I'm sure that there are a lot of opinions on this and the impact of the elevation.  Living in Texas, when playing golf in Colorado (around Denver), the altitude difference does have an impact on your carry, but I don't think it is as dramatic as some would have you believe.  I have found that if you just take one club less, you are generally pretty spot on for distance.

I agree with Mike C, extreme altitude differences may increase distance to some small degree but there are also so many factors to come into play that altitude alone most likely isn't that big of a factor.  I read an article stating that air temperature affects air density in such a way to have more of a factor than altitude.  Example, ball will cut through the air better on a 90 degree day over a 50 degree day as the warmer the weather the less dense the air is.  The article also mentioned that the ball will spin less at altitude making it actually fly on a lower trajectory with less aerodynamics.  Interesting stuff for the techie crowd out there....     

Doc,

These are what I use, and they help somewhat...but in the end, go with what makes you feel good!!!

Quoting Steve Aoyama, who is the Principal Scientist of Golf Ball Research and Development for Acushnet.

"As a starting point," Aoyama said, "one can estimate the percentage distance increase (compared to sea level) by multiplying the elevation (in feet) by .00116.  For example, at 5,000 feet elevation the increase is about 5,000 times .00116, which equals 5.8 percent. Thus, a golfer who drives the ball 250 yards in L.A. might see an increase of 14.5 yards (5.8 percent of 250) when playing in Denver. The percent increase will be less for players with lower swing speeds and/or when hitting a shorter shot. But on a mid to long approach shot, that could still make a one club difference. Not to mention that you'll be about a club closer to the green as a result of the longer drive."

It's a a good article if you want to search for "Mile High Challenge: Playing in altitude to test field"

My experience is pretty close to that playing in the mountains. I'd say about a half-club to a full club depending on the shot. 

Hi Ashley, 

Thanks for the post. 

I followed up with Steve to confirm the above information. He did have additional information:

"I probably should have mentioned that the correction factor I provided assumes that the temperature is about 19°F cooler at 5,000 feet elevation, which is a scientifically generated number based on overall properties of the Earth's atmosphere.  Of course, local climate can strongly affect that number, and if we're talking about Denver specifically my sense is that it's not typically 19°cooler than LA  during golf season.  If on a given day it's the same temperature as LA, then you can add about 2 percentage points to the calculation performed in the example.  Thus, the distance increase becomes 7.8% or 19.5 yards."

Hope this helps.

Thanks everyone for the great feedback.

Bubba

Bubba - Thanks for the additional information.  That's very good info.

I'm not sure about a chart, but in years past watching the tour on TV (I think the tournament was The International outside of Denver), I recall the announcers talking about the difference in distance and I think they said the differential was around 10% greater distance at altitude.

Hope this helps,

Barry

Dr K,

Just found this article.

http://golftips.golfsmith.com/calculate-golf-yardages-altitude-20451.html

Cheers,

Barry

Going from 800 feet at home to 8000 feet in Utah was 8-10% - 1 to 1.5 clubs.