By Ryan Herrington
As has been noted many times, Phil Mickelson is not shy about calling out persons, places or things he takes umbrage with on or off the golf course. His opinionated nature was on full display again Tuesday when the USGA and R&A announced the introduction of a Model Local Rule that would limit the length of a driver to 46 inches.

“Stupid is as stupid does.”Mrs Gump

Really though, are the amateurs trying their best to govern the professional game the stupid ones? Or the professionals for letting them? https://t.co/3zt4LyH3UW

— Phil Mickelson (@PhilMickelson) October 12, 2021

The response was expected given that Mickelson tweeted back in August his frustration that the governing bodies were discussing this in the first place. So when it became official, everyone was just waiting for Lefty’s response. Suffice it to say, we’ll give him some credit for creativity with the Forrest Gump imagery.

Mickelson wasn’t the only tour pro who went on the record Tuesday saying he wasn’t fully onboard with the USGA/R&A move. Justin Thomas questioned the need for it, suggesting that there are is another equipment issue facing the pro game are more pressing—armlock putting.

On Wednesday, Mickelson was back on social media to voice his displeasure on the subject once more, albeit with a new, fresh target—the PGA Tour. Amid Tuesday’s news of the USGA/R&A decision, officials from the tour released a statement saying that they would implement the local rule in PGA Tour events starting Jan. 1, 2022.

Again, Lefty was not pleased to hear the PGA Tour’s stance. And it would appear he was even more upset with the way the tour made it known to players.

It is extremely disappointing to find out that the PGA Tour adopted the new USGA rule through the media. I don’t know of any player who had any say or any kind of representation in this matter. ? I do know many are wondering if there’s a better way.

— Phil Mickelson (@PhilMickelson) October 13, 2021

Again, this is a consistent pattern for Mickelson. He’s never been afraid to point fingers at authority. (See the 2014 Ryder Cup Sunday press conference.) Guessing Mickelson just wants to make sure he doesn’t forget to call anybody out.

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By Mike Stachura
Regarding Bryson DeChambeau and Phil Mickelson and their lust for 48-inch drivers, golf’s ruling bodies have only one thing to say: Not so fast.

Technically, Tuesday’s announcement that the USGA and the R&A will reduce the maximum shaft length from 48 inches to 46 inches counts as a suggestion. It’s what’s called a Model Local Rule, which is generally designed to give tournament organisers or presumably any tour the right to implement a rule limiting driver length. But a spokespeople from the PGA Tour and the LPGA Tour confirmed its tours would implement the local rule in 2022, with the PGA Tour confirming Jan. 1, 2022 as the first date of enforcement. The USGA’s Thomas Pagel, senior managing director of governance, said the new limit will apply to all 14 USGA championships, also beginning in 2022.

“I think it’s very fair to say that this is a proactive measure,” he said of the new limit, which has been discussed and researched by the USGA and R&A since 2014 with a few stops and starts in between. It was announced as a proposal back in February.

“You saw a trend of more players experimenting, and I would say the governing bodies have been accused in the past of being reactive, and this was an opportunity for us to be proactive and cap something that is going to have a really small impact as far as the number of individuals. Had we waited, I think the change would have been that much harder.”

To be fair, Pagel said no one player’s use or success with a longer driver accelerated any decision. In other words, Mickelson’s win at the PGA Championship in May with a driver that measured 47.5 inches did not impact any decision on the shaft length rollback. Pagel called the model Local Rule “the least disruptive” approach, making it clear that the rule does not affect recreational golfers or any manufacturer interested in selling drivers longer than the new 46-inch limit.

“If there are recreational golfers that happen to be playing with something longer than 46 inches they can continue to play with that if they’d like,” Pagel said. “We felt it was appropriate to handle as a Model Local Rule now. It doesn’t mean that at some point in the future that it becomes a rule of golf, perhaps even a shorter length club is even considered. That’s nothing we’re discussing now, but it’s difficult to say never.”

