I asked pro golfers how much they can bench. Here’s what I learned

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There’s a pretty direct correlation between what I’m currently interested in in my own game, and what I end up asking pros about.

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Right now, it’s bench-pressing – and strength training in general. Which is why I spent a few days at a recent PGA Tour event asking pro golfers how much they can bench.

These are the four biggest one-rep maxes of the golfers I’ve asked – Brooks Koepka wasn’t in the field at Bay Hill so sadly, I wasn’t able to ask him.

  • Ryan Fox: 297 lbs (135 kg)
  • Jake Knapp: 280 lbs (127 kg)
  • Alex Noren: 275 lbs (125 kg)
  • Chris Gotterup: 265 lbs (120 kg)

Now, a few golfers (like Rory McIlroy) use only dumbbells, so they don’t count. Others don’t really test themselves lifting heavy, so in theory those players could be on this list – but we’d never know.

But the truth is that golf just doesn’t have a culture of lifting heavy. It would be absurd to hear that a professional baseball player doesn’t squat or bench, yet it’s strangely the norm in golf.

To be fair, it’s changing – but you’ll still often hear one pretty bad reason from golfers about why they don’t bench: I don’t bench because benching doesn’t matter for golf.

I asked some pretty smart people in this game whether that’s true, and they firmly disagree. Bench-pressing may not be as important as other movements, but it’s still important.

A few reasons why…

Why bench-pressing is good for golf

1. The pecs play an important role in your golf swing

According to a study that used EMG data about golfers’ swings, the glutes and obliques are the primary generators of clubhead speed – but the pec muscles in the chest play a major role in accelerating the arms during your swing. They exert a lot of force starting in the early downswing, peaking through impact.

“EMG data shows your pecs exert some of the most force of any muscle in your body,” Golf Digest‘s No.3-ranked coach Sean Foley says. “Your ability to push with your chest applies force into the club.”

2. It builds ‘neural drive’

Coach Will Wayland also explained that the benefits of bench pressing – which he programs for his golfers – aren’t just that it builds “total body athleticism”, but also that it boosts testosterone and improves “neural drive”. In other words, it helps you exert the strength you already have, better.

“The bench isn’t about mimicking the golf swing. It’s about improving global system output,” he says. “[It allows] for better motor unit recruitment for explosive force.”

3. Benching does more than just strengthen your chest

The bench press isn’t just a chest exercise – it’s a compound movement, which means it works multiple muscles at the same time: various muscles in the arms and core in addition to the chest.

“It’s not about the exercise itself,” PGA Tour trainer Mike Carroll says. “The bench press is an extremely efficient way of training lots of muscles in your upper body at the same time.”

In short, there’s a wave of first adopters doing it – and expect more to follow soon.