Under the new rules, everyone is going to transition into the balls tested in a new, distance-reducing way.
The United States Golf Association and R&A jointly announced that the rules governing how golf balls are tested will change starting on Jan. 1, 2028. It’s how the governing bodies intend to stop the trends of golfers hitting the ball farther and golf courses getting longer.
The announcement came after years of debate, study and communications between the USGA and R&A with stakeholders like golf equipment manufacturers, the PGA Tour, the PGA of America and other prominent groups in the golf world.
Initially, the USGA and R&A proposed the creation of a Model Local Rule that would have resulted in only elite men being required to use distance-reducing balls. But under the new rules, everyone is going to transition into the balls tested in a new, distance-reducing way.
Here are my takeaways from the USGA and R&A’s decision:
Faster-swinging players will be affected the most and recreational golfers will be affected the least with the change.
In an announcement nearly four years in the making, the United States Golf Association and the R&A, golf’s governing bodies, announced Wednesday that they are changing how golf balls will be tested for conformity to reduce the effects of distance in the sport.
Starting in 2028, for a golf ball to be deemed conforming and be legal for play, it will be tested using a robot that swings a titanium club at 125 mph and hits the ball on an 11-degree launch angle with 2,200 rpm of spin. The shot can not exceed the Overall Distance Standard (ODS) of 317 yards of combined carry distance and roll (with a 3-yard tolerance).
Currently, balls are at 120 mph with a launch angle of 10 degrees and 2,520 rpm of backspin, so the change increases the robot’s clubhead by 5 mph, increases the launch angle by 1 degree and decreases the spin rate by about 300 rpm.
Current test conditions
New test conditions
Change
120 mph clubhead speed
125 mph clubhead speed
5 mph clubhead speed
10-degree launch angle
11-degree launch angle
1-degree launch angle
2,520 rpm of spin
2,200 rpm of spin
320 rpm of spin
Nearly every golf ball being sold today – including the Titleist Pro V1, Callaway Chrome Soft, TaylorMade TP5, Bridgestone Tour B and Srixon Z-Star – would go too far and fail the new test because manufacturers design their balls to go right to the current distance limits. Increasing the test speed by 5 mph and hitting shots at low spin rates and higher launch angles would make all of today’s balls go too far and become non-conforming.
Balls that had previously been legal but failed the new test will be removed from the Conforming Ball list, making them illegal for official play starting Jan. 1, 2028.
The USGA’s golf robot swings a test club at exactly the speed technicians want. (USGA)
According to Thomas Pagel, the USGA’s chief governance officer, using golf balls that pass the new test will result in a loss of distance, with the fastest-swinging players being affected the most and recreational golfers being affected the least.
“The longest players, which means those generating ball speeds of 183 mph or higher, are going to lose 13 to 15 yards [with their driver],” Pagel said. “The average PGA Tour player and elite male, like a college player, would lose closer to 9 or 11 yards. LPGA players, given their clubhead speed, we’re looking at 5 to 7 yards. And recreational golfers, we’re talking about 5 yards or less.”
Only 10 players ended last season’s PGA Tour with a measured ball speed average of over 183 mph. ShotLink reports the PGA Tour’s average ball speed for the season was 172.85 mph.
According to John Spitzer, the USGA’s director of equipment standards, the average male club player who swings his driver at 90 mph will lose 4 to 5 yards off the tee but will likely not lose any yardage when hitting hybrids, irons or wedges.
“The typical male amateur and female amateur in the recreational game hit the ball with a lot more spin than is optimal off the driver,” Spitzer said.
Balls that are submitted for testing by October 2027 will be tested under the current standard, while any balls submitted for testing after that will be tested at the new standard and added (assuming they pass the test) to the Conforming Ball list on Jan. 1, 2028.
Why did we decide to change the golf ball testing conditions?
