American golfer Bryson DeChambeau is well known for bombing long drives, but a rocket he unleashed during a recent match with Phil Mickelson may top all the rest.

 

The mammoth 17th hole at Moonlight Basin measures at massive 777 yards.

 

 

This course, called the Reserve is a Jack Nicklaus design in Big Sky, Montana. At 8,000 yards from the back tees, it is quite the mean test — but at nearly 8,000 feet of elevation, tee shots will fly plenty far for big-hitters to hit it even bigger.

 

However, the scorecard yardage is a bit deceiving as the course sits at roughly 7,500 feet above sea level, and the tee shot features a 280-foot drop.

 

It was the perfect stage for a potential 500-yard drive.

 

The key to hitting the ball over 500 yards is keeping the ball in the fairway and clearing a small fairway bunker in the middle of the short grass. 

 

Phil Mickelson’s ball found the bunker after “giving it all [he’s] got,” and then DeChambeau was up next.

 

Like Bryson has done so many times in the last two years, he took a mighty lash at the ball and sent it soaring into the beautiful Montana sky.

 

The ball-speed indicator on the screen read 198 mph as the ball reached its apex — this ball was smoked.

 

“That is amazing!” exclaimed Mickelson. “Good heavens.”

 

As the ball came back down from orbit, it landed on the downslope and took off down the massive ski-slope-like fairway. But just before it could reach the 500-yard mark, it was caught up in the rough.

 

DeChambeau, ever the showman, was understandably disappointed that he could not eclipse the 500-yard mark on camera, so he took a mulligan. Unfortunately, his do-over was pulled left from the start and never had a chance to find the fairway.

 

A 500-yard drive will have to wait another day.

 

If you have played off an elevated tee box in Thailand, how long have you hit your ball?

“It’s actually reachable in two,” said Mike Wilcynski, the Moonlight Basin general manager.

 

The signature hole on the Jack Nicklaus-designed course.

 

At 7,500 feet elevation I'd be gasping for air.

 

I only watched highlights, was surprised how good Brady is. 

 

And Aaron Rogers made a lost of putts.