How LOW can you go?

Article from the March 2013 issue of Compleat Golfer Magazine.

If golf equipment technology is like a drug, then there are some players who should be using a placebo, reckons the Ed.

Those who think technology is not making the game easier need to remove their heads from the bunker. You just need to hit the latest golf equipment on offer to know that while manufacturers may be pushing the marketing hyperbole to extreme levels, they are also producing great products. And it’s no longer a case of sifting through the bull – pretty much every brand produces clubs and balls that make the game easier.

Gary Player, at 77 years of age, hits the ball as far as he did when he was in his prime, and if you have placed your Vardon grip around anything remotely modern of late, then you probably do as well.

And there’s no doubt this is good for the game. Making golf easier is the key to getting more players to take up the game – and keeping those who already play.

But the ‘problem’ is that if modern equipment is making the game easier for us ammies to play, then it must be doing the same for the touring professionals. Clubs hit the ball longer and straighter, balls spin more (or less, depending on what you’re after) and hybrids, wedges and putters are easier to hit and control than ever before.

On the US Tour, we’ve kicked the year off with winning scores of 16 under (three rounds), 24 under, 25 under and 28 under. Even the cutlines have been well under par. One has to wonder whether this scoring buffet is cause for celebration or concern.

The general golfing public has become conditioned to believe that one should measure a golfer’s ability by how far into red numbers he goes. At times this is true, but how much does it count when everyone else in the field is doing it?

Call me a purist, but I’m more a fan of a fair fight. I like nothing more than seeing players tested – physically and mentally – by a demanding golf course, in demanding conditions. In most cases, the tough set-up is the best filter one can find, with the better players invariably rising to the top of the leaderboard by the end of the tournament.

Not that all players are up for hard graft, mind you. After taking on Pete Dye’s challenging PGA West layout in the 1987 Bob Hope Classic (traditionally a low-scoring event), US Tour players collected enough signatures on a petition to force the tournament to move courses, claiming it was too difficult. For the record, Corey Pavin won with a score of 19 under par in the five-round event.

The downside of technology’s relentless forward press is that golf courses are struggling to keep up with the distance gains that modern equipment has produced. Those clubs that have the space have been bullied into building extra tee-boxes to combat the power game, while some traditional courses have had to accept that a 400-metre par four is no longer the toughest hole on the course.

I walked a few holes with Sunshine Tour players Jaco van Zyl and Ryan Cairns during a practice round in the Joburg Open earlier this year. While neither can be considered a big hitter by pro standards, they flicked nothing more than wedges into the 9th green, the 389-metre stroke 8. More interestingly, they simply took aim on the tiger line and flew the fairway bunker with ease. It didn’t even come into play. Bob Grimsdell must be turning in his grave.

This month we take a close look at the latest trends in golf gear from the PGA Show in Orlando, where our equipment editor spent a week researching, examining and testing the newest products on the market.

Our cover star Tim Clark is unlikely to ever overpower a golf course – and yet he is able to mix it with the big boys on a weekly basis. He’s living proof that there is a place for everyone in this great sport of ours. He’s also right in the middle of the long-putter debacle and while he didn’t want to say much about that topic, he’s got some interesting opinions on other aspects of the game, including modern equipment. Check out our interview with South Africa’s ‘forgotten’ star on page 32.

Back to the equipment debate: I’m not for one minute suggesting we should turn to hickory clubs (although we will be telling you how to do that in a future issue). I’d just like to ensure the integrity of our great old golf courses is preserved. Fortunately, the way I play golf, their dignity is safe.

Thanks for reading South Africa’s longest-running sports magazine.