As we travel to the various courses and ranges we use with our CBSSports.com panels in the process of testing and reporting on golf equipment, there seems to be no lack of debate about the issues facing golfers everywhere.
How much further can equipment companies progress in terms of technology and real improvement to clubs? How much farther and straighter can clubs help golfers hit the ball? Will the new USGA regulations restricting sharp grooves, which are being phased in over a lengthy time period for the average player, drive even more would-be enthusiasts away?
The answers cover the gamut of opinions. Earlier this month, Titleist Golf, a subsidiary of Acushnet Co., posted two essays regarding technology and the groove issue. In a sense, the groove issue is a microcosm of what the USGA and the R&A have been doing over the past few years with the Rules of Golf: restricting certain advances in equipment innovation. The idea for the governing bodies for the sport is to maintain an equitable playing field for all.
As chairman and CEO of Acushnet, Wally Uihlein offers a unique insider's view regarding equipment technology, especially in terms of how far the manufacturers have progressed and what more can be done.
On the grooves subject, Frank Thomas also offers a veteran insider's take. For many years, Thomas worked for the USGA as its senior technical director, testing equipment and making sure it conformed to the Rules of Golf. Now he serves as a consultant in addition to making his own line of putters.
The following segments represent excerpts from essays by both Uihlein and Thomas on these issues. After reading, we welcome your feedback.
Tech questions not necessary this year
Uihlein: For the past decade, it has been the practice of select media at this time of year to question technological advancements in golf equipment, and more specifically, the golf ball. This year, however, it should not be necessary.
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| Titleist 909D Comp driver |
The fact is, we are coming off the most activist 10-year period in the history of golf ball and golf club regulation, and a bold and rigid line in the sand has been effectively drawn by the game's regulatory bodies. The statistics speak for themselves. Driving distance has flatlined, and actually has decreased in each of the past two years. The USGA and R&A have effectively fenced in the driver and golf ball, so that there is little or no more distance to be had from equipment under the current rules and regulations.
The size, weight, initial velocity and overall distance of the golf ball are controlled. Optimization of the aerodynamics package of a golf ball is near complete. Higher compression golf balls might provide more ball speed, but will also have more spin, which will reduce distance. Spin and launch angle are coupled, so if you change one, the other will change as well. The bottom line is that when you attempt to tweak a golf ball parameter for more distance, other parameters are affected that limit the distance opportunity.
Based on our internal testing against the golf ball ODS limit under the current specified launch conditions, we are already 98 percent downfield toward reaching that absolute ODS limit (including the tolerance), and that is with our longest tour-played product. That translates into a maximum additional distance availability of approximately 5-7 yards.
Potential advancements in driver technology provide even less opportunity for increased distance. The driver's COR (spring-like effect), MOI (stability on off-center hits), head size and volume, and shaft length, are already capped and cannot be increased. Incremental changes in head geometry, weight distribution and loft, lie and face angle adjustability, all go to optimization for a given players launch condition, and do not represent opportunities for distance increases generally. This is particularly true for Tour players who are already optimally launch monitor fitted for both clubs and ball.
