18 APRIL 2018 | golf australia
THE 19TH HOLETHE DISTANCE DEBATE
JUST GOT INTERESTING
HERE’S hoping you’re not sick of hearing
about how far the modern golf ball
fl ies – because things are about to get
very interesting.
The USGA and R&A have decided that it’s
time to dial things back, after their annual
driving distance report revealed that the
average tee shot has increased by more
than three yards across seven professional
tours since 2016.
Golf’s governing bodies identifi ed the
distance issue back in 2002 and came
together to draw up a Joint Statement of
Principles that would ensure the longevity
and integrity of the game. But both Mike
Davis (USGA) and Martin Slumbers (R&A)
have agreed that things have gotten out
of hand.
“This isn’t just about the male elite
game,” Davis said. “The reality is this is
affecting all golfers and affecting them in
a bad way ... Courses are expanding and
are predicted to continue to expand. All it’s
doing is increasing the cost of the game.
The impact it has had has been horrible.”
Slumbers concurred, stating: “For a
number of years there has been a slow
creep upwards, but this is a little bit
more than slow creep, it’s actually quite
a big jump. Our 2002 Joint Statement of
Principles put a line in the sand. But when
you look at this data, we have probably
crossed that line in the sand. A serious
discussion is now needed on where we go.”
The discussion Slumbers alludes to
will likely end with a plan on how to best
introduce the concept of variable distance
golf balls into the professional game – a
feasible and seemingly sensible solution to
the issue, they will spin more, travel less
and protect the designs of iconic courses.But there are two sides to every story,
and not everyone agrees with the idea of
implementing a ball specifi cally tailored to
the professional game.
Rising Australian professional, Lucas
Herbert, recently took to Twitter to voice
his opinion: “280 characters isn’t
enough to explain why introducing a
‘professional-only ball’ would be the worst
thing you could do for the game.”
To which, Mike Clayton responded: “The
am and pro game have never been further
apart. Changing the ball for you blokes
would bring it back closer together.”
Should variable distance golf balls be
introduced – and it’s appearing more and
more likely that it’s just a matter of time
before they will be – the USGA and R&A
will need to begin the arduous process
of convincing players and key fi gures
(including manufacturers) of the necessity
to do so.
But it’s a battle worth fi ghting according
to Mike Davis, who alluded to the fact
that long players would still be long – and
any further redesigns to the world’s great
courses could ultimately be prevented.
“We all love hitting the ball far, but
distance is all relative,” Davis said. “An
astonishing, perhaps even sobering
example close to home will be this
summer’s US Open at Shinnecock Hills that
will be played at over 7,400 yards.
“One hundred and twenty-two years
ago at the 1896 US Open, care to guess
Shinnecock’s total yardage? 4,423 yards. It
makes you wonder what golf courses will
look like if we stay on this trajectory.”
Watch this space.- Michael Jones
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