Here’s the statement from the PGA Tour on Tuesday acknowledging it would implement the rule: “After understanding the feedback received from the golf manufacturing community, we also undertook a survey of usage of clubs in use across the PGA Tour, PGA Tour Champions and the Korn Ferry Tour and found that a very small number of players either have used or are currently using clubs greater than 46 inches. The PGA Tour Player Advisory Council recently reviewed the subject and we have concluded that the PGA Tour will implement the Local Rule on Jan. 1, 2022.”

The LPGA Tour didn’t provide a definitive timeframe with its response: “[We] plan to implement the new rule at some point after the 2021 season. We have already started communication with the small number of players who may be affected by the change, to ensure they can make any necessary adjustments in a timely manner.”

Pagel said golf’s other professional tours and major championships “have been involved and engaged” with the decision on the new rule, and he expected them to announce their decisions shortly. While contacted by Golf Digest, the European Tour and Augusta National did not respond with comment. A PGA of America spokesperson said the organisation would review the rule change and make an announcement before any 2022 PGA event. Several major manufacturers contacted by Golf Digest declined to offer a comment at this time.

For perspective, driver shaft lengths have increased over the last quarter century, both on the PGA Tour and in the marketplace. It was typical in the 1990s for drivers played on tour to be in the 43-inch range, and now the majority of tour players use a driver between 44.5 and 45.5 inches. In addition to Mickelson’s and DeChambeau’s interest in drivers at the current 48-inch limit, the LPGA’s Brooke Henderson also has played a 48-inch driver in the past. Almost all drivers being introduced by manufacturers now feature a shaft length of 45 to 45.75 inches.

Though some manufacturers have introduced drivers with shaft lengths longer than 46 inches, few have been successful. A decade ago, TaylorMade’s Burner Superfast 2.0 was 46.5 inches and was popular for a time before the company’s next model dropped back to a shorter shaft. Cobra introduced a lightweight 48-inch shaft in its Long Tom driver in 2011 that saw little traction.

Of course, the evidence is not universal that a longer shaft will result in longer driving distance for every player. John Spitzer, the USGA’s managing director of equipment standards, said that multiple tests it has conducted show a three- to five-yard difference by going from 46 to 48 inches. “When we started looking at this, we only saw a couple of players on the tours using drivers that were over 46.5 inches,” Spitzer said. “And now we’re seeing an order of magnitude bigger than that.

“And they’re not going right from 46 to 48, but they are inching up, and as they inch up, eventually the manufacturers would start to offer clubs that were longer. So the timing was just right.”

John McPhee, professor of engineering at the University of Waterloo and a member of the Golf Digest Technical Panel, and his students have developed an optimised biomechanical/physics golf simulation that projects a six-yard gain in carry distance when an average human golfer goes from optimal launch conditions at 46 inches to optimal launch conditions at 48 inches, but his model showed a 10-yard gain in the optimals when going from 44 inches to 46 inches.

In a paper published on the subject submitted for the International Sports Engineering Association 2022 conference, McPhee and his student Spencer Ferguson conclude, “A rule to limit club length to 46 inches might help curb future distance gains at the elite level, but is unlikely to reduce current driving distances, as five of the most recent leaders in driving distance on the PGA Tour used drivers less than 46 inches in length.”

For what it’s worth, according to PGA Tour statistics, Mickelson was about five yards shorter this year than he was in 2019 and his rank in strokes gained/off the tee still hasn’t moved into the top 150. Nevertheless, Mickelson recently went to social media to criticise the USGA for looking to roll back shaft length.

“What data was there to say that the driver length should be capped at 48 inches?” Mickelson said, shaking his head in a Twitter video posted last month. “What data is there that says it should go to 46 inches? We’re addressing the wrong problem, and we’re misreading the data yet again much like the grooves in 2010.”

Of course, Mickelson’s diatribe seems misplaced since he devotes much of it to arguing against the shaft length rule’s effect on average golfers, which the new rule would not impact in the least.

Pagel said the shaft-length rule addresses elite players now to avoid any further issues later. He said they do not see any evidence that long drivers are commonplace on tour or in the marketplace or among young developing golfers. But Mickelson and DeChambeau have been vocal about exploring the use of longer shafts. Pagel said the time to act was now.

