Why does the USPGA feel the need to try to limit players scoring

[NorCalGolfer]

I'm in the minority here I'm sure, but I think that today is f*cking boring. Chad Campbell fires off a possible 62? Something that's never been done in a major before. And why? Because people like most of you bitch and moan about seeing birdies. Where's the fun if Chad Campbell and Larry Mize can dismantle AUGUSTA NATIONAL?! zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz wake me up when it's done and the winner shoots -30. Real fun. :sarcasm:

[Chilli Dipper]

I'm in the minority here I'm sure, but I think that today is f*cking boring. Chad Campbell fires off a possible 62? Something that's never been done in a major before. And why? Because people like most of you bitch and moan about seeing birdies. Where's the fun if Chad Campbell and Larry Mize can dismantle AUGUSTA NATIONAL?! zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz wake me up when it's done and the winner shoots -30. Real fun. :sarcasm:

You don't happen to be active in the S&M; lifestyle, are you? Taking pleasure in others' discomfort and all that...

[Kcas77]

The equipment has obivously led to players hitting the ball farther but today golfers have a better work ethic. They are in much better condition than the golfers before them.

[flopdarock]

everything evolves... you cant compare golf today with golf of 50 years ago... equipment wise... course wise... player wise...
just like you cant compare auto racing of today with 50 years ago... cars... tracks... drivers...
evolve or become extinct

[NorCalGolfer]

You don't happen to be active in the S&M; lifestyle, are you? Taking pleasure in others' discomfort and all that...

HAHAH! Heavens no! But I certainly don't want to see people just doing their job. I want to see a struggle or make them earn it. It's like me just going to watch someone paint a house. It's their friggin job to do it and I'm sure they're good at it, but that doesn't mean I'm going to sit there and watch 'em do it. But if you threw some obstacles at 'em and they had chances of falling off the ladder, then shoot, that sounds entertaining!!

[DaveLeeNC]

In every other game in the world as equipment advances have been made the stage on which the game is played remains the same. A 50M pool 40 yrs ago is still 50M filled with water, so we can say that swimmers today prob are faster than they were back then cause we are comparing like with like. The 100M sprint has always been 100M, A football pitch is still the same area, a dart board is still the same radius and distance but in all cases the professionals of these games keep pushing the envelope out and proving they are better than they're predecessors. So why in golf is there something wrong with Tiger hitting 10 birdies on the exact same course that say Ben Hogan could only manage 5 birdies or what is so wrong with an average of 310 or more off the tee today when the golfers of the past could only muster up 270 yrds.

In golf the equipment certainly is different today than it was umpteen years back. And many sports are dialing back equipment changes. There are limits in tennis rackets (that didn't used to exist), upcoming rule changes on swimming suits, swimming pools literally are faster than they used to be (it is a depth and how the waves bounce off the sides thing), MLB baseball bats have SERIOUS limits, bowling bears almost no relationship at all to the game it was 40 years back (and many limits are being put in place there as well), etc. dave

[iacas]

I don't understand why a change isn't made to simply roll back ball technology about 10 years or so. This would seem to solve many of the issues mentioned.

Pinnacles and Top-Flites were readily available 10 years ago.

[Jared]

Did I say 10? I meant 80. Make 'em play gutta percha with hickory shafts.

[microcrayfish]

Golf has several factors that make it different from the many other sports in your comparison. First, golf is a very equipment-dependent sport. It is so equipment dependent that the pros have to hire someone to carry all that stuff around for them when they play (don't see that in any other individual sports, like tennis!). For other equipment-dependent sports, the ruling bodies have made many restrictions to limit the impact of "buying a better game". As others mentioned there are restrictions in auto racing, tennis, etc. Pole vaulters have limits on what they're allowed to use. Javelins have been "throttled" to prevent them from being thrown out of a stadium. American football has kept the ball the same even though aerodynamics could greatly improve its flight. Look what has happened in Americas Cup yachting where they haven't limited the technology - it is now almost a caricature of a sport. And in your example of swimming, you'll find that FINA has pages of regulations on swimwear - it is heavily restricted as to what you can and cannot use.

I agree with pretty much all of this. The America's Cup reference is particularly apt. The America's Cup is a joke these days, the boats can't even get out on the water because all the mega billionaires keep throwing their toys out of the cot about rules and technology. Do you really want to see golf tournaments decided in court like what's happening with the America's Cup and F1 where technology plays far too big of a role. Look at the recent Louis Vuitton Pacific Series where the teams raced against each other in the same boats and the best team won. It was great, the technology was still up to date but the playing field was even and the racing was exciting.