Because, as @USGAMike explains, we would be failing in our responsibility to protect the game's future if we didn't take appropriate action. pic.twitter.com/SJi0dOtoeA
“Golfers in the recreational game don’t have to worry about this until 2030,” Pagel said. “We will leave the last list for 2027 published and recreational golfers can continue to use those balls. So, if they have any balls left in their golf bag or at home and they want to use those balls and post their scores, they will be playing under the Rules of Golf and there won’t be any issues there.”
The USGA and R&A plan to work out the details that will allow recreational golfers to play pre-2028 balls but have professionals and elite amateurs use reduced-distance balls at a later date, likely with Clarification.
Nine months ago, the USGA and the R&A thought they had a solution to the distance problem and proposed a new Model Local Rule. It would allow tournament organizers and tours to require players to use golf balls tested under conditions very similar to those announced now. The goal was to enable tournaments for elite golfers to mandate the use of distance-reducing golf balls while not changing equipment rules that govern recreational players.
A look at several golf balls that have been cut in half to show their insides. (Photo: David Dusek/Golfweek)
This announcement, which will affect all golfers and not just the fastest-swinging elite players, resulted from feedback given to the USGA and the R&A during a Notice and Comment Period that began on March 14 and ended on August 13.
“The feedback we got during the Notice and Comment period was overwhelming, and it was extremely consistent across all stakeholders,” said Pagel. “Whether it was the tours, the tour membership, manufacturers, the PGA of America or, frankly, just recreational golfers themselves, we heard loud and clear the desire for unity. A unified game, played under a unified set of rules and standards is important.”
Several of the biggest names in golf have said for years that they think modern golf balls fly too far and too straight, including Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods. However, the process that led to this change took time to happen.
On Feb. 4, 2020, the USGA and R&A released their Distance Insights Report, a 102-page document with data and information from 56 projects. As part of that report, the determination that distance played an outsized role in the sport was formally made.
After the COVID-19 pandemic put many tests and programs on hold, a Model Local Rule was created that allowed tournament officials to limit driver length to 46 inches to discourage elite golfers from gaining more speed and distance using extra-long equipment. Then, in March of 2022, the USGA and R&A sent a three-page Areas of Interest letter to manufacturers informing companies that the governing bodies were exploring changes to how balls are tested.
The Model Local Rule proposed in March would have increased the speed to 125-127 mph in a range of launch angles between 7.5 and 15 degrees with backspin rates from 2,200 rpm to 3,000 rpm.
However, to many golfers, an essential feature of golf is everyone plays by the same rules.
Justin Thomas, a two-time major winner, said, “It’s so bad for the game of golf.” He added, “For an everyday amateur golfer, it’s very unique that we are able to play the exact same equipment. Yeah, I understand that I may have a different grind on a wedge, whatever you want to call it, but you can go to the pro shop and buy the same golf ball that I play, or Scottie Scheffler plays.”
The USGA and R&A have said for several years that they had three options regarding distance. The governing bodies could do nothing, which they considered a non-option. They could target fast-swinging golfers with a Model Local Rule, but that was unpopular. The third option has been chosen: change the rules for everyone while leaving some room for further reductions in the future.
“This is about the long-term management of distance, and this test has been updated in the past,” Pagel said. “We fully anticipate that golfers at the elite level will be back to the distance of today at some point in the future. Is that 15 years, 20 years … that’s to be determined. But we would expect to be back here and expect to make future changes.”
Four months ago, Fred Ridley, the chairman of Augusta National Golf Club, strongly hinted that he and the club supported the USGA and R&A’s proposed Model Local Rule (MLR) that would mandate golfers in elite events use distance-reducing golf balls. Tiger Woods came out in support of the idea, and so did Rory McIlroy, giving the two governing bodies of golf some momentum in their battle against distance.
But as the comment period has continued, that momentum has slowed, and Monday, one of the biggest sports organizations in the world came out against the idea.
Golf Channel’s Rex Hoggard obtained a memo and posted it on Twitter that was written by the CEO of the PGA of America and sent to the USGA and R&A. In the memo, Waugh, who was writing as the head representative for the PGAs of America, Australia, Great Britain and several other countries, said that the groups, comprised of more than teaching professionals, course operators and others in the golf industry would not support the idea of the Model Local Rule.
