Golf Equipment Sales: Social Distancing, Not Distance Gains, Fuel Record Growth

I kept waiting to hear that record equipment sales tracked by Golf Datatech were fueled by a major distance-gaining breakthrough.

Turns out, it’s just social distancing.

GolfDigest.com’s Mike Stachura offers an extensive breakdown of the surge in sales and reaches out to all of the CEO’s who rarely advertise in print any longer because, they’re (kind of) happy campers! Until they hear the anti-capitalist governing bodies will blow this pandemic-fueled resurgence of golf.

Each of the club and ball categories were up more than 25 percent in both units and dollars compared to a year ago. Specifically:

Balls: Up 27 percent in units, 28 percent in dollars

Putters: Up 32 percent in units, 36 percent in dollars

Wedges: Up 64 percent in units, 74 percent in dollars

Woods: Up 74 percent in units, 68 percent in dollars

Irons: Up 83 percent in units, 93 percent in dollars

As calculated by Golf Datatech, iron sales set an all-time high for any month the research firm has tracked in its more than two decades of looking at industry numbers.

What record did it beat? The one set just last month.

Now, for the CEO’s who were all contacted so Stachura didn’t get any angry calls. The wisdom gleaned is life changing.

“One element we’re seeing is that the more folks play, the more they think about equipment,” said David Maher, president and CEO of Titleist and FootJoy parent Acushnet, on the company’s recent quarterly earnings call.

Holy Mungo Park, who knew?

So hear me out: more people playing use more golf balls, and buy more things. This is remarkable!

Here I thought we wanted to just have really rich people overpaying to gain a few yards, join their seventh club and post a few pics on The Gram, all while the rest of us worked 80 hours a week and aspired to win the lottery so we could play some golf?

Who knew!

Perhaps we should study this appreciation of golf as cool, affordable, accessible and safe might grow it? Bold for a Wednesday, I know. I know.

Callaway’s Chip Brewer reported a huge uptick in online sales and he doesn’t think it’s all just a pent-up demand situation.

“The surge we have right now, some portion of that is pent-up demand,” he said on the company’s recent second-quarter earnings call. “And some portion of that is the increased interest in the game and the increased participation. The participation and the interest in the game, I can't help but believe are positive indicators for the long run.”

On a serious note: this pandemic is dreadful and will be part of our lives for some time. Golf has turned out to be a safe place to be and also an activity folks can participate in because they are not working 60 hour work weeks. Or at all.

Yet no where, in this surge, is anyone daring to suggest these sales are happening because of some amazing equipment breakthrough or distance boosting cure-all. That’s worth noting the next time a manufacturer suggests distance regulation will collapse the sport and deprive folks of real golfing joy. Sales are driven by participation. Simple as that.

Healthy sport, healthy business.

All Carry And No Roll: Idea That Agronomy Fuels Distance Gains Is Not Backed By PGA Tour Data

Agronomy—aka fast, hard running fairways—is the go-to faux argument for preserving distance standards should a Harry Higgs or Craig Stadler come along and blow the notion that “athletes fuel distance spikes”.

Certainly today’s generally more fit and better fit players generate increased clubhead speed, and, therefore more distance.

On the surface, agronomy as a distance booster should be a tougher sell since courses have never been greener. One very famous annual major stop, Augusta National, unapologetically presents fairways mown toward tees to slow down drives.

For now, don’t do a deep dive on 2020 yet because the numbers are not all in and the sample size differs from year’s past now that all PGA Tour tees have a Trackman. Look instead to the previous 13 years when the PGA Tour’s amazing ShotLink started measuring carry and distance on the two measuring holes per round.

Those fancy launch monitors peskily track carry while ShotLink documented the final distance of the drive.

Below is the Driving Distance Average vs. Carry Average and The Year’s Distance Leader’s stats.