“At the highest level, we were seeing the numbers were slowly creeping up,” he said. “With the swing speeds at that level and the abilities at that level, that’s where it would start to take off and that would be the start of a trend. Once the elite level players start to do something it will trickle down. How long it takes, it could have been 10 years before we would see a bunch of kids trying long drivers, but the point is let’s be proactive now.”

Pagel was quick to note that driver shaft length is not the governing bodies’ ultimate solution to the driving-distance question. New USGA CEO Mike Whan even went so far as to say in a statement, “Admittedly, this is not the ‘answer’ to the overall distance debate/issue, but rather a simple option for competitive events.”

The USGA and R&A are seeking comment on the broader topic of distance with a Nov. 2 deadline—so there is more to come, Pagel said. Among the topics being reviewed are a tightening of the tolerance zone for the measurement of springlike effect and new distance standards for measuring a golf ball’s optimal flight conditions. But the ideas go beyond those two proposals, which also were announced in February with the shaft-length rule.

“We’re in this critical discussion about the role that distance plays in the game and that’s ongoing,” he said. “Once we have that feedback we anticipate spending a significant period of time reviewing that and allowing it to inform whatever the next steps might be. People will say we move slow, but in this case I think it’s intentionally slow. We don’t want to act with haste, and I think that’s important for the industry.

“This model local rule by no means is intended to be a solution that helps to stop the cycle of increased hitting distances. We’re committed to what we said before and there will be solutions but this is not that solution. What they are, we’re not sure yet, but this is not it.”

“We’re committed to our desire to stop the cycle of increased hitting distances. We have the long-term health of the game in mind. How is the game healthy 20, 50, 100 years from now. That’s something we remain committed to. We know elite players can achieve distance increases through using a longer club, and as an industry as we go through the critical conversation about the long-term health of the game and what role distance plays with that, we just thought it was best to cap this now while we have the rest of that discussion.”

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By Christopher Powers
Five months after his wail-away strategy blew up in his face at the Masters, Bryson DeChambeau does not appear to be abandoning it for a more conservative approach.

Of course, we won’t really find that out until he tees off Thursday, but early indications are that he’ll be swinging for the fences once again. He’s apparently putting a new driver into play, one he had loaded up with lead tape on Monday. At the range, he looked like he was prepping for a world long drive contest, which is nothing new.

What was new, though, was Vijay Singh standing directly behind DeChambeau as an innocent onlooker. Singh, the 2000 Masters champ, stood back and watched in awe, chuckling multiple times at the absurdity of it all:

We are all Vijay Singh watching Bryson DeChambeau on the practice range. pic.twitter.com/PXkM3ks4NO

— Justus Cleveland (@JustusCleveland) April 5, 2021

Same, Veej, same.

What’s funny, is that Singh knows what it’s like to be chasing distance in the gym like DeChambeau has been over the last year. Nobody works out like Vijay, who remains in incredible shape at the age of 58. But even he can’t help but respect DeChambeau’s range routine.

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By Dave Shedloski
Mike Whan didn’t waste much time moving into a new slot in the golf leadership hierarchy.

The man who orchestrated a record turnaround in the fortunes of the LPGA while serving as the longest-tenured commissioner in the organisation’s history, was named CEO of the USGA on Wednesday, set to succeed Mike Davis in the post.

“This one’s pretty simple for me. I love this game. I love this sport. I love this country, and I really love the process of getting better and learning and building strategic alliances. And I get all of that in the USGA,” Whan told Golf Digest after agreeing to become the eighth top executive in USGA history. “When I announced my departure from the LPGA, I said that I’m at the age where I sort of have one more big thing to do. I need to get some first-tee jitters again. I need to get nervous, and suffice it to say, I’m nervous. But I revel in that.”

Whan, 56, is expected officially to take over at Golf House sometime this summer, giving him a period of time to work with Davis in a transition while enabling the LPGA to find his successor.

