Norwin grad hopes to hit 'a bomb' in Nevada

For the past two years, Norwin graduate Justin Moose has found himself just outside Las Vegas in early November, hitting golf balls.

Sounds pretty good, doesn't it?

But Moose isn't an average weekend hacker. He has a gift -- the ability to hit the golf ball nearly a quarter of a mile.

That skill has earned him a spot in the Re/Max World Long Drive Championship for the third consecutive year, and he is hoping his "bombs" of more than 350 yards will result in both accolades and prize money this time around.

"Last year was a poor exhibition," Moose said. "This year, I want to see if I can make it into the top 10 and gain some confidence out there. I want to be able to go after the holy grail of long driving."

Originally, Moose didn't have plans to compete this year. If it weren't for a spur-of-the moment trip to northwestern Pennsylvania, he wouldn't be making the trek to Mesquite, Nev., on Monday for the start of the long-driving event.

The big-ball hitter attended the local qualifier at Oakland Beach Club in Conneaut Lake on Aug. 6 and earned a spot in the regional qualifier the next day.

There, he blasted a drive of 356 yards to finish third and gain entry into the world event.

"I wasn't going to do it this year. I just wanted to (play) golf. I was at work, and I saw that day was the last day to do a local qualifier before regionals. The regionals were the next day," Moose said. "I took a half day at work, went up there and qualified. I stayed overnight, and the next day, I won every round until the finals and then came in third.

"It was just a spur-of-the-moment thing. I went up and borrowed people's equipment. I just made it through that way."

With the long-driving fire re-ignited, Moose hit the weight room and the driving range to prepare to battle the biggest hitters in the world. He recently moved to Bellevue, which was a welcome change for the owners of McDain's driving range in Monroeville. Now, Moose is losing golf balls all over the North Hills, instead.

"I've been hitting a few up here," he said, "trying to spread the wealth around and losing lots of golf balls.

"All I'm doing now is trying to hit the ball as far as possible."

Last year at the world championship, Moose and his competitors battled record-low temperatures that affected the flight of the ball and the distance it traveled. The North Huntingdon native struggled in the early rounds and failed to advance after finishing in fifth place in his two groups, with long drives of 318 and 313 yards.

This year, with new heads and shafts specifically designed for long drivers, Moose hopes to take what he learned the past two years and put it to good use.

"There are different elements to deal with," he said. "Last year, they had all-time record-low temperatures. There was frost. You have to deal with the different equipment and figure out what driver to use that day."

Moose, who is sponsored by Rocky Frederick of Cronimet Corp. in Chicago, and Lou DeVito, a sales representative with Tehama golf shirts, will compete for more than $450,000 in prize money.

Jamie Sadlowski won the Open Division at the past two world championships and has been known to bomb the ball more than 400 yards to claim more than $250,000 in winnings.

The Re/Max World Long Drive Championship will be broadcast Nov. 5 on ESPN3 at 6:30 p.m., and also will be aired on tape delay on ESPN2 and ESPN on Dec. 25 and 26.