“You know the easiest way to get the ball in the middle of the fairway? Walk down there and place it with your hand. Who are you kidding?”

While traveling today I got to spend a little time with the hard copy of the NY Times and inspected Dick Rugge's response to the Polara ball and other suggestions that the rules of golf are scaring golfers away. I like that he was both logical--we've seen greater advances in the last 15 years than ever before--and a wee bit sarcastic too.

“For the last 15 years, advances in conforming club and ball technologies have made it easier to play,” he said. “So we’ve already had a 15-year experiment on this make-it-easier logic. And what have been the results? Participation has not gone up. So we’re not going to dumb it down.

“You know the easiest way to get the ball in the middle of the fairway? Walk down there and place it with your hand. Who are you kidding?”