“I’ve had the pleasure of working with Mike Whan for many years, and I view him as a trusted, strategic leader who has a proven track record of building collaborative partnerships,” Davis said in a statement. “I know the USGA will be in great hands, and I look forward to partnering with Mike to ensure a smooth and successful transition for the USGA.”

“We had a ton of inbound interest, and we went through a pretty good process, but the shining light in all of that was Mike Whan,” USGA president Stu Francis said. “Mike was head and shoulders above everybody else in terms of what he brings to the table. It’s just sort of the perfect fit in our view.”

Whan announced Jan.6 that he was stepping down as LPGA chief after 11 years, telling staff and the LPGA Board of Directors, “One of the hardest jobs of a leader is to know when their work is done.” At that time he did not indicate where his next career steps might lead, but his decision to exit the LPGA came slightly more than three months after Davis revealed his plans to enter the golf course design field and leave the USGA after 32 years, including the last 10 in the role of Executive Director/CEO.

Scott Halleran
When Mike Whan took over as LPGA commissioner in 2010, the tour’s schedule featured only 24 official events worth $41.4 million in prize money. This year, it has 34 events and a record $76.45 million in total purses.

Though sensing his work was done at the LPGA, Whan apparently didn’t think he was done leading. He now will head up an organization that conducts 14 national championships, including the U.S. Open, as well as international and team competitions. Additionally, in conjunction with the R&A in Scotland, the USGA writes, interprets and administers the Rules of Golf. Headquartered at Golf House in Liberty Corner, N.J., the USGA employs approximately 450 people.

In taking over for Davis, Whan will inherit a handful of notable tasks on the USGA’s short- and long-term agendas. Chief among them is the ongoing investigation into the impact of distance on the game. Earlier this month, the USGA spelt out a handful of proposed technical modifications to the equipment rules while outlining six areas of interest that could set the stage for future rules changes amounting to a potential rollback in distance.

Additionally, Whan will now help oversee the development of Golf House Pinehurst in North Carolina. The USGA announced in September that, with assistance from state and local authorities, it would build include a satellite office, museum and a new $18 million equipment test centre.

Eager, he said, to continue to “make a difference in this sport,” Whan said he has yet to map out a list of priorities for the USGA, making sure he educates himself thoroughly while working with Davis. That’s not to say he doesn’t have goals.

“I’ve got seven things that I think are going to be seven things for Mike Whan [to do], but I know from my experience with the LPGA that four are going to be wrong. I’m just not sure which four,” Whan said. “I walked in with this vision of what I think are the right strategic priorities. But as I told Stu, I’m going to need 100 days, 100 days to make sure that all this stuff I think is right is right. Like any person I walk in with my points of view, and then I’ll figure out pretty quickly, what are the areas of focus? And then my job, quite frankly, is to make sure between me and the [USGA Executive Committee] we’ve got real clarity so that we can let this team run. Cause I think we’ve got a good team there. We just want to make sure we’re all aligned in the priorities and then get out of their way to achieve them.

“I wouldn’t do a job I couldn’t have fun doing, and I can promise you, I’m going to have fun doing this job, even if people don’t have fun having me do this job,” he added. “I don’t know a commissioner of sport who’s not comfortable with the fact that every decision you make, probably 30 percent of people don’t like, and it doesn’t mean you’re right. It just means you got to make decisions to move forward. I’ve got to walk into a new place where they don’t know me [except] by name. They don’t know how I’m going to be better or worse for them. There’ll be all kinds of anxiety about Mike’s different from us, which is true. And getting through all that to real success is the fun part.”

Whan took over as the eighth commissioner of the LPGA in July 2009 after Carolyn Bivens was forced out by a player revolt following a disastrous four-year term. (Marty Evans served as acting commissioner in the interim.) In 2010, when Whan assumed control, the LPGA schedule featured only 24 official events—its lightest slate in nearly 40 years—worth $41.4 million in prize money. This year, the LPGA schedule features 34 events and a record $76.45 million in total purses.

