Watson: speaking sense
I see no reason why we do not have a professional ball to be played across the globe. Let's get back to a ball that spins, so the great player will once again have an advantage over the average one. That would be where I would start.
Ewen Murray
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There has not been much to cheer about across our island in the past few months with the price of fuel, the cost of food and in general the dreaded credit crunch. However, if you are a golfer, the last two weeks have been comforting.
The R&A put on a memorable Open, won by a wonderful champion and Royal Troon confirmed its place among the great courses of our shores.
Greg Norman of course, lit up both the Open and the senior version of it and perhaps deserved to go away with more than he did. He left behind some grand memories with his charismatic personality and his excellent golf and I hope it won't be too long before he returns.
Tom Watson, much nearer 60 than 50, provided some fabulous viewing at Troon and his array of shots were a delight on the eye.
Over these two weeks, we have seen golf how it should be played, on courses that have never aged. Quite frankly, it was golf in its raw state and it provided a lovely spectacle.
Much is talked about modern equipment and the speed and spin of the ball. The R&A and the USGA, the two governing bodies of the game on either side of the Atlantic, should sit down together with the likes of Watson, Jack Nicklaus and Gary Player, have a long lunch, and discuss the future of the game, because its time to do that.
Troon, Birkdale, Sunningdale, etc, in fact the majority of our gems, have pushed the tees as near the boundary fences as they can. New courses have to be 7,500 yards plus otherwise they are dated before they open. We are taking the wrong route.
Intelligent
I see no reason why we do not have a professional ball to be played across the globe. Let's get back to a ball that spins, so the great player will once again have an advantage over the average one. That would be where I would start.
Watson revealed last week - and believe me he is a very intelligent man - that the modern driver with the huge head is also taking the skill away from the game.
He said: "you can miss the sweet spot by as much as an inch and a quarter and lose only four yards in distance". Add that to the ball spinning less and accuracy is hardly affected. He felt that is something that must change. The driver heads have to be reduced by nearly half.
Another thing I would change from immediate effect would be the modern grooves on the iron face. How often nowadays do we see players playing from the rough and still managing to get backspin? If the grooves were changed to v-grooves then that would not happen.
Three changes need to happen if we are to preserve our sport. The ball must be slowed, the driver heads must have a new limit in size and the grooves returned to that of two decades ago.
Once that is done, I would move on to phase two.
There should be a limit on how long a putter should be, say 38 inches, that would seem fair. The 60-degree wedge should go, returning to a maximum of 56 degrees and we should reduce the number of clubs we have, going from 14 to 12.
Nowadays, there are rescue clubs which do the job of fairway woods and long irons. Take a wedge out and a long iron and 12 clubs are enough. It would make the game a little cheaper to play as well.
Agronomy
The one thing Watson said that surprised many was that he would slow the greens down from, say 11, on the stimpmeter to somewhere between eight and nine. No one has ever said that but when you think about it, it makes a lot of sense. Grass would not be stressed as much so that would please greenkeepers across the world.
They would be able to present the courses in fine condition for longer periods and designers would be able to put more slope in greens putting a premium on the skill of reading a green. At the present time, agronomy has moved on like equipment and good greens built the modern way can be 15 on the stimp if needed.
Something for you to ponder and I'm sure some will agree and some will not. Maybe I sound like an old windbag, but I think it is time for some reviewing. We have too many sublime courses for them to be obsolete.
Having jetted down from Glasgow, it's a quick turnaround and off to America for two huge weeks as far as our Ryder Cup team is concerned. Those who are on the fringes of the side can force their way into Nick Faldo's side, those just inside the automatic places will know this is no time for complacency
What happens at Firestone Country Club this week and at Oakland Hills next week will all but decide which of our players will face America at Valhalla in September. Nick is fortunate because there are so many permutations and all of them are positive.
For Colin Montgomerie, Darren Clarke, Ian Poulter, Paul Casey and Sergio Garcia, they simply have to perform as they are out of the top 10. Justin Rose needs to find some form as he has slipped alarmingly during the past couple of months and is only just hanging on to his spot.