2007
288.6 yard average on 265.7 yard carry average (Bubba Watson 315.2 yards on 300.3 yards of carry)

2008
287.3 yards on 268.8 yards of carry (Bubba Watson 315.1 yards on 294.0 carry)

2009
287.9 yards on 268.4 yards of carry (Robert Garrigus 312.0 yard avg on 297.8 yards of carry)

2010
287.3 yards on 267.9 yards of carry (Robert Garrigus 315.5 yard avg on 291.6 yards of carry)

2011
290.9 yards on 271.4 yards of carry (J.B. Holmes 318.4 yards on 314.8 yards of carry)

2012
289.1 yards on 274.6 yards of carry (Bubba Watson 315.5 yards on 307.7 yards of carry)

2013
287.2 yards on 273.1 yards of carry (Luke List on 306.3 yards on 296.9 yards of carry)

2014
288.8 yards on 272.6 yards of carry (Bubba Watson 314.3 yards on 305.0 yards of carry)

2015
289.7 yards on 275.8 yards of carry (Dustin Johnson 317.7 yards on 305.7 yards of carry)

2016
290.0 yards on 274.7 yards of carry (J.B. Holmes 314.5 yards on 303.7 yards of carry)

2017
292.5 yards on 278.4 yards of carry (Rory McIlroy 317.2 yards on 305.1 carry avg.)

2018
296.1 yards on 277.6 yards of carry (Rory McIlroy 319.7 yards on 305.6 carry avg.)

2019
293.9 yards on 279.1 yards of carry (Cameron Champ 317.9 on 311.0 carry avg.)

Recap: in 12 years the PGA Tour carry average jumped 13.4 yards (265.7 to 279.1), while the driving distance average jumped just 5.3 yards. (It sits at 296.0 this year with two events to go.)

Roll is going the other direction and not fueling distance gains. In the 13-year span above, here is the average amount of roll starting with 2007 and going to 2019:

22.9 yards

18.5

19.5

19.4

19.5

14.5

14.1

16.2

13.9

15.3

14.1

17.0

14.8

The average PGA Tour drive rolls 16.9 yards in that 13-year span on a 289.9 yard average, meaning roll accounts for barely more than 5% of the average tee shot.

From 2007 to 2012 the average tee shot produced 19.1 yards of roll.

From 2014 to 2019 the average produced 15.1 yards of roll.

The amount of time the ball hits the ground and starts running is on the decline. Agronomy is playing less of a factor while the carry average has outpaced driving distance average.

Golf's Most Basic Tenet Is Now A Grey Area: Why That's Not A Good Way To Go

Social media continues to bicker over Lexi Thompson’s clearance for what would have been an clear breach under the old Rules of Golf, but as Alistair Tait notes here, things seem to be murkier now with the R&A not penalizing Thompson.

The key issue: the R&A was ok with Thompson moving something behind her ball because it appeared to move back to its original position. The rule as 13-2 would not allow such a grey area, as Tait writes:

Whether the lie returned exactly to its original conditions is clearly a moot point. What isn’t moot is that Thompson made no effort to restore the original lie. The inference here is that Mother Nature decided to interfere by restoring the original condition, therefore there was no breach.

I can’t find the clause in either of my rule books that says if you improve your lie but the ball returns naturally to its original condition then you’re off the hook. You might struggle to find it, too.

Thompson, who was penalised four shots after replacing her ball incorrectly at the 17th hole during the third round of the 2017 ANA inspiration, is extremely lucky not to have been penalised on this occasion. She would have been penalised under the old Rules of Golf. There was no grey area surrounding old Rule 13-2, which dealt with this situation.

There are plenty of grey areas surrounding our rules now. Maybe too many.

Let’s forget the obvious issues with playing it as it lies and spell it out for commissioners and governing bodies of the world intoxicated by playing prowess over rules sanctity these days. A common reaction to Thompson’s actions went something like this: if she did that in my group, at my club or in the Yucatan National Thursday night league play, she’d be penalized.

The idea that the golfing public has higher standards these days should be troubling for Commissioners and governing bodies who want to coddle players instead of dishing out penalties. And for the corporations overpaying to sponsor events because the competitors are seen as more righteous than other athletes, when will this perception of pro golfers living above the rules cause them consternation?