Michael Reaves
Whan played golf growing up in Ohio, growing his interest in the game while working as a caddie and on a grounds crew before going to college.

Whan’s initiatives at the LPGA included the creation of the International Crown, the Founders Cup and the Race to the CME Globe, a season-long competition similar to the PGA Tour’s FedEx Cup. He also forged a partnership with the Ladies European Tour and bolstered the LPGA’s signature major by partnering with the PGA of America to transform the LPGA Championship into the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship.

The debut of the UL International Crown, an eight-team biennial match-play event, the start of the Race to the CME Globe, and the deal that resulted in the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship all occurred in 2014. In 2015, Sports Business Journal tabbed the LPGA as one of its five finalists for Sports League of the Year along with the Big East Conference, Major League Soccer, NASCAR, and the NBA.

“I think if you look at Mike’s track record, certainly at the LPGA, he had a brilliant ability to think about where the future is going and move the organization to be most responsive to that,” Francis said. “And we’re no different, as the USGA is a great organization, but the world around us is changing rapidly. … There are a host of societal changes that we think Mike is just uniquely suited to work together with the senior team to figure out how can the USGA most effectively serve the game, and how can the USGA take advantage of that and be ahead of it?”

A native of Naperville, Ill., Whan cultivated an interest in golf as a youngster by working first as a caddie and then on the grounds crew at Cress Creek Country Club, which mostly interested him because he could play the course for free. When the family moved to Cincinnati in the early 1980s, Whan immediately found another golf job, at nearby Coldstream Country Club.

His first golf-related post after graduating with business degrees in economics and finance from Miami University, in Ohio, in 1987 came seven years later at Wilson Sporting Goods in Chicago, where he served as vice president and general manager of the golf ball and glove division. He also managed the marketing department, two manufacturing facilities and the Research & Development division. Two years later, he moved to Carlsbad, Calif., and TaylorMade Golf, where he eventually rose to executive vice president and general manager for the North American region.

Donald Miralle
At the USGA, Whan will take over as the governing body, along with the R&A, continues its investigation into the impact of distance on the game.

Whan began his business career at Proctor & Gamble in Cincinnati. His last position before joining the LPGA was as president and CEO for hockey-gear maker Mission-Itech Hockey. He joined Mission Hockey in 2002, and during his seven-year tenure Whan restructured the company and oversaw its acquisition of Itech Sports in 2004 to create Mission-Itech Hockey, one of the largest hockey companies in the world.

The LPGA announced Feb. 1 that it formally opened its search for a new commissioner and that it was retaining the services of executive search and leadership advisory firm Spencer Stuart—the same organization that helped identify Whan as a candidate for the commissioner post in 2009.

“I remember when I walked into the LPGA,” Whan said, “I told my father, ‘I can’t mess this up because the game means too much to me.’ And my dad said, ‘Because the game means that much to you, you won’t mess this up.’ And I feel the same way here. Golf matters to me. It’s always mattered to me. I’m excited to feel like I can still make a difference in a sport that’s made a huge difference in my life.”

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By Joel Beall
Webb Simpson and Justin Thomas were, in the most generous of terms, not copacetic with Tuesday’s announcement from the USGA and R&A signalling a distance rollback. But Rory McIlroy left no room for interpretation on his distance thoughts.

After finishing his press conference with the media Wednesday at the Waste Management Phoenix Open, McIlroy asked a reporter why the Ulsterman wasn’t inquired about the joint release from the governing bodies. When goaded for his opinion, the four-time major winner let loose.

“So I think the authorities, the R&A and USGA, are looking at the game through such a tiny little lens, that what they’re trying to do is change something that pertains to 0.1 percent of the golfing community, while 99.9 percent of the people play this game play for enjoyment, for entertainment,” McIlroy said. “They don’t need to be told what ball or clubs to use.

“We have to make the game as easy and approachable as possible for the majority of golfers. Honestly, I think this distance insight report has been a huge waste of time and money, because that money that it’s cost to do this report could have been way better distributed to getting people into the game, introducing young kids to the game, introducing minorities to the game. I heard [USGA CEO] Mike Davis say something about we’re trying to protect the game for the next hundred years.