The comfort they have is that a good week or two can change much.
Sky Sports have extended their coverage of both the Bridgestone and the USPGA, so you have some top quality nights to look forward to. We look forward to bringing them to you.
Is Ewen right? Do we need to make those changes to the game? What differences would YOU like to see introduced? Use the feedback form below and see if your suggestion makes the cut...
Comments
Stewart Barker says...
My memories go back to playing junior golf with Ewan at baberton golf club during a different golfing era when the changing of equipment every year just didn't happen .Those days reflected good shots based on human skill when clubs demanded that skill. Ewan was certainly a master of that skill . It doesn't seem right that modern equipment manufacturers are allowed to counteract bad shotmaking. However the greed and demand for profit of major equipment companies will continue.
Posted 11:46 9th August 2008
Albert Gribble says...
It seems that everyone who has a problem with their game will simply go and buy the next "magic club" to solve it - witness the growth in usage of 60 & 64 degree wedges to aid those unable to play an open-faced 56deg. In my opinion there is no substitute for practice and appropriate tuition. Ben Hogan once described his game as being "dug out of the ground" and he was one of the best strikers of all time. Many modern tournament professionals could not compete with his ability but, with huge-faced drivers etc, they have no need to. Golf remains a game of skill at every level, and those who develop their skills will ultimately profit (eg. Mr Woods). However I am always amazed when someone comes into the pro shop and spends £400 on the latest driver rather than £200 and the balance on lessons in how to use it!
Posted 01:16 9th August 2008
Deon Bakkes says...
All the proposed changes would not make golf any easier or more enjoyable for the average amateur or local club golfer. The people who spend the money and keep the game alive would no longer find enjoyment in playing golf if it's made more difficult again! Having the Pro's play with a higher spinning golf like the Titleist Professional or Titleist Balata golf balls of old will just not work. Most amatuer golfers want to play with the same equipment that the Pro's play with. Golf equipment manufacturers use Tour stats and counts as a marketing tool? To limit technology in golf isn't the answer. The Watsons, Nicklaus' and Players' were great in their day but their days are over. They are bitter because the current players are making so much more money than they ever did. Their records are being broken and they don't like it! Golf, as will all sports, must move with the times. Millions are spent on R&D to help the average golfer play a little better and maybe enjoy the game a little more. If we move backwards or stop the tecnology train we will also stop people playing golf and also stop people taking up golf as a sport because it would just be too difficult!! Set the courses up a little tougher for the Pro's but don't limit the enjoyment for the average golfer. Adam Scott to win the PGA!!
Posted 07:51 7th August 2008
Richard Nicol says...
Ewen whilst commentating does talk a lot of sense. I do think though that once golfers play onto the greens then it should all be down to the player's individual touch and feel and so having testing playing surfaces which are fast is all part of the game. In keeping the greens fast surely this is adding skill and the very thing that is supposedly missing from the game ? He is correct though in relation to technology as it is levelling out the the fields each week . More players now earn big cheques but won't be 'greats' as 'greats' played for titles and especially majors.
Posted 22:01 4th August 2008
Matt Draper says...
The idea of reducing the size of the clubhead on drivers is absurd. the manufacturers make th clubs so thay go further and straighter, that is their point. if we reduce the legal size, then we will be stuck from making progress as the manufacturers will make a driver that will be impossible to improve. It will also turn many amateur or young budding golfers away from the sport, which is exactly the last thing golf needs. i don't care what Tom Watson and Jack Nicklaus think, all i care about is that I get the enjoyment out of playing and I get the enjoyment out of watching the Pros battle it out at the big events. This years Open was won with a score of +3. I'm scared to think what the score would have been if the changes that have been suggested were in place. the technology we have is exciting. lets keep it that way.
Posted 13:26 4th August 2008
Lennie Rosengard says...
The role of the caddies should be limited in that they should not be allowed to help with the alignment of putts or even advise on the line of the putt ; on the green their only activity should be holding the flagstick. It would probably be impossible to prevent them giving advice from tee to green but thereafter any attempt to advise the player should result in a 2 stroke penalty. Alternatively if this is deemed unfeasible all trophies should be awarded to player and caddy jointly and the prize money shared, say 70/30 in favour of the player.