“We fear that the proposed changes could seriously interrupt the current momentum in the game and be fundamentally damaging and detrimental in the long run,” Waugh wrote. “We are also very aware that there are sets of data that conflict with the R&A and USA materials. This is confusing and, in our view, needs to be considered fully, reviewed and clarified prior to any final decision being made.”
He went on to state: “For the whole industry to buy into any changes, we feel it is very important that everyone agrees with one set of data to be used to establish the basis of dramatic change. Also, to be abundantly clear as regards to the current proposal, after much thought and conversation, we arrived at full agreement as a group that we firmly oppose bifurcation for the following reasons.”
Golfweek contacted representatives of the USGA and asked for comment, then received the following statement:
We remain in a Notice & Comment period, accepting feedback from voices from across the game. The PGA is an important stakeholder and we appreciate the feedback they have contributed to this conversation.
The comment period on the proposed Model Local Rule is scheduled to conclude on next Monday, August 14.
Less than two weeks ago, a similar memo was written by Jay Monahan and sent PGA Tour players, explaining that the PGA Tour had informed the USGA and R&A that it was not in favor of the Model Local Rule in its current form.
The PGA Tour and the Alliance of PGAs cannot stop the USGA and the R&A from creating the Model Local Rule, but if they choose not to adopt it and implement it in the events they operate, it would be a massive blow to the overall acceptance of the MLR.
The USGA operates the U.S. Open, U.S. Women’s Open and several other championships, while the R&A runs the British Open, Women’s British Open and numerous tournaments as well. Mike Whan, the CEO of the USGA, and Martin Slumbers, his counterpart at the R&A, have stated that if the MLR is created, they plan to adopt it starting in 2026 at their elite men’s events.
However, the PGA of America runs the PGA Championship. If Seth Waugh and the PGA of America decided not to adopt the MLR, it is possible that the Masters, U.S. Open and British Opens would require golfers to use a different ball than they would use at the PGA Championship, the Players Championship and week-to-week PGA Tour events.
While the USGA and R&A’s proposed MLR is not intended to be adopted at the club level or at most amateur competitions, Waugh wrote that the proposal would create confusion, more work for PGA of America members and ultimately lead to bifurcation (the use to different rules governing professionals and recreational golfers). The USGA and R&A have adamantly stated that there are already several Model Local Rules, and tournaments are free to adopt them or not adopt them as they see fit. In the eyes of the USGA and the R&A, the creation of a Model Local Rule that requires elite golfers to use reduce-distance balls would not create a separate set of rules, but many people and organizations do not agree.
“Lastly and importantly, the suggestion that elite women should play the ‘recreational ball’ could be viewed very negatively at a time when we are all trying to promote and champion women’s golf and participation,” Waugh wrote.
In an interview with Golfweek, Mike Whan said that he does not feel there is a distance problem in women’s golf and hinted that the USGA would likely not adopt the MLR at the Women’s U.S. Open.
After the conclusion of the Notice & Comment period, the USGA and R&A are expected to study the comments and announce a decision on the Model Local Rule, possibly with six months.
Whan and his team, along with with the R&A and its CEO, Martin Slumbers, are working to create support and momentum for the proposed Model Local Rule that would require elite players to use reduce-distance golf balls. Throughout the current “Notice and Comment” period, many players, including Justin Thomas, have come out against the idea, but other influential players like Rory McIlroy and Tiger Woods have come out in favor of it. Fred Ridley, chairman of the Augusta National Golf Club, also showed support for the idea of elite players using reduced-distance balls during his press conference before the start of this year’s Masters.
If support from McIlroy, Woods and Ridley gave Whan and Slumbers cause for optimism, Monahan’s memo was a reminder that nothing is settled.
PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan at the 2023 Sentry Tournament of Champions at Kapalua. (Photo: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports)
“As you know, we have spent the last two years undertaking a comprehensive analysis of distance on the PGA Tour and its impact. Although there has been some level of support for limiting future increases, there is widespread and significant belief the proposed Modified Local Rule is not warranted and is not in the best interest of the game. Following a discussion on the topic at a recent PAC meeting, we have notified the USGA and The R&A that while the PGA Tour is committed to collaborating with them – and all industry partners – to arrive at a solution that will best serve our players, our fans and the game at all levels, we are not able to support the MLR as proposed. As the formal feedback period to the USGA and the R&A comes to an end and this process evolves, I will be in touch with updates.”
Golfweek contacted the USGA for comment and was sent this statement: “We remain in a Notice & Comment period, accepting feedback from voices from across the game. The PGA Tour is an important stakeholder and we appreciate the feedback they have contributed to this conversation.”
Getting the PGA Tour (and, by extension, the Korn Ferry Tour and DP World Tour) on board with the MLR is critical for the USGA and the R&A. It would represent the most significant seal of approval possible and it has felt like a foregone conclusion to many people in the golf industry.
In the four months since the USGA and R&A jointly announced the proposed MLR, numerous executives and industry insiders who spoke with Golfweek shrugged their collective shoulders and begrudgingly seemed to have accepted that if the MLR were passed, the PGA Tour would adopt it.
Those feelings still exist, and industry veterans who spoke with Golfweek on Thursday morning see Monahan’s comments as the start of a bargaining process.
Monahan, who is likely on shaky ground with many PGA Tour members after surprising the golf world with the proposal of a merger with LIV Golf, is not in a position to go against a majority of players and tell them the PGA Tour will make them use a reduced-distance ball in a few years. Monahan’s memo to golf’s governing bodies is really saying that while they may feel that distance is becoming too big a part of the game and threatening the competitive value of historically significant courses, the PGA Tour has other things to consider.
The inclusion of, ” … a solution that will best serve our players, our fans and the game at all levels,” was also not an accident. We know players don’t want to lose distance. Fans who buy tickets and companies that purchase luxury boxes to entertain clients at PGA Tour events don’t want to see golfers hit the ball less far. Television executives who study TV ratings don’t see distance as a problem. For Monahan, golf is as much about entertainment as it is competition, and part of his job is to protect the entertainment value of his players and tournaments.
“I think what we came down to was, we didn’t feel like this proposal was warranted, but we’re not against doing something,” said PGA Tour executive vice president and chief player officer, Jason Gore in an interview with Michael Breed on Sirius XM Radio Thursday morning. “We agree with Mike Whan in that doing nothing is not an option. We just don’t feel that this is the best path forward. The bifurcation was really hard for us to swallow.”
While the USGA and the R&A insist that the creation and adoption of the Model Local Rules would not amount to bifurcation, a different set of rules to govern elite golfers, nearly everyone else in the golf industry does, and the PGA Tour and equipment makers see that as a problem. To them, one of golf’s greatest appeals is that pros like Rory McIlroy and the guys in your Thursday night league play the same equipment and are governed by the same rules. They argue that the adoption of a Model Local Rule pertaining to golf balls would change that.
Chief Executive of the R&A Martin Slumbers during a press conference ahead of The Open at the Royal Liverpool, on July 19, 2023. (Photo by Peter Byrne/PA Images via Getty Images)
“As the formal feedback period to the USGA and the R&A comes to an end and this process evolves, I will be in touch with updates,” Monahan concluded in his paragraph on distance.
That’s the key sentence, a signal to Liberty Corners, New Jersey (home of the USGA) and St. Andrews, Scotland (home of the R&A), that the PGA Tour wants to negotiate. Monahan did not write that the PGA Tour would never adopt a distance-reducing MLR. He noted that it would not support the MLR as it is proposed now.
If the USGA and R&A modify the MLR, so balls for elite players get tested at lower swing speeds or at higher spin rates, so the distance reduction is not as drastic, Monahan could go back to his players and sell himself as someone who got a concession from USGA and R&A.