Not enforcing the rules, including the biggest and most important of them all, could end up becoming very costly for the pro game.

Today In The Distance Debate: Why A Workable Solution $eems Unlikely

MorningRead.com’s Gary Van Sickle looks at all of the distance forces in play and not to be a spoiler, but there is money involved. And a lot of people who will take the cash over supporting what might be the right thing for golf’s sustainability and interest.

I was pleased to see he mentioned a slightly larger ball, though I’m not sure from some informal Callaway Magna testing that the distance fallout would be as great for hacks as Van Sickle thinks:

The laws of friction will reduce its flight. That’s been done before. The British “small ball” was used in the United Kingdom until late in the 20th century, and it went farther than the slightly larger American model. Another bump on ball size could do the trick, although amateurs would protest vehemently.

Another option would be to limit ball dimples and their shapes, in hopes of taking another percentage point or two off ball flight and by giving golf balls more curve than today’s forgiving models. We’re in a golden age of golf-ball technology. The old balls, when mis-hit, curved way off-line. Not anymore. More spin would bring more skill back.

"At some point somebody is going to have to do something. Why not now? What's holding everybody up?"

"At some point somebody is going to have to do something. Why not now? What's holding everybody up?" Slessor adds.

Since another year will pass before the USGA and R&A decide to (maybe) address distance, I was glad to see Tom Pilcher’s piece on the topic and a reminder of my favorite solution: a larger ball. (Thanks to reader Tim for sending.)

That came from European Golf Design’s Jeremy Slessor. FYI, European Golf Design is a collaboration of the European Tour and IMG, so they deal with distance issues, oh, hourly.

"When I started in the design and construction industry in the mid-1980s, we were putting in fairway bunkers at about 230-240 yards. We're now putting them at 300-350 yards," said Slessor, whose company were behind Ryder Cup courses at Celtic Manor (2010), Le Golf National (2018) and Marco Simone (2023).

Slessor spoke highly of the Hong Kong Open, where the 6,700-yard course and its small greens are always a test for the game's best.

And…

"The simple thing is to make the ball bigger. The pros should play that ball, and the manufacturers can use all their research and development to make the longest-flying big ball."

The 'small' ball (1.62 inches in diameter) was barred from competition in 1990, replaced by the standard ball (1.68 inches in diameter).

"At some point somebody is going to have to do something. Why not now? What's holding everybody up?" Slessor adds.

What’s holding everybody up? Fear, placing commerce over the game they are supposed to serve, and general point missing by select committee types who fearfully place commerce over the game they are supposed to serve.

Callaway brought back the Magna ball last year and it’d be worthy of a serious study to determine the impact on average golfers and professionals.

It's The Ball: Golf.com Robot Tests Balatas Against Today's Pellets

With the distance discussion in mind, Golf.com’s Jonathan Wall reports on a project to identify the difference between late 20th century balatas and today’s ball. Fresh out of the package and tested with a robot, you’ll be shocked—shocked!—to learn that the ball and elite player launch conditions lead to incredible spikes in driver distance, not so much with irons.

The data and conclusions are useful for two obvious reasons: to diffuse average golfer whining about the tremendous loss in distance they would experience by a tweak of existing equipment regulations, and just how much fitting, spin rates and technology are impacting skill. In other words, the robot became a lot less athletic when hitting a balata.

Please check out the whole piece but Wall’s conclusions are fascinating, including these:

5. If ball spin is utilized to limit distance, this could potentially affect players with different swing styles in different ways. Players with lower spinning shots — for example, an “inside/out” path below 2,400 RPMs spin — will be less affected than a player who plays a power fade — slightly “outside/in” path at 2,600-2,800 RPMs spin — with the same clubhead speed. A universal ball would provide different results based upon its design parameters.


6. If you were to combine the modern-day Tour driver with a Tour-level balata at mid or mid-high spin, a distance loss of 40-plus yards is possible. 


7. Wedge spin is approximately 2000 RPMs higher on the Tour-level balata versus the modern-day solid-construction.


8. Driver distance loss varies based upon launch conditions.


9. 6-iron distance loss is roughly 1 club shorter when comparing the two balls. 