Posted 00:27 4th August 2008
Jon O'brien says...
I agree with all comments but there are too many stakeholders involved for these changes to be accepted. Tiger plays with a new driver and generates huge sales of same. How long has it taken for the removal of non conforming drivers from the amateur market? The best idea is changing the ball. You wonder how far technology can go and any further developments need to be capped. Golf is now like formula 1 where technology within whatever set rules makes all the difference. Tom Watson points out thelack of shot making in the modern game. I cant remember the last time i saw a punch shot or a chip and run other than in the recent open. Jack Nicklaus said about Tiger ' He plays a game of which i am not familiar' .Could there be a time when normal amateur golfers dont watch or follow golf because of this? Something has to be done- Good luck!
Posted 20:21 3rd August 2008
J P says...
If you look back at golf magazines from 20 or 30 years ago people like Nicklaus were commenting on this sort of thing. There's absolutely nothing wrong with the way things are. Technology is great. As it progresses the equipment manufacturers are coming up with more and more funky ideas. These ideas and the new move to proper golf fashion are helping breed the new generation of golfers that are essential to its future. There is also a brand new market with magazines that are interested in this fashion and the ability to bomb the ball and spin it. I'm very much in that camp. Let it progress, it'll look after itself. However we could always try the technology is bad approach. Why not apply t too other sports aswell. We'll get Ronaldo into an old pair of tackity boots and a sackcloth shirt and see how he gets on with his stepovers then. Or how about a we could get the cyclist in Beijing onto old Penny Farthings. I mean they just go far to fast nowadays don't they.
Posted 19:01 3rd August 2008
Birgir Bjornsson says...
Totally disagree about the putter. I know in theory it´s easier to put with a belly or chin putter, an easier pendulum motion and they take the nerves out of the stroke. But the fact is that there are really no very good putters that use these putters, and most that are even using them are those that are terrible with the normal putters. All the best putters use a normal putter, and there is a reason most do not use long putters, they don´t work better for most golfers! I think they are great for great for players with bad backs, and banning them makes NO SENSE what so ever, and would be yet another ban that has no scientific research behind it(like so many technical limits the USGA and R&A have put on). I do they think it looks weird to see someone put that way... but one can´t fear change, it´s a part of the game. Just like I think it looks off too see golfers with distance binoculars.. but they speed up the game so I´m all for them too. What is nr#1 in priority in changes in golf in my opinion is making fairways narrower and especially bunkers deeper(fairway and greenside).
Posted 12:49 3rd August 2008
Craig Donaldson says...
Having read these comments my input would be reduce the size of the fairways the further you hit the ball (bottle neck them) so the average golfer still has plenty of fairway to hit but the further you want to hit it ,the bigger the gamble (more skill factor). I think this would be a valid change to make. With regards one ball it is an impossibility to to all the companies and patents out there and who would be granted the license to make it. The only way round this would to be to create one rule for dimple size , shape and amount . Reducing the size of the driver would be good as a 35 year old pga pro it would be great to go back to the persimmon driver and work the ball but in reality it ain't going to happen because the average golfer would not play because they would find it to hard (I think modern technology has contributed to the masses playing now ) i think people didn't play so much 20 years ago due to the fact golf was so hard to play. I agree that making the maximum loft of a club a set loft this would help those with skill and one's that practise their mastery to have an advantage over someone with no skill just thrashin their 60/64 wedge. I also agree that bunkers need changing around the greens their just not hazards anymore but again these guys practise their shots so hard that yes they've become such great bunker players so regardless of changes to bunkers players will always master them if they work at it. To sum up everything I think golf is in a great position and changes if needed must happen but regardless of what happens the skilled and the ones who work hard will always come out on top. Tiger is Tiger because of his work ethic and his skill and will always be number one because of his ability to adapt his game. Golf is still and will always be the best sport in the world so don't harm it with potential changes.
Posted 14:29 2nd August 2008
Oliver Morton says...
