Xander Schauffele shares the way to hit more fairways when driving and how to generate more power

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While the 2025 season was a frustrating one for Xander Schauffele, the Baycurrent Classic provided a small reminder that there are not many better players on the planet than the 32-year-old.

Xander Schauffele‘s hopes of kicking on after winning two majors in 2024 were dashed early on. He was dealing with a rib injury over the first few months. With that, it took some time for Schauffele to really get going.

But there have been some positive signs in recent weeks. As well as winning in Yokohama, Schauffele ended the 2025 Ryder Cup as the leading points scorer for the American side.

Interestingly, one part of his game actually seemed to improve in 2025.

Xander Schauffele shares his tips for hitting a variety of shots with the driver

Schauffele averaged 308.5 yards off the tee in 2024. That increased to 311.9 yards this season, with Schauffele 26th for driving distance on the PGA Tour this year.

Admittedly, he was 86th for strokes gained off the tee. So perhaps control was not exactly a huge strength.

Nevertheless, Schauffele was the best all-round player in 2024. So there are few better players for amateurs to learn from.

And speaking to PGA TOUR Superstore in a video posted in January, the world number three shared his tips for how he hits a stock drive, a fairway finder and the tee shot which needs to carry 300 yards.

“The stock drive, I guess I do typically draw the ball. It’s just something that I’ve always done. I think since I’ve been working with Chris [Como], I’ve been a little more comfortable to hit a lot of fades. I typically like to have the ball two balls behind the heel, anywhere in that ballpark depending on how I’m hitting it. My tendency is my shoulders get a little open. When you’re trying to draw the ball, it can be hard unless you’re a Rory type who has the ability to reroute the club down. When my shoulders get too open, as soon as I start unwinding, the first thing that happens is the club comes across the top. For me, a big cue is to make sure that you start with your left hand on the club and then you can bring your right hand in, and it will help keep your shoulders a bit squarer, whereas walking in with both hands, you can have your shoulders a little open. That’s just a small cue that I use sometimes,” he said.

“For the fairway finder, I usually tee the ball pretty low. Top of the ball probably below the crown of the head. I like to hit a low fade when I’m nervous or I see a lot of trouble around. I like to feel like I’m on top of it, covering a little bit more. I think naturally, it feels easier as a right-handed golfer to swing across your body, versus trying to open up and swing out. For me, similar ball position, couple of balls behind the heel, I like to feel I’m staying on top of it. When I’m hitting a draw, at times, I’ll get to my left hand and not really hang back but the body feels like it’s moving in this shape a little bit. When I’m hitting the cover fade, I feel like I’m very much on top of the ball still, just opening up the body a little more. 

“And if I’m trying to hit one far, let’s say there’s a bunker at 300 yards and I’m trying to cover, I’ll tee the ball up much higher. A lot of the golf ball is above the crown. I’ll take it more towards my heel and because it’s up in my stance, I know I’ll be catching it later in my arc. Typically, don’t try and shape it too much when I’m trying to hit it really far. It’ll be a high pull or a push of some sort if I’m lagging behind. I’ll try to hike this [left] shoulder up a little bit to just help promote the up motion towards the golf ball. I see a lot of people trying to contort their body this way [in a reverse K], it can work, it really depends on how lateral of a player you are. I’m pretty lateral, I like to move off the ball and on, I think it gets dangerous when you try and preset this way because your move off the ball, your lines and tilts may get out of whack. For someone that likes to shift off the ball, I think just hiking up that shoulder at address is an easy way to cheat the ball up in your stance. So this is what I do. Left shoulder’s high, forward, going to give the left heel a bit of lift here.”

What Xander Schauffele’s two major wins proved about the quality of his all-round game

Being able to really vary the types of tee shots you hit is probably not essential for some sort of success on the PGA Tour. However, Schauffele showed just how versatile he was last year.

The 2024 PGA Championship at Valhalla broke the record for the lowest scoring major ever, with Schauffele finishing on 21 under par.

And he followed that by triumphing at Royal Troon in what was, at times, a brutal test. His 65 in the final round is arguably one of the most underrated displays the majors have seen for a number of years.

Schauffele ended 2024 in 10th spot for strokes gained off the tee.

So if he is able to avoid any injuries during this off-season, he will certainly be someone to look out for in 2026. It should not surprise anyone if he manages to add to his major tally in the next 12 months.