stanley said. "What it comes down to is getting the ball in the hole. Driving distance doesn't mean that much out here."

Maybe. But it sure does help.

Stanley leads the Tour in driving distance with an average of 319 yards, and it's helped him to a solid showing in his rookie season. He ranks 35th on the money list heading into this week's Price Cutter Charity Championship presented by Dr Pepper at Highland Springs Country Club in Springfield, Mo.

Stanley turned pro right after the U.S. Open last year and played in five PGA TOUR events, making four cuts. In his first full season of pro golf on the Nationwide Tour, he admits there's a lot of adjusting to life on the road.

"In college golf you might play a full schedule over the school year and that's maybe 14 tournaments," said Stanley, the 2009 Ben Hogan Award winner who has played in 17 of 18 events this season. "It's nice to have a break every now and then with a week off to kind of recharge your batteries."

Stanley, 22, who earlier in the year was inside the top 25 on the money list, has cashed checks in 10 of those 17 tournaments. He has four top-10 showings with a tie for fourth at the Melwood Prince George's County Open in early June and a tie for ninth the BMW Charity Pro-Am in mid-May.

Earlier this summer Stanley also played in the PGA TOUR's Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial on a sponsor's exemption and tied for 27th.

"There have been some good weeks and bad weeks," Stanley said. "It's just a matter of trying to put four good rounds together in the same week. That's what we are all striving for out here."

Stanley has learned some of the tricks of the trade, such as not practicing too much. Earlier in the season he would play 18 holes on Monday and Tuesday, and then play 18 more in the pro-am on Wednesday.

"I found out its a little easier to maybe play just nine holes on Monday and Tuesday," he said.

Stanley says that the biggest thing he's gaining on the Nationwide Tour is experience.

"You can't teach experience you have to play a lot to gain it," Stanley said. "Spending a year or two out here will eventually pay off because I'll be gaining ... getting better. I just have to continue to work hard and the results will come."

Stanley was twice runner-up at the NCAA Championships -- in 2007 (to Jamie Lovemark, the leading money winner on the Nationwide Tour this season) and in 2009 to Matt Hill. This is a different level, though, and he's still trying to find a comfort zone.

"My caddie and I (Joe Etter) try to learn as much as we can each week because I haven't seen many of the courses," Stanley said.

Stanley and Etter also try to get away from golf at various times and have found bowling a fun way to wind down. Stanley, who also has been a regular at the movie theaters during tournament weeks, admits Etter is pretty good at the bowling alley.

"He beats me every time," Stanley said.

Stanley doesn't focus too much on the money list and says that there is a lot of golf left to be played. After this week's tournament the Tour takes a week off then will play 10 straight weeks.

"We're doing OK and there's still a lot of golf left," said Stanley, who is playing on the Nationwide Tour this season thanks to his status from last season on the PGA TOUR's non-member money list.

While he is one of the biggest hitters on the Tour, Stanley says that improving his short game is a must. He has the eighth-longest drive on Tour this season uncorking a 391-yarder in the first round at the Cox Classic earlier this month.

"I mean you look at some of the scores and 20-something under wins out here," he said. "It's a lot about putting and chipping well."

John Dell has covered golf at the Winston-Salem Journal for the past 17 years. His views do not necessarily reflect those of the PGA TOUR.