Meti is second all-time with five World Championships; Johnson earns his first career
win and World Championship belt after finishing runner-up in 2023
ATLANTA (August 11, 2024) - For the fifth time in her illustrious career (2006, 2016, 2018, 2022, 2024), Phillis Meti is a world champion. The world No. 2 captured the World Long Drive World Championship belt at Eagles Landing Country Club outside of Atlanta on Sunday, outdriving Mai Dechathipat in the final. World Long Drive (WLD) is the ultimate, full-throttle competition to see who can outlast their opponent by hitting a golf ball the farthest.
Along with Meti, Sean Johnson won his first career event and WLD World Championship on Sunday by securing the men’s Open Division title with a 411-yard drive to beat Jack Smith in the final round by one yard.
Meti, the top-seed entering the bracket-style final day, started with a quarterfinals win over Jeanine Minnick 339 yards to 323 yards. The next round was a rematch of the 2023 WLD World Championships final; Meti outlasted 2023 world champion Monica Lieving 316 to 313 yards. Meti, originally from New Zealand, then beat Mai Dechathipat in the final round with a 310-yard blast. Dechathipat had the longest drive of Sunday's Women's Division competition at 354 yards in the semifinals.
The World Championship was Meti's first win of 2024. She is the world record holder for longest drive by a woman at 414 yards.
Johnson, a former baseball player at Ole Miss, outlasted James Tait in the quarterfinals with a 422-yard drive, then beat Scottie Pearman in the semifinals with a 426-yard drive, the longest drive of the day by any competitor. The World Championship belt barely eluded Johnson last year as he finished runner-up in 2023, losing by one yard, the same margin he won by this year.
LONGEST DRIVES BY DIVISION AT WLD WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS
Open Division
Zack Holton - 430 yards
Women's Division
Mai Dechathipat - 357 yards
MISCELLANEOUS
Colton Casto is the new world No. 1 in the men’s Open Division after finishing tied for 9th at the World Championships.
Sean Johnson improves from world No. 6 to world No. 2 in the men’s Open Division.
Sean Johnson averaged 394 yards per drive at the World Championships.
Phillis Meti averaged 314 yards per drive at the World Championships.
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