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The Golf Ball "Problem": PGA Tour Players Hitting it Far is a Problem for All of Golf?


iacas
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The Golf Ball "Problem"  

174 members have voted

  1. 1. Does the distance modern PGA Tour pros hit the ball pose a problem to golf as a whole?

    • Yes
      40
    • No
      134
  2. 2. What is the main source of the "problem" above?

    • The golf ball goes too far, primarily.
      23
    • Several factors all contribute heavily.
      26
    • I voted "No" above, and I don't think there's really a "problem" right now.
      125


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22 minutes ago, iacas said:

 

He forgot the use of launch monitors during practice! :-D

 

Edited by Lihu

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24 minutes ago, cutchemist42 said:

Might be a seperate poll, but even if you dont think this is a problem that needs fixing, would you still use the rollback balls?

Only if they were the only option available.   I'd pay extra to keep the current ball instead of a limited flight ball. 

From the land of perpetual cloudiness.   I'm Denny

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It isn't a problem for me first of all because nothing they do affects my golf in any way. This is like asking if Indy racers affect my daily driving.

In the 1960s, if a major league baseball team had a pitcher of two who threw in the 90s with regularity they were gold. Now, not being able to throw that hard is almost the exception.

Professional golfers hitting it farther than before should be expected, and professional golf needs to adjust to it. Recreational golf on recreational courses is just fine.

 

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http://www.golf.com/equipment/2018/03/13/taylormade-ceo-firmly-opposes-rolling-back-golf-ball-these-movements-will-be-detrimental-game-every

TaylorMade CEO David Abeles put out a strong statement Tuesday, clarifying the company's opposition concerning any potential technology rollback in the wake of a new USGA/R&A report on increased driving distance. The report called the three-yard increase "unusual and concerning" and said that golf ball distance "requires closer inspection and monitoring to fully understand the causes and effects." Abeles disagreed.

"We have meticulously reviewed the USGA and R&A's 2017 Distance Report and discussed its findings with key stakeholders," his statement reads. "Additionally, we have carefully considered the inferred implications that the study may have on the game moving forward. The TaylorMade Golf Company firmly opposes any potential rollback of product performance or bifurcation of the rules in any form as we believe these movements will be detrimental to the game at every level."

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1 hour ago, iacas said:

http://www.golf.com/equipment/2018/03/13/taylormade-ceo-firmly-opposes-rolling-back-golf-ball-these-movements-will-be-detrimental-game-every

TaylorMade CEO David Abeles put out a strong statement Tuesday, clarifying the company's opposition concerning any potential technology rollback in the wake of a new USGA/R&A report on increased driving distance. The report called the three-yard increase "unusual and concerning" and said that golf ball distance "requires closer inspection and monitoring to fully understand the causes and effects." Abeles disagreed.

"We have meticulously reviewed the USGA and R&A's 2017 Distance Report and discussed its findings with key stakeholders," his statement reads. "Additionally, we have carefully considered the inferred implications that the study may have on the game moving forward. The TaylorMade Golf Company firmly opposes any potential rollback of product performance or bifurcation of the rules in any form as we believe these movements will be detrimental to the game at every level."

Good

From the land of perpetual cloudiness.   I'm Denny

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I think at times people forget who pays the bills in the golf industry. It isn't the touring pros but joe blow who needs to buy a driver or new putter every year. The guys who pay the green fees around the country. They guys who buy all the apparel. I think the rollback talk is kind of just something to talk about. I think it would be cool if they did a PGA tournament with persimmons and balata balls during the silly season.

Trollin' is the life

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The PGA of America's poll said that of the 7500 professionals that responded, 70% oppose a rollback.

  • Like 1

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Screen+Shot+2018-03-13+at+7.04.40+PM.png

The poll results from the PGA's survey.

Erik J. Barzeski —  I knock a ball. It goes in a gopher hole. 🏌🏼‍♂️
Director of Instruction Golf Evolution • Owner, The Sand Trap .com • AuthorLowest Score Wins
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  • 3 weeks later...
  • Administrator

http://www.espn.com/golf/story/_/id/22992057/masters-2018-keep-golfer-playing-augusta

"I'm going to go out on a limb here ... make a standardized golf ball."

"If they designed their own golf ball? They don't get to decide that."

"I wouldn't play if they decided to make their own rules compared to what we play every day out on tour."

Erik J. Barzeski —  I knock a ball. It goes in a gopher hole. 🏌🏼‍♂️
Director of Instruction Golf Evolution • Owner, The Sand Trap .com • AuthorLowest Score Wins
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Saw this in the May issue of Golf Digest ("Undercover Tour Pro"):

5ac7fa115e032_GolfDigest.jpg.95f29bc23c63e76c4ef13215df69db98.jpg

;-)

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  • 2 years later...
4 hours ago, Vinsk said:

It’s a dumb debate. Dialing back the ball is stupid. Architects can find other ways to make a course challenging other than length. The lowest round of 58 was done by a short hitter ( Furyk). BD isn’t destroying the game. Short knockers are still making it out there. 

