Rory’s a sook like that
Absolutely fantastic post. You have blown my mind
My incoherent rambling?
I have recently returned to golf after a few years off. I had ups and downs but mostly ups. However I struggled to get onsistency with older fairway wood and older 5 wood. So I got some hybrids, which historially I could never get my head around a few years ago. Oh boy these new ones Im using that are not really big brand expensive are incredible. I dont hit everyone perfect all the time, but my consitency is over 100% better. Funny with that other mind blowing post, as good as they are , Im not breaking 10 yet. No matter what the advanements are on ball and club tech the scoring part of the game still largely comes down to the skill of pitch chip and putt.
I dont see how there will be tech other than allowing laser putters, even thent you still have to read the slope, grain and pace of the green to gt that right, and no tech will ever do that IMO.
Its a really intereting topic and discussion in golf though nonetheless.
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I play with lots of young blokes who hit the ball an absolute mile , as impressive as it is, and its all great when it works , but when it doesnt ,they are 2 fairways away and they still have to be good around the greens to beat little ol me. Handicap will always bee the great leveller no matter how good clubs and balls go
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I’ll never be a really long hitter, but the what the new clubs have allowed me to do is become a really consistent driver of the ball, more than I ever was in high school. Stiff graphite shafts and composite heads have allowed me to develop a really nice high fade that has allowed me to hit a lot of fairways.
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“twaddle” is abuse now?
Geez.
Anyway.
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Handicaps haven’t changes in 20 years.
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The average driving distance of a club single figure index player is still only 220 yards (200 metres). We still need any help we can get.
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Less distance on each shot will mean more shots overall - the time for a round of golf will increase - club golf already suffers from a time problem.
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There are 38,000 courses in the world and only about 200 (0.5%) of them host top level tournaments. Given the above point 99.5% of classic courses are nowhere near being screwed.
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The average winning score on the PGA tour hasn’t improved despite the claims of players overpowering courses.
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On the PGA tour the shortest distance to the hole for approach shots this season (par 4s) is Ludvig Aberg at 152.7 yards (about 140 metres) the average about 162 yrds (148 metres). That’s a bit more than a lob wedge.
The USGA and R&A are selling you a pup.
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I like the idea of decreasing the number of clubs. Visually watching and personally attempting to play shots that are not stock shots is the most exciting part of golf. Also you’re going to see completely individualised club set ups depending on the course and characteristics of the player.
On the course front shouldn’t we be attempting more dog legs and serious danger between the 250-320m range. Risk and reward.
Hang on, isnt it still 14? if you have 4 wedges at the expense of other clubs Im not sure how that is an advantacge
A discussion is much better than just dismissing people’s arguments.
But some of your arguments are actually arguments for the roll back.
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Handicaps haven’t changed but pro golf driving distance has increased approximately 20 yards in that time. So golf ball tech has done stuff all for the average golfer, while pros have got all the benefits. The argument against winding back the ball because it hurts the average player is flawed The impact on the average player will be minimal. Ball design for swing speeds at say 85mph will still be able to maximise results for the average player within the constraints of the new rules.
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the distance that amateur golfers lose will be pretty marginal. The 5 yards an amateur loses on a well struck shot is within the expected variance. I’d also hazard a guess that the majority of time lost is around the green anyway. Still, the whole concept is that you don’t need to make the holes as long to be a challenge for everyone, so the average golfer could/should be playing on shorter courses.
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classic courses getting extended so that they can host tournaments is a real issue. Sure, few courses host tournaments, but whether it’s Augusta or Royal Melbourne or whatever, committees extending classic courses to “protect par” can lead to golf course architecture “vandalism”. But again the real issue is extending courses because pros can drive it 400 yards (either to host a tournament, or to create some sort of imaginary “championship course” tag line for the brochure) is a horrible thing for golf. Land is a precious resource, and with pressure for housing, or public space, having massive tracts of land reserved for golf is problematic. We’re already seeing courses getting targeted by public interest groups at Northcote and Oakleigh and others have been wound up because the land they were on was too valuable. And that’s before you consider the costs of maintaining the course, the water, the chemicals, etc etc.
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scores in PGA Tour events mean nothing. They are manipulated by hole lengths, pin placement, rough, etc.
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a bit more than a lob wedge, but not much .ore than a pitching wedge. And this is on courses that have been artificially lengthened to deal with pros. Also worth noting that the 25th percentile distance to the pin on par 4s was 125 yards (in 2018). That’s pretty close to a lob wedge
The R&A and USGA are trying to protect the game. The equipment manufacturers are the ones who are trying to blind you.
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Of course 2 of the wedges are the 8 iron and 9 iron from old sets renamed. Now the new 9 iron is 2 clubs longer than the old 9 iron. (They’ll tell you the weight distribution means that a 45 degree wedge produces the same launch characteristics as a 50 degree wedge. I don’t know whether I believe that)
Well that escalated quickly.
I think I need to try and get out tomorrow before the storms.
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Golf certainly incites passion 
Hit them well!
I’ve never played Airport but I live 10 minutes from it. Maybe I should try it.
I’ve always been put off by the possible noise.
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I played there in about 1996. Noise didn’t bother me, but then again I have gone to the airshow before, so don’t really care.
What’s the Cole Valley course like? I’m from the NW but like to try out as many courses as I can - recently stumbled upon the absolute hidden gem of Elderslie.
Tidy little course, reasonably flat and a coffee shop. Retirees and hackers who can have a bit of brekky afterwards and talk about what if only we used a different club or never hit that tree.
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having a hit today at my local . handicap trending down again after a long dry run of not being able to get a full round right . I’ve got a plus 40 game coming soon though . feel it in my bones . lol , if I could just hole some putts.
last 4 rounds
37
35
36
34
left far too many 5 to 6 footers out there. not short either ball width either side which is frustrating but not as bad as short
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The USGA and the R&A took their eye off the ball far too long ago. It is a huge combination of things that have added distance. The ball is just one.
Adam Scott spoke eloquently on this issue the other day. Drivers are so large and forgiving now that all pros just swing flat out. A wedge from the rough is better than a 6 iron from the fairway… all the stats show this. For pros and amateurs the closer to the green the better… of course bunkers, trees, hazards change this.
If you reduced the size of the driver head back to the ‘great big bearther’ size for example (i think less than a current 3 wood) then hitting rhe middle of the club face becomes an advantage, miscues grt pubished more and strategy comes back.
I remember whe pro-v balls came out. Suddenly i could carry a bunker or two that i previously couldnt. They were rare as hens teeth and finding one in the rough was like gold… abig advantage. The needed to do something then bit they sat on their hands for 20 years.
Between clubs and balls i reckon i am 20m longer than i would be with the clubs i played as an 18 year old. I hit it the same distance now as an inflexible fat guy Vs an athlete then. Do i mind, not at all. Classic courses are still what the architects indeed for me. Young guns and pros carrying it 280m… not so much.
I would prefer to see the bifurcation. Limits of ball and clubs for the best thousand players in the world and the remaining 100m can keep plugging away as we are
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