How is the "Proximity To Pin" stat calculated?

[ZuperAwesomeDad]

I like to check my stats after a round and there is one called "Proximity to Pin".  The explanation is "The average distance your ball stops from the hole on approach shots".  How is it calculated?  Example: I just had a round where my longest putt was 14 feet, and the Proximity To Pin stat was 36 feet.  This would be a very useful stat if it worked properly.

[twofor22]

Longest putt is the longest putt holed, not necessarily the furthest you landed from the pin. That would be why it doesn't appear to line up properly.

[ZuperAwesomeDad]

Thanks for the reply. But "Longest Putt" is a separate stat and I understand that is the longest putt holed. But there is a stat called "Proximity to Pin", and the description is "The average distance your ball stopped from the pin on your approach shot". Which would be a really useful stat. But I don't understand how the stat is calculated. My last game I kept track of my putts...the longest putt I had was 14 feet, yet the stat said my "Proximity to Pin" was 36 feet. Which makes no sense to me.

[martbloke]

Mar 3, 2022 11:36:40 GMT -5 ZuperAwesomeDad said:

Thanks for the reply. But "Longest Putt" is a separate stat and I understand that is the longest putt holed. But there is a stat called "Proximity to Pin", and the description is "The average distance your ball stopped from the pin on your approach shot". Which would be a really useful stat. But I don't understand how the stat is calculated. My last game I kept track of my putts...the longest putt I had was 14 feet, yet the stat said my "Proximity to Pin" was 36 feet. Which makes no sense to me.

I think the stat is including missed GIR too perhaps??

[eastnortheast]

Mar 3, 2022 13:13:52 GMT -5 martbloke said:

Mar 3, 2022 11:36:40 GMT -5 ZuperAwesomeDad said:

Thanks for the reply. But "Longest Putt" is a separate stat and I understand that is the longest putt holed. But there is a stat called "Proximity to Pin", and the description is "The average distance your ball stopped from the pin on your approach shot". Which would be a really useful stat. But I don't understand how the stat is calculated. My last game I kept track of my putts...the longest putt I had was 14 feet, yet the stat said my "Proximity to Pin" was 36 feet. Which makes no sense to me.

I think the stat is including missed GIR too perhaps??

Agree.  For example ,on a par 4, after your 2nd shot, it calculates the distance from ball --> pin.  

So, if your first shot is into a bunker and your second shot is 50 yards from the pin, your third shot lands 3 feet away - your proximity to pin will be 150 ft.

[twofor22]

It must be calculating it regardless of it being on the green then. Where it would fall down if it's using the shot that should land on the green is if you hit a tee shot into the rubbish and have no choice but to punch out to the fairway, surely that punch wouldn't be counted as an approach shot.

[eastnortheast]

Mar 4, 2022 8:58:25 GMT -5 twofor22 said:

It must be calculating it regardless of it being on the green then. Where it would fall down if it's using the shot that should land on the green is if you hit a tee shot into the rubbish and have no choice but to punch out to the fairway, surely that punch wouldn't be counted as an approach shot.

My understanding is that Proximity to Tee is based on the following, regardless of where that shot lands:

Par 3 - 1st shot
Par 4 - 2nd shot
Par 5 - 3rd shot

(There would be exceptions and I dont know how they are handled.  For example, second shot on a par 4 goes into the water and you have to shoot again. Or, an albatross on a Par 5.  But, those occasions are relatively rare)

[pc17]

I've always read this as per the post above.
If you hit the green on a Par 3 with your 1st shot, the proximity to the pin will be from where your ball stops.
However if you hit the green on a Par 5 with your 2nd shot, the proximity to the pin will be calculated from where your putt stops, as your putt is in fact your 3rd shot. So if your putt went in the hole, the proximity to the pin will be calculated as zero. It's calculated the same as hitting a hole-in-one on a Par 3.

[cer1949]

The proximity to pin stat is a measure of the average accuracy of the approach shot.

According to the PGA, it is -

"The average distance the ball comes to rest from the hole (in feet) after the player's approach shot. The approach shot distance must be determined by a laser, and the shot must not originate from on or around the green. The shot also must end on or around the green or in the hole. Note: 'Around the green' indicates the ball is within 30 yards of the edge of the green."

The tour average is currently 37 ft. 9 inches.