Im a young assistant professional at Gullane Golf Club in East Lothian. Better known as the village that plays host to Muirfield. Im just starting down the road of professional golf after having four years at Stirling University. I have heard many ideas of how to make the game harder and combat its difficulty everyday, in every tournament. Why not Ewan, make every professional play with hickorys? Are we talking about preservation or simply being afraid of change? Do we all sit in our houses without central heating just to prove to our elders that we can do it like they did? The answer is simple, make the fairways tighter and the greens smaller. Equipment is moving forward and so should we. Records are there to be broken, and if we like it or not, golf is an entertainment business and the lower everyone goes the more enjoyment they get out of it. Without the low scores the entertainment factor would decrease. Without the public, many people would be out of a job, golfing journalists and myself included. Change is always difficult, especially for those who fondly remember the 'good old days'. In order for golf to grow and move forward, the equipment needs to change.
Posted 13:58 2nd August 2008
G Muir says...
Agree with John Doe, how can anyone make the jump to pro when they have been playing a different ball? How can anyone watch pro golf with the same enjoyment when they are playing with different equipment? I for one would be dead against different equipment for pro's and amateurs. If you change the ball for one change it for everyone, if you can¿t play it, then here's an idea ... practice
Posted 15:54 1st August 2008
Shaun lane Lane says...
I agree with the fact that something should be done to make it harder for today's proffessionals as they are able to make a mockery of various courses with the equipment availible today. I don't think that the number of clubs allowed should be changed but the comments on drivers are very fair. Long putters should be taken out of the game as well. Royal Birkdale this year was a true testament to how golf should be played.
Posted 12:41 1st August 2008
Stephen Sunners says...
I agree with most of what Tom Watson and Ewen said , especially regarding limiting the putter to only 38" - I still wonder about the legality of the chest or chin putters with respect to the stroke ( or lack of ! ). Watching the Pro's ( young !!) at Birkdale not reaching the green with a 3 iron from 140 yards was superb - yardage book right out of the window as one commentator stated. This was obviously more down to the weather than anything else - but it did mean a par or even a bogie was a good score on many a hole. Having said all of the that there is a huge gulf between the pros and the club golfer , all of the equipment and ball changes have made it easier to play the game - which has surely contributed to the growth of the sport. Ironically despite all of that I understand that there has been very little change in the average handicap of the club golfer over the past 20 years. If square grooves and big headed drivers were banned many club golfers would have to ditch them and buy new gear - just like the recent MAX COR drivers. Perhaps the rules would only apply to the Pros and Top Amatuers and let the Club Golfer continue as is. As to not raking bunkers ? green side bunker no penalty for the Pro but still an issue for most club golfers - not raking them would perhaps lead to players making unneccesary marks if they found themselves in one ? Fairway bunkers should be much deeper and certainly no way you should be able to hit a fairway wood out of them - which even I have been able to do. The bottom line will be money and the equipment manufacturers - very difficult to change the game at the top.
Posted 08:33 1st August 2008
David Dunbar says...
I completely agree with ewan that modern equipment is spoiling our golf watching the open recently i was disappointed to see the younger players couldn't play shots the weather determind.Although in one sense modern equipment has helped a lot of up and coming golfers I mean with driver heads half the size and no hy-brid clubs would a complete novice be able to hit a 1 iron for example i don't think so.What i'm trying to say is that there is an argument for and against modern equipment and with the money in the game today i think it will take a long time to figure out
Posted 12:21 31st July 2008
Scott Beaumont says...
i cant see Augusta changing the speed of the greens to 8-9 to allow for more skill challenges for putting... i have been there and those greens look like dead elephants are buried under them! a worthy winner of the green jacket is the man who came tame those... Ewen, i think it would be hard for R&A and USPGA to implement changes to equipment after golfers have spent 100's of pounds on the latest gear ? to say to someone "look you cant play with that PRO-V1 around this course use this dunlop 65i instead" or "sorry that spin milled vokey 60degree wedge is illegal now" might be tough and no doubt cost club producers millions. Golf courses should look at OB markings on the scorecard and yes, penalise someone who is 40yards left/right on the adjacent fairway for example. Make fairway bunkers deeper like 17th at St Andrews so players fear booming it that far.... risk and reward. I dont think letting the rough grow is answer either as 5+ hour rounds would become 6 hours as players look for balls..! Good luck to the brits at OHIO this week.... come on Poulter !