Yes. I was curious, so I spent 15 minutes comparing the data in 2020.

Correlation of Scoring Average rank / Driving Distance rank is 0.35 for the top 100 golfers. Very weak.

Edited by chspeed
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1 hour ago, chspeed said:

Yes. I was curious, so I spent 15 minutes comparing the data in 2020.

Correlation of Scoring Average rank / Driving Distance rank is 0.35 for the top 100 golfers. Very weak.

What's the correlation if you remove Bryson?  .10?  😁  (I love correlations that refute commonly held beliefs)

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6 hours ago, chspeed said:

Yes. I was curious, so I spent 15 minutes comparing the data in 2020.

Correlation of Scoring Average rank / Driving Distance rank is 0.35 for the top 100 golfers. Very weak.

That means that for every 3 ish positions you go up in DD rank, you go up 1 rank in scoring average.....not exactly weak, especially when a distance gain of 1 yard can net you around 5-6 ranks in the meat of the curve. That means that if Cantlay can eek 5 extra yards out of his driving distance, he could be 18th rank DD instead of T46, netting him 28/3 spots higher on scoring average. If you asked him if he wanted 9 extra spots every week, I think he'd take it. That 9 spots per week could be hundreds of thousands of dollars per year if you are a top 20 player.

Distance is clearly an advantage. To try and dismiss it with an arbitrary and faulty correlation is silly. The debate rages on.

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1 minute ago, Bonvivant said:

Distance is clearly an advantage. To try and dismiss it with an arbitrary and faulty correlation is silly. 

I agree, Distance IS an advantage and it SHOULD be. 

That's why guys work hard and practice and train and study launch monitors etc... 

I'm not saying they don't hit it far. I'm not saying saying that distance isn't an advantage. I'm saying we don't need to change the rules, or the roll the equipment back. And even if guys continue to get bigger, faster and stronger, that's fine with me. I think it's awesome to watch a guy carry his driver 315 yards or more. 

I do think that if you don't want guys to score so low you could just grow the grass in the fairway so that 315 yards or carry only turns out to be a 330 yard drive not a 375 yard drive. You could then let the rough grow taller and penalize them more if they miss the fairway. 

AAAAANNNNDDDD.... I totally TOTALLY FREAKING HATE the idea of having two different sets of equipment. These guys are the best in the world at what they do, don't penalize them for that. "Hey Lebron James, Steph Curry you guys are really getting too good at this basketball thing. You should have to play with a ball that weighs 25 pounds and doesn't bounce." 

My bag is an ever-changing combination of clubs. 

A mix I am forever tinkering with. 

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1 minute ago, ChetlovesMer said:

AAAAANNNNDDDD.... I totally TOTALLY FREAKING HATE the idea of having two different sets of equipment. These guys are the best in the world at what they do, don't penalize them for that. "Hey Lebron James, Steph Curry you guys are really getting too good at this basketball thing. You should have to play with a ball that weighs 25 pounds and doesn't bounce." 

I am a big fan of bifurcation. NBA should be played on 12' rims in my opinion (not a huge sports fan so take that with a grain of salt).

I agree that distance is an advantage and should be. My worry is for courses that could run PGA events, but don't have the room to stretch tees out to 7200 yards. Also, conservation of resources worries me, but that's another topic. Some sort of equipment bifurcation may mitigate this, and that is why I would argue in favor of it.

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23 minutes ago, Double Mocha Man said:

The alternative is to let the scores go lower and keep the courses as they are. These guys work really hard to get better and better... let their hard work be rewarded with lower scores, not golf balls that don't go as far.

We can let the scores go lower, but course size will never shrink again as I think it should. If there was an event on the PGA played from a reasonable distance, say 6700 yards, the par would most likely be 67-68. I'd be fine with this, but it would still be a -30 event for the winner, something that isn't that exciting to me.

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Part of the reason the PGA/LPGA Tour is fun to watch is to see the skill demonstrated. There is something romantic about being able to outfit your bag with the same clubs and balls and go out to the same courses and see just how much better those folks on TV are than us.

I volunteer at the Houston Open every year (thus getting the chance to play the course after the tourney) and going to the back tees and hitting some of those tee shots is mind boggling... It makes me appreciate the skill of the guys and gals on Tour and keeps me going to the range/course trying to improve. 

I am fearful that bifurcation would slowly kill the game. What club/ball manufacturers are going to be able to advertise to the masses when the equipment played by the pros we admire and wish to emulate aren't clubs/balls worth us buying?

The average drive of the weekend hacker is in the low 200s- how many guys would quit the game if they could no longer drive it over 200? There are already pace of play issues due to guys playing the wrong tees- just wait until you have to play a dead ball or use dead clubs....

 

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Note: This thread is 1193 days old. We appreciate that you found this thread instead of starting a new one, but if you plan to post here please make sure it's still relevant. If not, please start a new topic. Thank you!

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