Meet Rob Harrand | (Golf) Swing-Speed and Distance Specialist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Rob Harrand and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Rob, can you talk to us a bit about the social impact of your business?
As a golf business, and more specifically, a swing-speed and distance focused golf business, my goal is to help golfers all over the world increase their swing-speed and distance. Swing-speed and distance is something every golfer wants more of. Not only is it simply enjoyable to watch a ball soar into the distance, it’s incredibly important for lower scores. So far I’m happy to say that Pure Distance Golf has been successful at achieving that goal. People all around the world are seeing substantial improvement in these key areas of their game.

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?

Well I think the main differentiating factor with Pure Distance Golf is that I come from a baseball background as opposed to a golf background. I’m a former pitcher with the Philadelphia Phillies organization. I didn’t grow up playing golf or competing in Jr. Golf tournaments. I played college basketball and competed in Long Drive (Golf) in my 20’s but my primary focus growing up was baseball as opposed to golf.

I’d say the second differentiating factor is that I’ve spent a ton of time working with some of the world’s leading sports coaches and trainers (Tom Brady’s coach, for example) in a variety of different sports (baseball, basketball and golf) and and I’ve acquired a pretty solid knowledge base in doing so.

And thirdly, at my core, I’m an athlete (or was, haha. I’m getting older now). Through my own personal testing, research and training, I was able to achieve a 150 mph swing-speed, a personal best drive of 417 yards, a 97 mph fastball, a 44 inch vertical jump and a 4.41 40 yard dash. I’m not mentioning this to brag but to convey that I put in the work and used myself as a guinea pig, so to speak, to ensure that what I teach truly gets results.

My goal with Pure Distance Golf has always been to take everything I’ve learned about speed and explosiveness playing other sports and apply it to golf. So far things have worked out pretty well. Golfers seem to be very happy with the results they’re getting from the PDG System and that makes me both happy and proud.

As far as building the business… honestly, Golf is a passion of mine, so building the business has never felt like work to me. I love the game and enjoy helping people reach their goals. I find it especially rewarding when someone from halfway around the world reaches out to purchase a program or email me a question. The internet has allowed for incredible reach and connectivity and I find that both incredibly interesting and satisfying. I love culture, so hearing from people in different countries and walks of life who share a common passion is the ultimate reward for me.

Going forward, I’m just looking to grow the Pure Distance Golf brand. I’m not a pushy sales guy. I like to grow things organically and with an emphasis on quality and simplicity, and I hope people see that reflected in the brand.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
If we’re talking about Miami, South Beach and Brickell check all the boxes. A walk down Ocean Drive is a must as is Lincoln Road. I’m a big pizza and sushi guy so Lucali and Mister 01 are musts. As far as sushi, the list is too long to tackle here. You really can’t go wrong with any of the popular spots. If in season, I’d probably attend a Miami Heat game. I’d also walk around Wynwood (the arts district) and Little Havana for some Cuban flavor. Honestly, the list is endless but this is a decent start.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I actually grew up in Canada playing baseball. Baseball was my first love and sole focus. Through a lot of hard work, I was able to get drafted by the Los Angeles Dodgers out of high school, attend San Diego State University on a baseball scholarship and pitch with the Philadelphia Phillies organization for a few years after that. Golf became a passion of mine a few years later while living in Scottsdale Arizona. The point of my story is that without the help of my Dad (now deceased) growing up and his incredible focus on my baseball career, it would have been very difficult to have made it in baseball and I certainly wouldn’t have the knowledge I acquired from working with some of the world’s leading sports performance gurus along the way. With both baseball and golf being primarily rotational movements, I took a lot of what I learned about maximizing pitching velocity and applied it to golf training and the golf swing, with the intent of helping golfers increase their swing-speed and distance. From there, a business was born. And for that I will always be grateful for my Dad.

Website: puredistancegolf.com

Instagram: Pure Distance Golf

Youtube: Pure Distance Golf