10. An increase in wedge spin would cause some players to adjust their swing to adapt to excessive spin produced with the Tour-level balata and modern-day wedge.

I’m sure point 10 will lead to first world sob stories of cruelty to the youth of golf, but since they get on launch monitors and adjust all the time, I’m confident they will not be permanently harmed in such a process.

Point six is the standout though, suggesting driver head size has much less impact (I’m assuming Mr. Robot hits the sweet spot most of the time).

Morikawa's 16th Hole Tee Shot Highlights Reminds Us Why We Love Risk-Reward Moments And Need More Of Them

Collin Morikawa’s second round par on Harding Park’s 16th

Words I never thought I’d type: the 16th at Harding Park for one of the more fascinating studies in day-to-day variety outside something we’d see at The Old Course. The credit goes to the PGA of America’s Kerry Haigh, Mother Nature and the players.

With regulatory malfeasance all but rendering the risk-reward par-5 extinct, the short par-4 is all we strategy-lovers have as evidence of what we’re missing. Haigh's decision to move the tees up twice, working in conjunction with the conditions and player comfort levels as they got to know the 16th, led to a fascinating four-day dispersion of plays. None moreso than Morikawa’s, whose final round eagle will go down as one of the great shots in modern major history.

As I wrote here for The Athletic, the shot got even better when we learned after the round that (A) he originally had no intention of driving the green at any point (B) he caved and drove it Friday and (C) he had to get up and down off the fringe for par in round two.

Morikawa’s memory of going for it was not a positive one. Yet in the final round moment with a chance to win a major, the carrot dangled before Morikawa was just too appealing. To witness a player succumbing to temptation and pulling off the shot, just makes his decision even more bold. That may be why his caddie double-checked about the final round play:

Memories of that shaky play might be why caddie J.J. Jakovac double-checked when Morikawa came to the 70th hole on Sunday tied for the lead. He had two options: Lay back, or try and squeeze his tee shot 278 yards to the front edge of a green framed by bunkers, rough and overhanging Monterey Cypress.

“I just had to be fully committed,” Morikawa said, “and J.J. asked me, you know, ‘Are you sure? Is this what you want to do?’ I’m like, ‘Yes, this is driver. This is perfect.’”

The tee shot stopped 7 feet 1 inches short of the hole and was the grandest of six final round eagles.

The moment reinforced the beauty of drivable par-4s and the joys of watching a player face a high-risk situation with options.

Runner-up Paul Casey:

“Brilliant shot,” he said. “I love the fact we’ve got drivable par-4s. You know I’m a big fan of the shorter hole. I love the fact that we’re given an opportunity, and then a guy like Collin steps up and shows you what’s possible on a drivable par-4. Nothing I can do except tip my hat. It was a phenomenal shot.”

With distances growing and course architecture not able to keep up, the 16th at Harding episode serves as a reminder of what we’re missing by not retaining a better balance between skill, equipment and architecture. There is nothing more rewarding than relating to the difficulty of the decision and watching a player overcome the mental and physical hurdles in a high-pressure situation. Too bad it doesn’t happen more often.

**One other point about the hole realized since posting this: a cut shot was required to work around the Cypress and to get the ideal bounce toward the flagstick. With Lake Merced on the left, the dreaded double-crosser was still possible for even the world’s best. The danger left, while only visited by a few players, added to the drama and will be why Morikawa’s peers will revere his clutch play.

Check out the 2020 dispersion of plays depending on yardage, weather and maybe player comfort levels as they got used to the unusual dogleg right short par-4. From the PGA Tour’s always magnificent ShotLink with help from volunteers.

