What A Change In Golf Ball Testing Might Do For Top Players

GolfDigest.com’s Mike Stachura assesses the R&A/USGA joing announcement of specific “areas of interest” for future possible changes in testing. The item covers a lot, but a change from 120 to 125 m.p.h. change might mean exceeding the “Overall Distance Standard” and render many current golf balls non-conforming.

John Spitzer, the USGA’s managing director of equipment standards, said the 125-mile-per-hour number isn’t based on any biomechanical theory of human limitations with the golf swing. It’s based on the eye test.

“We don’t know if it’s enough, but we do have a little bit of a crystal ball in the long drive competition. So the question of whether [this kind of speed] is physically possible is answered based on what we’ve seen from those folks.”

As for the number of current balls that such a rule change might make nonconforming, Spitzer said it wouldn’t be all. “There’s a substantial number of balls that wouldn’t run afoul or would require only very minor tweaks,” he said. But when asked specifically whether it would be almost all of the balls played on tour, which based on current sales from Golf Datatech account for 35-40 percent of the market, he said, “Yes. It would be a much higher percentage but not all because there are certain players that fall in love with a ball that might be three generations back.”