Rule makers missed the chance to protect Old Course from a 59
The battle between the game’s lawmakers and golf’s longest hitters continued with the introduction of a rule from next year that gives the organisers of professional and elite amateur events the ability to limit the length of golf clubs.
As part of the R&A and USGA’s ‘distance insights’ project, a new local rule could be invoked to reduce the maximum length of a club from 48 to 46 inches.
Phil Mickelson used a 47.9in driver when he won the US PGA at Kiawah Island in May, and he has been an outspoken critic of the move, describing it as “pathetic” in a tweet.
But for esteemed golf coach and author, Gary Nicol, this proposed change does not tackle the main problem.
As a lover of the game, the Archerfieldbased coach is concerned about what could happen to the Old Course next summer at the 150th Open Championship if conditions fall in favour of the Bombers Brigade, led by Bryson DeChambeau.
“I don’t think an extra inch or two on the driver makes the difference,” Nicol told The Sunday Post.
“I can see what the rule makers are trying to do, but they are addressing the wrong piece of equipment.
“The real issue is the golf ball, certainly at pro level.
“Some of our magnificent golf courses are becoming obsolete, and not how the designers originally intended them to play.
“Have we gone too far? Potentially, and if not, it’s only a matter of time.
“If we get four days of flat calm next summer at St Andrews, it’s not beyond the realms of possibility that we could have a few 60s and even a 59.
“I’m all for progress, but that could happen and it would feel wrong. But it may take something like that to bring out about change.
“It would be the easiest fix. In tennis, they changed the ball to stop it flying so fast through the air, and it didn’t stop people from playing and watching.”
Nicol certainly does not want to decry the ability to hit the ball long and straight off the tee. But he is worried that it is fundamentally changing the sport from one that challenges you in lots of different ways to a more prosaic game.
“Hitting the ball a long way has always been a skill, and the longest players have always had an advantage,” he says.
“But when it becomes the No. 1 skill, it takes a lot of the other skills out of the game, and golf becomes one-dimensional.
“We used to marvel at the gifts of Seve Ballesteros. That’s what I would pay to watch as a fan.
“I would gladly watch his creativity and artistry, and how he would play certain shots. That’s why he was box-office, the same as Tiger Woods.”
Nicol’s latest book, The Lost Art Of The Short Game, co-authored with Karl Morris, aims to help amateurs reconnect with the essential ability of getting the ball in the hole.
While driving ranges are full of people bashing balls, Nicol is trying to encourage players to move away from technical jargon.
“So many players are obsessed with how far the driver goes,” he admits. “Not enough attention is paid to the short game.
“Every shot has the same value, and you get a lot of satisfaction from scrambling well.
“And when you chip and putt well, it takes the pressure off your long game.
“Don’t get me wrong, technical instruction has its place. But we’re working on getting players to free up their minds and play a bit more naturally.
“People are good at solving problems. If I told you to throw a ball 10 yards, you’d do it.
“But if I instructed you for 30 minutes on how to do it, your mind would be awash with information, and you would move away from the task in hand.
“Look at the best players. You don’t see too many textbook swings. They’ve done it their own way.
“We’re trying to get people to pay more attention to the shot they want to hit, rather than being overloaded with technical thoughts.”
▪ The Lost Art Of The Short Game by Gary Nicol and Karl Morris, from Sports Publications, available in hardback, £19.95