My main point of my comment is that one stat does not win a golf tournament. Winning golf usually involves hitting the ball well to the green and putting well at the same time. Today's competition demands it.

Dave indicates Putting has more significance for the winner, and that is probably true for many years, not just 2006. This is no relevation.

Nicklaus was long during his era. Tiger is clearly long in his era.

I would argue that Funk, DiMarco, and Donald will win some golf events, but the odds are stacked in favor of the longer hitters having more success on most courses they compete on. The PGA course setups, and manicure contribute the most to this.

As an example, Tiger and others can hit 7 irons from 200. Long iron skills are rarely called for in today's game. This is one reason why the Masters now has a 230+ Par 3. I would think a 5 iron is easier to control than a 4 wood. This is where the longer hitters also have an advantage.

My point is that distance has become a bigger factor towards success than in the past. The PGA needs to think how they can adjust the course setups to balance the game a little better. The alternative will be 8000 yard courses that guys like Fred Funk do not show up at.

Second, I still refuse to say driving distance has changed the game of golf. Andy, you mentioned how Tiger, Phil, and Vijay are all at the top of the list when it comes to driving distance. Then you mentioned how all three have great short games to match. The short-game prowess of all these guys are what separates them from the rest.

If Tiger hit it 20-30 yards less off the tee, he would still be winning just as many tournaments. And the same goes for Vijay and Phil. Vijay's iron-play is fantastic, and Phil's imagination around the green is awesome (except the occasional two-footer for par).

Driving distance is the most overrated statistic in all of golf because it's only registered on a certain amount of holes. That's crap if you ask me and doesn't mean squat.

Guys who are in the middle of the pack in driving distance can win just as easily as the big bombers if their GIR and putting is top-notch.

Just look at the numbers Dave posted. The proof is in the pudding. JB Holmes wouldn't have done anything if he wasn't hitting his irons well.

And as for Tiger, he is an exception to all rules. He can win when he is hitting left-handed.

Winning golf tourney's always demands shooting low scores and low scores are dervived by putting the ball in the hole earlier than your competitors.

Driving Distance improves your chances of hitting greens, but unless you could drive Par 4's or if you were the only person that could reach a Par 5 in 2, it will not separate you from the field by itself.

However, let's get real about the driving distance averages. DD is only measured on certain holes and Mr. J.B. Holmes was hitting irons to some Par 4's where others were using driver. He was routinely hitting wedges to all Par 4's and irons to Par 5's. They are hitting the ball 320 when they need it on many holes today. J.B. hit the ball over 340 yards about 6 times on that final sunday. Phil was even playing with a longer shafted driver to get more distance rather than worry about accuracy. The rough is rarely ever penal.

The problem that everyone is aware of, that nobody wants to address, is at what distance will we stop the Pro's from reaching. I put 400 yard drives on a previous comment as my point where distance becomes a problem and the writer of the article said that was way off in the future. I am just wondering how many years away we are from 350 and 375 and ultimately 400. I never thought I would see a guy hit the ball 350 6 times in a round.

Many famous courses cannot be extended in many cases. Many courses are not played anymore because of their distance. Look at the total distance of the Majors golf courses now and compare that with 10 years ago. It is scary.

Those numbers all point to "we need to control the distance somehow".

Vijay, Phil, and Tiger are not the 3 longest hitters, but they are not that far off. They won half the significant golf events in the last 2 years. They are probably the ones that combine distance and short game skills the best.

Unfortunately, distance has become a bigger factor in the modern era.