But the interesting thing that happens when you combine Monahan’s memo and Gore’s comments together is it might take a rule change governing golf balls, and not the creation of a Model Local Rule, to get the PGA Tour’s signoff on the idea of reducing distance. While the USGA and R&A have stated that they don’t want to change anything for recreational golfers, the PGA Tour may be signaling that a rule change governing all golfers is more appealing than a Model Local Rule that only applies to elite golfers.
In the end, the only thing that Jay Monahan’s memo clarifies with regard to distance is that a lot more talk and negotiations are needed.
Golf ball testing has become one of the hottest topics in the sport since the USGA and R&A proposed a new Model Local Rule that, if enacted, might force elite players to use golf balls that won’t go as far as balls currently on the market.
Some see this move as potentially bifurcating the game by forcing the best players to use different equipment than recreational golfers. Others see it as a long overdue move that would rein in distance for the strongest professionals while not affecting recreational golfers – the vast majority of players.
Golf’s governing bodies are in a comment period in which stakeholders such as golf equipment companies, professional tours, golf course operators and others can provide feedback on the proposed Model Local Rule. So far, equipment companies such as Titleist, TaylorMade and Bridgestone have voiced displeasure and skepticism, noting that a fundamental part of golf is that everyone plays the same course and is governed by the same rules, including equipment rules.
That concept, to some, is a unifying trait, but the USGA, R&A and the Model Local Rule’s supporters see it as a way to keep historically significant courses playable for championship-level events. They want to keep shotmaking in the game and reduce the need for courses to be lengthened, which would cost course operators money and have a greater environmental impact.
Most golfers don’t know how golf balls are tested, but understanding the process can help you understand the proposed Model Local Rule and how it could affect elite golfers. Here is how it works.
“It’s so bad for the game of golf,” Justin Thomas said before the Valspar Championship.
“I think it’s the most atrocious thing that you could possibly do to the game of golf,” LIV golfer Bryson DeChambeau said.
We could go on.
However, Rory McIlroy is on the other side of the fence. He spoke with No Laying Up Tuesday ahead of this week’s WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play in Austin, Texas, and explained why rolling back the ball in 2026 would separate the best golfers from the rest of the pack.
“I’ve been pretty adamant that I don’t really want the governing bodies to touch the recreational golfer because we need to make this game as not intimidating and as much fun as possible,” he said, “just to try to keep the participation levels at an all-time high. So, I’m glad in this new proposal that they haven’t touched the recreational golfer.
“But for elite-level play, I really like it. I really do. I know that’s a really unpopular opinion amongst my peers, but I think it’s going to help identify who the best players are a bit easier. Especially in this era of parity that we’ve been living in these past couple of decades. You guys (at No Laying Up) use the term ‘golf has been dumbed down a little bit at the elite level,’ and I completely agree. I think you’re gonna see people with more well-rounded games succeed easier than what the game has become, which is a bit bomb and gouge over these last few years.”
Rory McIlroy hits from the twelfth hole tee during the second round of The Genesis Invitational golf tournament. (Photo: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports)
If the governing bodies’ goal is met, driving distance will fall ~15 yards. For McIlroy, this means longer clubs into greens and another opportunity for the best players to rise to the top.
“Selfishly, I think it helps me,” he said. “I think this is only gonna help the better player. You know, it might help the longer player too, in some ways. But I think it’s going to help the overall professional game. I think making guys hit some long irons again, and some mid irons, and being able to hit every club in your bag in a round of golf. … I can’t remember the last time when I’ve had to do that. I don’t know if this change in the ball will make us do that, but it certainly is a step closer to that.”
The unique thing about the proposed rule is that the PGA Tour does not have to adopt the change. Meaning, if the Tour sticks with the existing ball, players would have to use a different ball at the U.S. Open or Open Championship than they do at the Travelers Championship, for example.
Instead of going back and forth, McIlroy said he would stick with the new MLR ball.
