Bolton golfer Matt Jones has got long driving off to a Tee.

The 33-year-old has become so good at hitting the ball long distances, he is now a professional long driver and has swiftly climbed the European ranks

Jones competes in long-driving competitions around the world and after just one year on tour, he has already achieved global success with a World Long Drive title under his belt.

During the 2023 season, while also competing on the European Long Drive Tour, Jones entered the World Long Drive (WLD) Virtual Championship and a drive of an incredible 408 yards put him straight to the top of the worldwide leaderboard.

The following month, he once again proved he was a force to be reckoned with and a drive of 415 yards, taking him to the top of the leaderboard once again and into the final.

Unfazed by the additional pressure of being the championship front runner, Jones saved his best for when it mattered most.

On one of his last shots in the finals, he was able to achieve an impressive 218.7mph ball speed, which resulted in a 416-yard drive and become the WLD Virtual Champion.

Jones said: “Winning a global competition, especially the way I did as the favourite, and then performing at my best under that pressure was a massive confidence boost, proving that I could compete with the best in the world.”

Looking ahead to this year, Jones has set his sights firmly on retaining his WLD Virtual Championship crown and also to compete in the US to secure his qualification to this year’s World Championship.

In addition, he intends to break into the top six of the European rankings and also win the European championship.

As the 2024 long-drive season is approaching fast, the Boltonian is looking for sponsors who would like to partner with him and support his journey, while gaining exposure to a local and global audience.

Jones added: “As I am completely self-funded and also have a young family to support, having the means to be able to travel to the US and compete, in order to secure my place at the World Championships, is going to be a challenge.

“So I am looking for sponsors who can see the benefit of a partnership with me and who would like to gain exposure to a large market.

“I’m more than willing to discuss everything in more detail with anyone who would like to get in touch.”

Anyone who is interested and would like to know more, can get in contact with Jones via his Instagram @mattjones_longdrive or his email matthew@thejonesys.co.uk.

His family have also set up a GoFundMe page, at gofund.me/584fcfa4, in the hope he can raise enough money to allow him to continue competing in Europe as well as enable him to travel to the US.

Jones continued: “If there is anyone that would like to support me on my journey it would be absolutely unbelievable and mean so much to both me and my family.

“I’d love to get to the World Championship and ‘do it for Bolton’.

“I am so grateful for the support I’ve received from everyone so far.

“Hopefully this year I can go one step further than I did in 2023 and not only win the online WLD Virtual Championship, but also get to the USA and compete at the WLD World Championship.”

* To follow Jones' journey, can head to his Instagram and YouTube channels, ‘@mattjoneslongdrive’ where he posts updates on his training, tips for golfers looking to add more distance and his achievements throughout the year.