Round 1 where no one went for the green:

ound 2 when the tees and flagstick were moved up:

Round 3, when the tees went back but some players still chose to go for the green:

Round 4 with the tees up:

Cumulative for the 2020 PGA shows a great dispersion of shots, suggesting the hole provide a rare risk-reward situation:

Morikawa’s tee shot:

This year's champion, Collin Morikawa, hit the driver incredibly this week. Check out who else hit it well in the final episode of Maximizing Efficiency powered by @ConstellationEG. pic.twitter.com/KwFN7pcpWg

— PGA Championship (@PGAChampionship) August 10, 2020

USGA, R&A Delay Next Phase Of Distance Research, Again

Way back in July the voters here overwhelmingly feel there is no better time than now to expedite the inevitable plan of action, the R&A and USGA have announced a second pandemic-related delay of their Distance Insights Project.

For Immediate Release:

UPDATE FROM THE R&A AND THE USGA ON GOLF’S DISTANCE INSIGHTS PROJECT

10 August 2020, St Andrews, Scotland and Liberty Corner, NJ, USA:  On 18 March 2020, The R&A and the USGA announced that the release of research topics related to the next phase of the Distance Insights Project would be delayed to allow the wider golf industry to focus on its response to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. 

Given continued health concerns and the impact on golf worldwide, The R&A and the USGA are now targeting March 2021 for the release of equipment research topics. We will continue to monitor the recovery of the golf industry and may update this target date accordingly. In accordance with the Equipment Rulemaking Procedures, the time for golf equipment manufacturers and other interested parties to participate in this research will also be amended to account for the delay.

In the interim, The R&A and the USGA will continue to monitor the effects of distance on the game. 

Beyond Equipment Rulemaking Procedures, the review of golf course design, set-up, and maintenance, as well as the availability and choice of appropriate teeing grounds, will continue, in support of golf’s long-term health.

Webb Still Thinks Architects Just Aren't Installing Enough Bunkers For An Ever-Changing Game

1920’s golf cartoon still—sadly—relevant

It’s too exhausting at this point to even try to address golf pros—even smart and nice ones like Webb Simpson—who fail to understand even the basics of what it takes to create a golf hole of strategy and interest for a variety of players.

So I’ll let the above Tweet do the talking, but if you must, here is the entire question and answer in Memphis raving about the brilliance of TPC Southwind, one of the most beloved courses on the planet, said no one. All while wearing his Titleist billboard (Wally what brainwashing chips do you embed in those caps?).

Q. Going back to what you just said about this course being--not being a--or being a point A to point B golf course, looking ahead to next week at Harding Park, how would you characterize that golf course?

WEBB SIMPSON: Yeah. So that one I think is kind of a tweener. It is long and bombers will have an advantage, because it is longer, there's a lot of drivers, but there's not as many forced carries out at Harding Park as some of these long golf courses.

And I've been pretty vocal. I don't think technology's the problem with our game, I think it's golf course design. I think you would solve a lot of problems on this length issue if architects would get a little more creative on doglegs,

Because those are so easily adjusted…wait I said I wasn’t going to interrupt. Please, continue:

where they're placing these bunkers, tightening fairways, making greens smaller. That way you're saving money on the land, you're saving money on watering the golf courses when we play too many courses where you get to a hole and hey, it's 290 to carry a bunker.

Oh yes, that’ll save water. Did I interrupt again?

Well, guess what, 30 guys on the PGA TOUR now, they're not even thinking about that bunker whereas 20 years ago it was really in play.

Maybe you should consider a Keto diet and adding more crunches to your pre-round routine, just saying.

So I've been vocal, hey, put another bunker out there right over that one and then you've fixed your problem.

Solved! Now keep paying $50 a dozen for those Pro-V’s!

So I think looking forward to next week, the rough's going to be up, I'm sure, it's a major championship. So there will be a premium on fairways, but it's not necessarily a point A to pointB golf course like Southwind is, where you miss your target, it's very penal. It's more of just tree-lined rough, kind of old-school.

And it only cost $26 million to renovate.

It was nice to see Twitter wasn’t totally standing for these remarks:

Ah yes, if only Dr. Alister MacKenzie had only been a better designer of golf courses Augusta National wouldn’t have to buy every surrounding house and Taco Bell to make room for new tees. https://t.co/bhFpEoNECJ

— Nick Mackay (@NickFMackay) July 29, 2020

Knee-High Rough Or Rollback Distance?

