Should there be changes on the PGA Tour & to the world of Golf ? (8-27-20)
Headline Photo Credit: PGATour.com
Golf has been around since the 15th century. It is a sport that has had its fair share of good and bad times. Many people have referred to the sports as “The Gentleman’s Game” others have even called it “The Old Man’s Game”. Regardless of what you have known it to be called, chances are you have probably hit a ball or two.
Depending on your mentality about the game, you either loved it or hated it. However, no matter what you may think about the game, golf is at a place right now that no one would have thought it would be. A new generation of athletes have takenover the game and have turned the game of crafting shots into a long drive competition on every hole. Having this type of drastic change in this historic sport, may call for new changes many did not see coming.
So far during this chaotic 2020 PGA Season 70 of the 208 athletes are averaging a drive over 300 yards. This has brought new fans in from all over, but can it damage the history of this sport? Many people who play golf as a weekend warrior are fascinated with the long ball. I myself am always looking to see what advantage I can get over the group I play with regularly. Many fans of the sport believe these long drives can hurt the game if no changes are made.
Just like a new wave of athletes have changed the sport, so has the growing technology. Clubs now have the ability to help an individual, whether it be pro or amateur, correct a miss hit ball. As an amateur I love this, I know I could use all the help I need. However, should a professional be allowed to use this? It is question that has been thrown around lately in the sport. What changes could be made if any though?
In the PGA tour more round scores have been around the 60 mark almost breaking into the 50’s. Taking into consideration the new technology that is growing in the sport and the mile-long drives.
How much is this the actual athlete? Many ideas have come up as to what changes can be made to make this sport more difficult for the player. In the past the British had their own version of a golf ball, it was slightly smaller. With having the golf ball slightly smaller it allowed for more distance off the tee and produced straighter drives. Could we use this theory, but make the ball bigger to slow down the drives?
An idea I have read was pertaining to the way golf balls and golf clubs were made. The idea was to simply have manufactures photo courtesy of golfgalaxy.comnot make clubs as forgiving and not make golf balls that play long or soft around the greens. I personally do not see how anybody could benefit if the manufactures did this. It would be like taking a step back in time, and would ruin the sales to amateurs. Because let’s face it, as an amateur I can use all the breaks I can get. I personally would not want to spend money to downgrade my equipment.
My favorite idea is to simply just lower the par score. Obviously, players are getting stronger and the equipment is getting better every year. It would be a simpler solution to lower the average par score of 72 to 70. This would allow the manufactures to continue improving their product and not have to go backwards in their production. I mean let’s face it, scores will continue to get lower as time goes on. Lowering the par will bring the difficulty back to where it was.
This week the PGA Tour will head to the Olympia Fields North Course for the 2020 BMW Championship Tournament.
This will be the second tournament in this years Fed Ex Cup playoffs. All 70 players who are still in the play offs will get a full 4 rounds this weekend, as this weekend is a no cut tournament. This course is expected to be as a lengthy as 7,323 yards, and the par will be at 70. With the combination of thelength of the course with par will put some challenges, as this course is notorious for the small greens and narrow fairways. The PGA Tour has stretched this course to the absolute max. The players will start their day with a par 5 which is listed to be 626 yards. It will be interesting to see if these heavy hitters swing away, or play more on the conservative side given the narrow fairways. Olympia Fields North Course seems to be more lenient to the precision and shot accuracy players rather than the long ball players. Bryson DeChambeau, Jon Rham and Dustin Johnson are some of the long hitters that will be in the field this weekend. Look for a weekend of good challenging golf. Expect low scores, but I would say not as low as they were last week. My pick to win this weekend is Dustin Johnson. Look for Dustin Johnson to use the momentum from last weeks win at The Nothern Trust as he went 30 under par wining by a total of 11 shots. This tournament may very well be a preview for the upcoming U.S Open