“Honestly, for me, the major championships are the biggest deal,” he said, “so if the PGA Tour doesn’t implement it, I might still play the Model Local Rule ball, because I know that that’ll give me the best chance and the best preparation leading into the major championships. And again, this is personal preference and personal opinion at this stage of my career. I know that I’m gonna be defined by the amount of major championships that I hopefully will win from now until the end of my career. And that’s the most important thing for me.
“If that gives me the best chance to succeed at the major championships and feel as prepared as I possibly can be, then that’s what I would do.”
The first opportunity to make a stand against this measure is likely to be April 9, 2026. In Augusta, Georgia.
If indignant PGA Tour players are to be believed – bear with me – Mike Whan and Martin Slumbers are unaccountable despots bent on ruining golf, in which case they’re due thanks for momentarily distracting us from the unaccountable despot who is actually decimating the game, though MBS won’t ever be criticized for such by players under his writ.
The chief executives of the USGA and R&A have proposed an optional rule that, if adopted by tournaments or tours after Jan. 1, 2026, would force golfers to use a modified ball that pauses rampant distance gains at the elite level. Like everything else these days, reactions have been polarized. Dewy-eyed romantics say it doesn’t sufficiently return us to a bygone era of balata brilliance, while Tour pros sing the sponsor standards, from “Grow the game!” to “Grow the rough!” — views invariably offered while sporting the logos of companies with a commercial interest in seeing no action taken on distance.
Sam Burns went so far as to suggest that players could one day present themselves at a major championship and insist on using regular balls, daring organizers to turn them away. The first opportunity to make such a stand is likely to be April 9, 2026. In Augusta, Georgia. Private Burns would find few in his imaginary army willing to go over the top with him.
There is clearly no widespread support among PGA Tour players for a rule limiting golf balls, but nor is support nonexistent. Jack Nicklaus, Nick Faldo and Tiger Woods are among those who have called for distance to be mitigated, and more prominent voices may be added to their chorus in the coming days. While it seems awfully improbable now that the PGA Tour and its members would choose to adopt a new rule, changing circumstances can change minds.
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Whan and Slumbers made clear that both Opens will implement the rule if it’s an option in 2026. Those attuned to Augusta National’s hymnal can anticipate Chairman Fred Ridley’s preferred coda: the Masters will join the governing bodies in adopting a modified ball. That creates a dilemma for the PGA of America, which prides itself on not vexing players, either in course set-up or rules disputes. The PGA Championship is already regarded as last among equals. If the other majors go with a modified ball, will the PGA of America really balk and further cleave itself from the club in the minds of fans? If opponents of the proposed rule are hoping for support at the pinnacle of the sport, Frisco could prove a pretty flimsy firewall.
A similarly unappetizing predicament looms for the PGA Tour. The majors already exist above the weekly fray, much to the Tour’s chagrin. To what extent would the Tour be willing to see that perception grow? Choosing to emphasize an entertainment product – players smashing the long ball, which I’m told chicks dig – risks diminishing the Tour’s competitive image, at least when measured against major championships.
It would be ‘golf, but longer,’ in the parlance of dud marketing.
There will be talk of engagement and compromise in the five-month comment period set by the governing bodies, but there have already been numerous feedback opportunities during this lengthy process. The Tour’s argument has been presented but not heeded. The USGA and R&A have ensured that no constituency can claim to have been ignored, but they are unmoved by opposition to action. Their proposal feels less an invitation to negotiation than an issuing of notice.
As surely as the political considerations of various entities will shift in the three years before the rule takes effect, so too will the outlook of many players. Relationships with equipment manufacturers might influence attitudes now, but enormous increases in prize money and bonuses will soon dwarf off-course deals for elite stars. Golf’s existing endorsement model will increasingly be seen by top players as a time drain rather than essential to business. With sponsors less of a factor, players who don’t want to switch balls for legacy-defining majors might decide that playing a modified ball year-round isn’t too bad of an alternative.