Because I’ve heard enough “just the grow” rough proposals over the years and didn’t need another blog post pointing out the silliness, you didn’t see a post about Ernie Els saying “knee high” rough was an answer.

But the Golf.com Confidential gang decided to take up the topic and we have three ball rollbacks to one endorsement, if my math is correct…

Bamberger: Only with the F&F part. The game lacks balance now. There’s too much emphasis on the tee shot. It’s certainly not the players fault. But foot-high rough doesn’t make golf more interesting, it makes it less interesting. We want to see all manner of shots, including the recovery shot. Tiger became Tiger on the basis of his recovery game, his iron play, his driving game, his chipping game. His everything. 

Sens: I agree to a point. Problem is, there comes a point where defending through course conditions alone leads to flat-out goofy setups, and then you’re not making it more fair for anyone. At that point is where I start to think: rolling back the ball is the better long-term solution.

Wood: Of course, he’s correct. I would love to see firm fairways, hard greens, deep rough every single week. But It’s not going to happen. There’s no way for tournaments to collude to make course setups more difficult, with more emphasis on hitting fairways. And here’s why:  the tournaments are in competition with each other to attract players. When a player is choosing a schedule, they’re just like anyone who plays golf: a major factor in deciding where they play is choosing someplace they enjoy. They know a handful of times a year, namely U.S. Opens, the Masters, they’re going to have to play courses with less room for error. But week-in, week-out, they won’t do it. And to be honest with you, I don’t think the networks would enjoy it either. Long drives sell. The ratings just simply wouldn’t be as good if the guys who can hit it 350 are hitting 4-irons off every tee.  

Shipnuck: John’s point is well-taken, and amplify’s Michael’s: the setup Ernie is advocating sounds dreadfully boring. Who wants to watch the best players chipping out sideways? It’s fun at a few select majors, but every week would be a snooze. And the problem with resting everything on firm/fast setups is that it’s an outdoor game, and rain showers are common in the spring and summer. To test players with the current benign Tour setups we need courses that are 9,000-10,000 yards, but that requires an obscene amount of land, water and maintenance hours. The only real solution is obvious: throttle back the equipment. But Ernie and many others are paid to subvert that point.

PGATour.com SponCon Gone Bad: Fans Would Rather Know About Driver Testing

There are too many layers to go into with this PGATour.com (unlabeled) sponsored content, or give-back, or whatever it is. I’ll start by having your top writer take out the trash as just one thing that comes to mind.

But there is actual comedy in a story looking at how pros paid to play the Callaway Mavrik driver (I know, what a scoop!). Given that exactly one year ago Xander Schauffele and Callaway were in the hot seat over an illegal driver, and that we’re seeing some freakish driving distances of late, you’d think this might be a good time to lay low.

SponCon here we come:

Henrik Stenson, the 2013 FedExCup champ and six-time winner on the PGA TOUR, noted in the July-August 2020 issue of Golf magazine that “the ball speeds off of MAVRIK are really high, and I noticed that almost immediately when I first tried it. If I hit it dead center or if I miss the sweet spot, I still know that I’m going to get the speed and distance I’m looking for.”

Having that confidence that a non-center strike can still be an effective shot is a huge advantage for any players, particularly those at the top level. And particularly on fairway woods, which can often be a pesky club to figure out – and a club that many weekend amateurs try to avoid as much as possible.

But I end with good news: the Twitter responses were almost unanimous in either mocking the silliness of such sponsored content from the Tour, or, outraged at the Tour’s complacency on distance via an array of comments. Or just generally disgusted by such an unnecessary intrusion with unmarked sponsored content.

Engagment, baby!

“Took me only three swings to know it was the right driver for me.” https://t.co/wbCXT2S6We

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) July 22, 2020

"When this becomes common place, what then?"

Brian Goff at Forbes touched on something important in trying to explain why the extreme distance pursuit is debated in golf.

