Day Two Of NY Times War On USGA: Polara Ball Makes Front Page!
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Why this is front page news, I'm not sure, but Bill Pennington on the Polara ball.
It is physics, not magic, but there is, of course, a catch. The Polara ball has an irregular dimple pattern that means it does not conform to golf’s official rules. The ball, which is designed to reduce slices and hooks by 75 percent or more, would be illegal to use in the Masters, for example, or any other competition, local or otherwise, sanctioned by the United States Golf Association.
But as golf works to appeal to a younger generation that hits the links in cargo shorts and sandals and without a rulebook, does a nonconforming label still matter?
“It wouldn’t matter one bit to me,” said Fredric Martenson, 36, of Jersey City, who was also pounding balls into the night. Mr. Martenson, a beginning golfer with a wicked slice, also found the Polara ball went considerably straighter.
“I just want to go out and not spend the whole day looking for my ball,” he said.
And we know that's all been the ball's fault!
But many at the driving range here last week wanted nothing to do with the Polara ball.
“Part of the game is the challenge of hitting it straight,” said Charles Yoo, 33, of Edgewater.
The dialogue at the range mirrors a debate in the greater golf community. With the number of golf rounds declining in recent years, especially among beginners, what is the best way to draw new players to a difficult, intimidating, tradition-bound game? Can new technologies enhance the recruitment of players, even if some advances are outside rules in place for centuries?
Dave Felker, the former Callaway golf ball engineer and executive behind the Polara, said his product was meant to grow the game because it is not for the elite golfer.
“It’s for the other golfers, the ones who rarely hit it straight,” he said. “It’s for people who want to be embarrassed less, play faster and enjoy it more. I respect the U.S.G.A., they help identify the best golfers in the world, but what about the rest of us?”
After yesterday's Flogton story, might we see a USGA rebuttal to all of this?