RELATED: USGA/R&A get specific about a distance rollback, but no timeline yet

“This isn’t how you do it. This is so small and inconsequential compared to the other things happening in the game. It’s the grassroots. It’s getting more people engaged in golf. That’s where they should be spending their money, not spending it on the distance insight report.”

McIlroy was asked if he would be in favour of professionals playing by different rules, to which McIlroy responded in the affirmative.

“Yeah, I would be all for that. If they want to try to make the game more difficult for us or more — try to incorporate more skill to the game, yeah, I would be all for that, because I think it only benefits the better play, which I feel like I am.”

McIlroy finished by stating golf is “way bigger than the professional game.”

“It’s the other stuff that really matters, and that’s the stuff they need to concentrate on,” he said.

McIlroy is second on the PGA Tour in driving distance with a 321.7 yard average. He is making his first career start at the WMPO.

RELATED: Bryson DeChambeau sounds surprisingly fine with the USGA/R&A’s latest distance stance

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By Joel Beall
The USGA announced Monday it is again pushing back its update to its Distance Insights Report.

The project, a joint study with the R&A on the effects of distance increases on the game, was initially released in February. Its primary finding was clear: Gains need to be curbed. How the governing bodies and stakeholders would go about that effort remained unclear. An update to the report was expected within 45 days of publishing.

However, that release was delayed due to the opening stages of the coronavirus pandemic, and a day following the PGA Championship, the USGA said it and the R&A are now targeting March 2021 for the update.

“We will continue to monitor the recovery of the golf industry and may update this target date accordingly,” the USGA said in a statement. “Per the Equipment Rulemaking Procedures, the time for golf equipment manufacturers and other interested parties to participate in this research will also be amended to account for the delay.

“In the interim, the USGA and The R&A will continue to monitor the effects of distance on the game.

“Beyond Equipment Rulemaking Procedures, the review of golf course design, setup and maintenance, as well as the availability and choice of appropriate teeing grounds, will continue in support of golf’s long-term health.”

When speaking to Golf Digest in February, USGA CEO Mike Davis stressed that the next steps of the study would be collaborative and that there would not be any immediate solutions.

“We’re trying to get the game to fit on golf courses that exist now,” Davis said. “This is a long-term play because this has been a long-term build-up of a problem.

“We realise this is a big undertaking. We don’t see this as something where we’re just going to mandate something. Clearly, we may not agree on everything but I think everybody cares about the future of this game.”

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By Joel Beall
It’s intended to be a conversation starter, but it is a conversation that started some time ago, with sides that are passionately entrenched. Perhaps that’s why the USGA and R&A’s release of its long-awaited Distance Insights report has been viewed by some as a verdict rather than an opening statement.

But that statement was clear: Distance needs to be curtailed for the good of the game. And because much of the debate revolves around the PGA Tour, a number of pros spoke out this week after the report’s release, feeling as if they are being tried for a crime they did not commit. Many defended themselves by citing advancements in training and club optimisation. Others deferred the blame to architects and designers. A few took exception with the idea that a distance spike is actually a problem.

No matter the response, there was an underlying tone to some of the players’ denials and rebuttals that is problematic. Simply put, many sound as if they don’t trust the governing bodies, their motive or their competence.

It was mostly unsaid, but it was there. Like when Billy Horschel asked, “Do you think the USGA or R&A hold any responsibility in the distance issue?” or as Paul Casey insisted players and manufacturers aren’t to blame. Even the Tour’s official statement, which expressed its desire to collaborate with the USGA and R&A, added the caveat it wouldn’t back any solutions that could negatively impact the Tour, its players or the fans’ “enjoyment of our sport.”

Just in case the message was lost in the nuance, Phil Mickelson provided clarity.

“I didn’t really read anything tangible from the report; I only saw that they didn’t want each generation to continue getting longer and longer,” Mickelson said earlier this week. “I struggle with some of our governing bodies. I struggle with it because we are the only professional sport in the world that’s governed by a group of amateurs, and that leads to some questionable directions that we go down. I wish that we had people that are involved in the sport professionally to be in charge a little bit more.”