The approach shot is normally the second shot on a par 4 or the third shot on a par 5; however, for a long hitter, it could be the second shot on a par 5.

Of course, how this gets programmed into a computer game could be different.

Proximity to Hole

[cer1949]

The Tour also keeps a stat for Proximity to Hole (ARG), which measures how close the ball is to the hole after being hit on to the putting surface from a point that is 30 yards or less from the edge of the green. The current Tour average is 7 feet 7 inches.

Proximity to Hole (ARG)

[jlaughridge]

Proximity to the Pin is simply the distance that your "in regulation" shot lands away from the pin, no matter what surface it lands on. Tee shot on a Par 3, 2nd on a Par 4, 3rd on a Par 5. Those are considered the "approach" shots for stat-keeping purposes (even if your 3rd on a Par 5, let's say, is from a drop after a penalty or whatever). That's what that stat is measuring for you.

[cer1949]

Jun 16, 2022 7:25:42 GMT -5 jlaughridge said:

Proximity to the Pin is simply the distance that your "in regulation" shot lands away from the pin, no matter what surface it lands on. Tee shot on a Par 3, 2nd on a Par 4, 3rd on a Par 5. Those are considered the "approach" shots for stat-keeping purposes (even if your 3rd on a Par 5, let's say, is from a drop after a penalty or whatever). That's what that stat is measuring for you.

Partially correct.

The "in regulation" shot cannot come to rest just anywhere to be counted. It must come to rest "around the green" defined as all the area inside a perimeter that runs 30 yards outside the edge of the green. The shot does not have to come  to rest on the green, it can come to rest on any surface inside this perimeter, including water.

And though it is almost always the "in regulation" shot that is counted, it is not always. The second shot on a par 5 that lands "around the green" would be the shot that counts. The third shot would be the "in regulation" shot on a par 5, but it would be ignored in this instance if the second shot on a par 5 comes to rest "around the green." Moreover, let's say the golfer hits his second shot on a par 5 into a water hazard next to the green, and the landing spot in the water is inside the perimeter that runs 30 yards outside the edge of the green. This would be the shot that is counted for measuring proximity to the hole, even though it is in the water and unplayable, and the distance to the hole would be measured from where the ball splashed down.

Proximity to the pin is not actually that helpful as a stat and has been criticized. See the following articles:

Proximity to Hole not the whole story

Tiger's Proximity to Hole Stat

[jlaughridge]

Jun 16, 2022 8:16:47 GMT -5 cer1949 said:

Jun 16, 2022 7:25:42 GMT -5 jlaughridge said:

Proximity to the Pin is simply the distance that your "in regulation" shot lands away from the pin, no matter what surface it lands on. Tee shot on a Par 3, 2nd on a Par 4, 3rd on a Par 5. Those are considered the "approach" shots for stat-keeping purposes (even if your 3rd on a Par 5, let's say, is from a drop after a penalty or whatever). That's what that stat is measuring for you.

Partially correct.

The "in regulation" shot cannot come to rest just anywhere to be counted. It must come to rest "around the green" defined as all the area inside a perimeter that runs 30 yards outside the edge of the green. The shot does not have to come  to rest on the green, it can come to rest on any surface inside this perimeter, including water.

And though it is almost always the "in regulation" shot that is counted, it is not always. The second shot on a par 5 that lands "around the green" would be the shot that counts. The third shot would be the "in regulation" shot on a par 5, but it would be ignored in this instance if the second shot on a par 5 comes to rest "around the green." Moreover, let's say the golfer hits his second shot on a par 5 into a water hazard next to the green, and the landing spot in the water is inside the perimeter that runs 30 yards outside the edge of the green. This would be the shot that is counted for measuring proximity to the hole, even though it is in the water and unplayable, and the distance to the hole would be measured from where the ball splashed down.

Proximity to the pin is not actually that helpful as a stat and has been criticized. See the following articles:

Proximity to Hole not the whole story

Tiger's Proximity to Hole Stat

Yeah, it's for sure not that helpful of a stat.  Tough to find a perfect stat in Golf, as most of them need some context to frame them in.  

Even stuff like SG: Total, which you would think would be a sort of end-all composite stat, has some issues because there's lots of variance within that stat as to WHERE the strokes are being gained and lost, and the volatility for example of a player who gains a lot in one area of play but loses as much somewhere else.............looking at you, Viktor Hovland