USGA/R&A Find “Unusual and Concerning” Increases In 2017 Distance Report
- Updated: March 5, 2018
BREAKING: The Golf Ball Goes Farther Than It Did in 2003
The USGA and R&A released a joint study Monday that found an increase in driving distance that amounted to a “deviation” from previous results.
The professional tours examined by the study include the PGA Tour, European Tour, Web.com Tour, Japan Golf Tour, PGA Tour Champions, LPGA and Ladies’ European Tour.
The study found that since 2016, distance gains have increased more than three yards, a year after the same study found that incremental gains were a “slow creep” of 0.2 yards per year since 2003.
“Variability in driving distance of four or more yards from season to season is not uncommon,” the joint release said. “However, this level of increase across so many tours in a single season is unusual and concerning and requires closer inspection and monitoring to fully understand the causes and effects.”
According to the study, the largest distance increases from 2016 to 2017 came on the Web.com (6.9 yards), LET (6.4 yards) and Japan Golf Tour (5.9 yards). The increase on the PGA Tour was 2 yards for all holes and 2.5 yards on measured holes, while on the LPGA distance actually decreased last year by 0.8 yards.
Related: Roll This Back: Top Flite To Release Longest, Hardest Golf Ball In Years
“Increases in distance can contribute to demands for longer, tougher and more resource-intensive golf courses at all levels of the game. These trends can impact the costs to operate golf courses and put additional pressures on golf courses in their local environmental landscape. The effect of increasing distance on the balance between skill and technology is also a key consideration. Maintaining this balance is paramount to preserving the integrity of golf.”
The findings will not result in any immediate rule changes obviously but instead will spark further evaluation (and likely a much more heated debate) of the issue.
You can find the full USGA/R&A 2017 Distance Report here.
How Are The Pro Tours Responding?
Meanwhile, according to Geoff Shackelford, PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan informed players in an email that the findings aren’t so much technology as they are based on athleticism and fitness:
“Since 2007, when we started monitoring launch conditions each week on TOUR, average club head speed has increased by 1.5 mph. There is a strong correlation between club head speed and the total distance gains seen since 2003. We believe this increase in club head speed is mostly attributable to a combination of factors, such as increased player athleticism and fitness, physical build of the player, enhancements in equipment fitting and the proliferation of launch-monitoring capabilities.”
PGA of America CEO Pete Bevacqua decided to chime in with this gem about rolling the ball back, even though no such thing has yet been proposed in the latest distance report:
“… Based on the information we have seen, we are highly skeptical that rolling back the golf ball in whole or part will be in the best interests of the sport and our collective efforts to grow the game.”
[USGA]