Posted 11:37 31st July 2008
Tony Parsons says...
I once watched Christy O'Connor Snr (OC - the Man0 practicing with every Iron from 3 to 8 to a target the size of a double bedsheet at 150 yards.Nine out of Ten with each club were in the target area. I once saw Neil Coles, while winning the Spanish Open at La Manga, hit a 4 Wood 167 yards rising on an upward trajectory into a stiff breeze, the ball descended vertically, settled in its own pitch mark less than 6 feet from the pin and he secured the birdie 2. The rest of the field were playing 6 or 7 irons and few even managed to hit the green. Lee Trevino, while practicing for The Open Championship once famously asked his caddie "How far to the Green?" to which the caddie persistently replied " Five Iron". Finally frustrated with the replies Trevino proceeded to knock balls onto the green with every club in his bag from the putter to the 3 iron and duly suggested to the Caddie that he should answer the question and never tell him which club to use. The changes you suggest might well encourage a return of the skills that were once more common among all golfers and particularly the professionals. Tiger Woods has those skills, as demonstrated by his remarkable win in The Open Championship at Hoylake where most of the modern day pro' s failed dismally to master the conditions.
Posted 07:08 31st July 2008
Adrian Cox says...
I agree with all the above. Make bunkers hazards.. I like the idea so just remove the rakes and impose a 2 shot panalty for smoothing over foot prints in bunkers. Putters, Silly tools of 43 inches should be banned and 2 shot penalty for using one for drops etc. When one does drop a ball you should be obliged to use the same club for the upcoming shot. NO measuring with a putter and then playing a wedge. Here are my offerings from my bag: Drivers, nothing to add, I love the sound of my square 'yellow coloured' driver, the wildlife on my course does not.. who cares? I can whack it 350 yards? Hybrids, Should be used for marking small trees in G.U.R zones instead of blue lines. 60 degrees.... A good name for a Pop group but not much use for anything else! Anyway...Who can actually use one of these? Only P.M & T.W. Oversize Irons...Ugh! Mass should be below x Cm3...You could shoe a horse with my BB's Best of luck, A
Posted 18:44 30th July 2008
Adrian Cox says...
The ball flies too far, Simply due to dimple patterns. Make the standard ball with amaximun of 200 dimples. NO 384's or 432 's etc. This will reduce flight and penetration and make the ball more managable. Secondly reduce the compression to the old 90 or 100 compression. Ball manufacturers will not suffer,& players will have the opportunity feel more in control. Bring back manouverability and give us back golf... We long for our heratige. These are simple cheap and effective measures... Oh and let's have real wood back......A Pipe dream ? Golfers are kidding themselves. How many youngsters can hit low draws, high fades and keep them in control... Try it sometime....Name your shot and hit it...You will need some old kit, proper groves and skill.... Do you really have this,.......? Think again R & A and give us back our game. Adrian
Posted 18:16 30th July 2008
Bagger Vance says...
First it is 90% down to the ball and this is the Only thing that could be changed without 1 golf companies suing for millions of pounds 2 affecting the enjoyment of golf for the masses A precedent would be Formula 1 where tyres are controlled and bear no resemblance to normal tyres but still have value in marketing terms for manafacturers If you dig up Peter Alliss he will explain that in his day the Smaller English ball went further,played better in the wind than the larger Ameican ball which was easier to hit and better for the short game and putting. Modern balls then progressed to combine the two but were still either distance or feel balls but the latest ones are a fantastic combination of all Remember Tiger won his first Masters with a set of steel shafted clubs you could pick up unwanted from the back of the pro shop for a £150 but with a modern ball and the fact that hes a power athlete wth great touch and feel and tough character a very rare combination.
Posted 14:05 30th July 2008
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