Speculative? Sure, but not implausible. The context in which both individuals and organizations will ultimately make their decisions is not the context that prevails in this blowback phase of the proceedings. Whan and Slumbers may have calculated that they can ride out the rage and wait for the cavalry. All they need is a simple nod of assent from the real power in this game. Mr. Chairman, the floor is yours.
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After years of research, the USGA and R&A are ready to start reducing distance — and they are going after the golf ball.
Eighty-three players on the PGA Tour average 300 yards or more off the tee this season, but the days of Rory McIlroy, Cameron Young, Tony Finau and the like vaporizing drives and humbling par 5s may be numbered.
After three years of research, listening to comments from manufacturers and requesting feedback from stakeholders, the U.S. Golf Association and the R&A are ready to start reducing distance at the game’s elite levels, and they are going after the golf ball to do it.
On Monday, golf’s governing bodies sent letters to equipment companies to announce a proposed Model Local Rule that would allow tournament organizers to require players to use golf balls that were tested under modified Actual Launch Conditions (ALC) to reduce distance. The primary goal of the Model Local Rule would be to reduce distance at the highest levels of men’s golf — with the USGA and R&A anticipating a reduction in driver distance of 14-15 yards for the longest hitters and golfers with the highest swing speeds — while not changing equipment rules that govern recreational players.
The game’s governing bodies plan to reduce distance at elite levels by altering the tests that must be passed for any ball to be deemed conforming to the rules. By increasing robotic testing speeds and altering other test parameters, the governing bodies effectively will require a slower, shorter golf ball to comply with the Model Local Rule. It will then be up to any event or tour to adopt the Model Local Rule.
“Hitting distances at the elite level of the game have consistently increased over the past 20, 40 and 60 years. It’s been two decades since we last revisited our testing standards for ball distances,” said Mike Whan, CEO of the USGA. “Predictable, continued increases will become a significant issue for the next generation if not addressed soon. The Model Local Rule we are proposing is simple to implement, forward-looking and does so without any impact on the recreational game. We are taking the next steps in this process, guided first and foremost by doing what’s right by the entire game.”
The deadline for manufacturers, industry insiders and stakeholders to send feedback was Sept. 2.
Sunday marked the end of the first LIV Golf season, and whether you are a fan of the upstart tour or not, there’s no denying player defections, the massive payouts that LIV golfers have received and Greg Norman’s squabbles with the Official World Golf Ranking system were big storylines in 2022. Looking ahead, the continuing saga of LIV Golf will assuredly be a huge part of the golf narrative in 2023, too, but it might be eclipsed early in the season by news coming from Far Hills, New Jersey, and St. Andrews, Scotland.
The USGA and the R&A, the governing bodies of golf, proclaimed that they feel distance is a problem for the game in February 2020, and since that time, they have slowly and methodically been studying equipment testing methods, equipment designs and different aspects of the game to come up with a solution.
The deadline for manufacturers, industry insiders and stakeholders to send the USGA and R&A feedback, information and research was Sept. 2. Now, with the holidays approaching and just two months remaining in 2022, the USGA and R&A are reviewing submissions and developing concepts they could announce soon to reduce distance.
Here is where we are in the distance debate, what we know and what we don’t know:
BROOKLINE, Mass. — As is tradition, several top officials with the United States Golf Association addressed the media on the Wednesday before the start of the U.S. Open. Stuart Francis, the president of the USGA, Mike Whan, the organization’s CEO and John Bodenhamer, the senior managing director of championships, proudly talked about bringing the country’s national championship back to The Country Club for the first time since 1988.
“This Open almost didn’t happen, and there’s a number of stories behind that,” Bodenhamer said. “Prior to 2013 and the U.S. Amateur here, we didn’t think we could conduct a U.S. Open here. The footprint was small. It was in a residential community. There were just too many hurdles to overcome, but conducting the U.S. Open at Merion Golf Club in 2013 changed our perspective. When we came here for the Amateur in 2013, we thought coming back to Brookline was possible.”
Several topics were addressed, along with USGA initiatives and programs, as well as the subject that has dominated the headlines this week, the LIV Golf Series. Here are the five takeaways.
