These past couple of years have been full of changes for the golf world. While a lot of other significant changes such as reduced field size have been proposed and approved, one change that caused a debate among the PGA Tour Pros is the golf ball rollback policy. The new rule increases the test to 125 mph, which would send a ball further, meaning the balls need to be scaled back. This will apply to all ball models on the conforming list in 2028. When it was announced in 2023 December, the golf world was caught in the mayhem.
Top players on the Tour like Rory McIlroy and Tiger Woods have been in complete support of the bifurcation policy. While McIlroy firmly argued that the new implementation would realign the game with its core values of sustainability while promoting the development of essential skills among players, Tiger Woods said, “I’ve always been for bifurcation. I’ve always said that.” However, as it turns out, Jason Day does not align with their point of view on this matter.
Jason Day appeared in the recent video of the Skratch, where Dan Rapaport was carrying his bag. As they walked the course, Day shared how a lot of golfers often say that there are specific holes that they struggle in. When they reach that hole, they end up making a mistake, and to get rid of any challenge, the only goal that remains is to pass the hole with an even par. This is why he believes that the golf rollback policy is unnecessary.
Jason Day said,
“I don’t like the ball change necessarily, but with uh the upcoming ball change I’d rather see I’d rather see a driver change“. When asked if he would want to have the head smaller, he said, “Make it less forgiving.” You see for golfers who are as experienced as pros, a forgiving club may not be necessary since they have taken the time to practice their swing to make optimum contact with the ball. On the contrary, golfers who have low handicaps could find forgiving clubs helpful as they will give their shots too much loft or hit farther than they intended,
Well, Jason Daly is probably among the very few players who are against the policy. Most of the Tour members agree with what Rory McIlroy and Tiger Woods have to say.
Padraig Harrington’s opinions align with those of Tiger Woods and McIlroy
The renowned Irish golfer supports the golf ball rollback policy, emphasizing its importance for maintaining the game’s integrity. Unlike others who endorse bifurcation, Harrington advocates for a unified approach, urging the policy to be applied universally across all levels of play. He said, “There’s so many benefits to rolling it back. To be honest, I would prefer they rolled it back for everybody. I don’t like the bifurcation.” And that is not all. One of the greatest golfers of all time puts in his cents on this topic too.
Jack Nicklaus has been a supporter of the policy, and it is nothing new; he has been in favor of it for years now. For a long time now, The Golden Bear has advocated for the governing bodies to roll back the golf balls to perpetuate sustainability in the game. He believes that this policy will help the golf world as it will provide relief to the number of golf courses that were previously made obsolete because of the change in the upper limit. They could be put to use again.
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