The golf ball rollback on the PGA Tour will begin in less than three years. Two years after that the rollback takes effect for all recreational golfers.
Don’t fool yourself into thinking the ball rollback will be the final straw on the USGA’s determined and misguided pursuit to limit how far the golf ball can go.
Next on the USGA’s radar? The driver!
In fact, before the ball rollback was determined, many tour players felt the USGA was “barking up the wrong tree.” They felt the driver should have been the first piece of equipment to be examined in regards to distance.
Early whispers coming out of USGA headquarters in Far Hills, NJ hint that any restrictions to the driver would only apply to “elite” players. And new regulations on the driver would only be considered after the “elite” players have been playing the new ball for a period of time.
Possible changes would include reducing the size of the clubhead, limiting the area of the face that produces the highest ball speeds, and restricting the components of the clubhead that make it so forgiving, essentially shrinking the “sweet spot.”
Yes, the initial thoughts are that these rejiggered clubs would be for elite players only and that calculating the effect of these changes would be too complicated to work on recreational players’ clubs.
Don’t hold your breath on that, folks.
The USGA estimates the golf ball rollback will cause a 15-yard reduction in driving distance for the longest hitters and “only” about a three to five yard distance loss for “most recreational golfers.” Of course, these distance reductions will also affect every club in your bag.
The USGA’s recent data says the average male amateur golfer hits his driver 216 yards and the average female golfer drives it 148 yards.
Those numbers don’t exactly scream out that there’s a problem with how far recreational golfers hit the ball!
This is a classic case of overreaction by the USGA! Touring professionals are a tiny fraction of all the golfers in the world (less than 0.01%).
So the USGA is rolling back the distance all golfers can hit the ball based on how far less than 0.01% of golfers hit the ball! Get real!
Seriously?!?!
Shame on the USGA for being asleep at the wheel 25 years ago. In 2001 only one player on the PGA Tour – John Daly – averaged more than 300 yards.; In 2002, his average was 306.7. In 2003, nine players averaged over 300 yards, and Hank Kuehne led with 321.4 yards.
Tour driving averages went up six yards from 2000-2001, then seven yards from ‘02 – ‘03. In 2024, 100 of 184 PGA Tour players averaged 300 yards or more, according to pgatour.com.
If the USGA was paying attention they could have capped it right there, avoiding this rollback 25 years later.
The PGA Tour has not endorsed the shorter ball. In fact, in 2023 they sent a memo to their players that “the Tour does not intend to abide by the new (rollback) guidelines.”
The PGA of America, with a membership of more than 30,000 club/teaching golf professionals, is not endorsing the ball rollback. In fact, when the rollback was being considered, the PGA surveyed its members and the results were overwhelmingly against it, citing the negative effect it would have on recreational players.
The USGA paid no attention, the same reaction it displayed when the PGA surveyed its members about the proposed putter-anchoring ban.
Since the pandemic, golf has been growing. There are more men, women, and juniors taking up the game. Public and private course tee times are booked to capacity at most facilities throughout the country. Play is up at a greater percentage than during the “Tiger boom” 25 years ago.
The USGA has no second thoughts about raining on that parade.
Golf’s not easy on a good day, for any player regardless of ability. Some 99% of all golf courses are too long for a large percent of recreational golfers. We preach the Play it Forward initiative, to try to get players to move up a few tees to play at more-appropriate yardages in relation to how far they hit the ball. I have been a longtime advocate for the Play it Forward initiative.
Yet the USGA is making changes to make you hit it shorter? I don’t get it. Obviously, the USGA is oblivious.
I think the next two to three years are going to be very interesting in regards to the rollback. Could a showdown be a possibility? Will players – both professional and recreational – refuse to adopt the rollback?
Stay tuned!
Bob Green continues to enjoy his retirement after 41 years as head golf professional at Tedesco Country Club. Tell him what you think at bgreen49@aol.com
