Modern Player vs Old Equipment

Filed in archive Golf Equipment on December 10, 2007

Courtesy: Royal Melbourne Golf Club

What happens when you hand a hickory-shafted wooden head club to a modern-day tour pro?

One thing that happens is the latest chapter in the ongoing saga of how today's players hit the ball so far with today's modern equipment.

The venue is Royal Melbourne golf club in Australia; the occasion was a round of golf among two golf writers and Aussie touring pro, Geoff Ogilvie, former U.S. Open winner.

Ogilvie used a modern ball but as this story indicates, he still over-powered Royal Melbourne.

Royal Melbourne itself is not long by today's behemoth standards. The East Course is 6500 yards; the West Course is just over 6500 yards and the Composite Course (a combination of the two) is less than 6500 yards.

Even so, Ogilvie demonstrated that a modern golf ball coupled with a modern swing can still do plenty of damage via a wooden shafted, wooden head club.

My conclusion? Sure, it's equipment but it's also vastly improved swings based on the latest scientific data on bio-mechanics and kinesiology that is resulting in great length off the tee. Not to mention fitness levels.

But there is an intriguing theory out there regarding a uniform golf ball for the PGA Tour. We see the idea in plenty of other sports, especially motor racing where entire series are run on rubber from a single tire manufacturer or where the engines are from a single engine builder.

Of course, commissioner Tim Finchem doesn't link massive distance with legally juicy golf balls.

So the distance debate will rage on...