Now, the USGA’s approval rating will never be confused with, say, Tom Hanks’ popularity, its standing still recovering from miscues in three of the past five U.S. Opens. The report itself also is not without its flaws or weak points, or above criticism, although that last point shouldn’t pose a problem: The sport—fans, player, media—hasn’t shied from voicing its displeasure with officials in Far Hills.

And to be fair, many of these players were asked their thoughts, and they obliged. (Shoutout to Dustin Johnson, who admitted he did not read the report after seeing its length.)

Yet, whatever qualms exist with the governing body, know this. In aim and scope, the USGA’s purpose is not without merit.

Sam Greenwood/Getty Images
Mickelson called out golf for being governed by ‘a group of amateurs.’

When the Distance Insights project was announced in May 2018, many assumed the USGA and R&A were holding kangaroo court for a pre-determined agenda. It was a notion dismissed then and now by those involved, who say its mission was to gather research and opinions on how distance affects each individual and all aspects of the game.

“We are looking at distance in a very holistic way,” Rand Jerris, the USGA’s senior managing director of public services, said to Golf Digest. “The golf ball is not the focus of this project.”

A rollback has been the presumed outcome for many on both sides of the debate, a prevailing theory being that the USGA has been saving the resources to wage a legal war. Except multiple current and former USGA employees say that’s not the case, stating the last thing the USGA and R&A want are courtroom battles and broken relationships.

“It’s there in the beginning of the summary,” a former USGA employee said. “ ‘[The USGA and R&A] are trying to protect the challenge and character of golf.’ From what they have gathered, this is the route to reach that objective.”

The gathering is impressive, as the Insights reports features more than 100 years of data. The research, made available to the public, flows from 56 ancillary reports, many themselves dozens of pages in length. To those who view the USGA as a bunch of lawyers cosplaying as country club presidents, it could read like an information dump to obfuscate the point.

Those around the USGA again say that’s not so. As USGA CEO Mike Davis told Golf Digest, “We clearly have identified a problem that the industry should solve in a collective way,” and the papers are proof of that indication. Or as another USGA staffer relayed, “We are trying to be transparent.”

Moreover, in a sport accused, often rightfully, of being too exclusive, the USGA and R&A did their best to make sure everyone was heard. Golfers were offered a chance to participate in a survey and many took that opportunity, with nearly 70,000 people filling out the online questionnaire. Even the most cynical USGA observer has to agree, that’s a lot of homework to do if you already have the answer in hand. And that’s important since wherever this debate goes, its execution depends on listening to any and all stakeholders.

So when players insinuate the USGA doesn’t know what it’s doing, they are impeding the conversation and making themselves look bad in the process.

Photo by Scott Halleran
It’s hard to call out Davis and the USGA for a lack of effort with its Distance Insights report.

The report is far from infallible. Despite the mountain of research, some of the conclusions—particularly those on how distance has affected average golf courses—are lacking basic data points, filled with hearsay and empirical evidence in their stead. The survey’s questions could be interpreted as biased, and with just 7 percent of those surveyed replying distance is a problem, it’s fair to ask if Average Joes have a big enough seat at the table.

Those questions are well and good. But they warrant discussion, not dismissiveness.

The USGA knows these questions and more are coming, which is why it is calling for continued input from the game, hoping to specify areas of further research within the next 45 days. Once those topics are reached, gathering research could take another nine months to a year. Insert your pace-of-play jokes here.

And yet, while every other stakeholder in the game has self-preservation at heart, the USGA and R&A have a higher calling: Earnestly trying to do what they think is best for the game.

“We believe that now is the time to examine this topic through a very wide and long lens, knowing it is critical to the future of the game,” Davis said at the onset of the project. “We look forward to delving deeply into this topic and learning more, led by doing right by golf, first and foremost.”

Whatever you think of Davis or the USGA, there is nothing amateur about that pursuit.

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