The trouble is, that sooner or later, when this becomes common place, what then? When the most challenging courses and tournaments begin to look like a January romp through a Palm Springs desert course and not much more than a putting contest, will that be so attractive? A version of this occurred with the steroid-enhanced explosion of home runs in Major League Baseball in the late 1990s and early 2000s attracted fans. Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa chasing Roger Maris’ record was exciting. Then, when Barry Bonds blew it away and seemingly half the guys in the league became a threat to hit 50 homers, it began to seem a lot less appealing (at least, to me). In fact, MLB has found itself back in this spot, not because of steroids but because of ball characteristics coupled with swing mechanics.

Everyone wants to see genuine power rewarded and part of the game. But when everyone does it, and the courses can’t put up any kind of defense for most of the field, even a casual fan may detect something off.

Memorial Weekend: Will Finau's "Inspired By Bryson" Approach Work?

Daniel Rapaport at GolfDigest.com explains how Tony Finau and coach Boyd Summerhays decided to borrow from Bryson DeChambeau’s ball speed approach, leading to the 36-hole Memorial lead.

“Kind of in the middle of last week, my coach Boyd Summerhays and I decided to crank some up a little bit after being inspired by Bryson,” he said. “Seeing how straight he was hitting it and how hard, and so I decided to crank it up and work on hitting a really hard fade.

“I’ve let a few go so far this week, and it’s been pretty fun for me to kind of reach back more so than I have in the past.”

The Athletic’s Brendan Quinn also looked at Finau’s decision to unleash more speed and notes this in the numbers (again, through 36 but still):

For the year, Finau ranks 26th on tour in driving distance (305.9) and 40th in strokes gained off the tee (.331). This week, he ranks second in driving distance (321.0) and fifth in strokes gained off the tee (1.360).

“I’ve let a few go so far this week, and it’s been pretty fun for me to kind of reach back more so than I have in the past and kind of open up and hit some,” Finau said.

For Strokes Gained fans, the difference compared to his season rank is already noticeable:

Here’s where this weekend’s clash gets interesting: Muirfield Village is exuding a major championship look. Will the approach hold up on a course with greens browning/yellowing/purpling? (They get ripped up next week so no need to worry about the superintendent.) Throw in running fairways, tough hole locations healthy rough and this is our best chance yet since the restart to see if Bryson Ball will work on an extreme setup designed to reward precision.

Nicklaus To Governing Bodies: "Guys, stop studying it and do something, will you please?"

While there is no video posted of Jack Nicklaus opining during a lengthy Memorial round one telecast visit, the disdain in his voice was evident.

As Kyle Porter notes for CBSSports.com, the tournament host put the USGA and R&A “on blast” with his latest comments imploring action sooner than later.

"The golf ball is a very simple thing to fix and I've been preaching about it for ... 43 years I first went to the USGA," Nicklaus said in the Golf Channel booth during the first round of the Memorial Tournament on Thursday. "I mean, that's a long time to be studying something. Guys, stop studying it and do something, will you please?"

The man is 80, he should not have to be this exasperated.

The comments stood out because Nicklaus had complimented Bryson DeChambeau for playing stellar golf after his transformation.

And the remarks came on a day when players were routinely placing tee shots in locales unimaginable not long ago, perhaps aided by July’s warmer weather, winds and firmer ground than the Memorial’s traditional May date. Yes, agronomy played a role, but the carry distances, start lines and overall silliness of flip wedges into long par-4’s made the issue pressing.

DeChambeau registered the most incredible of the many long tee shots:

423-yard drive. 💪
Hits approach to six feet. 🎯
Makes the putt. 🐦@b_dechambeau gets back to even par.#QuickHits pic.twitter.com/b7DOnHR5oo

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) July 16, 2020

Which reminds me. Earlier this week following R&A Chief Martin Slumbers’ comments about putting the distance decision on hold, we have a clear verdict on the website poll on this very question of whether the governing bodies should act during the pandemic:

Bryson: "No matter what rules they give me, I'm going to try and do my best to maximize my athletic ability."

How refreshing to see Bryson DeChambeau tackle a question about distance, equipment rules changes and Martin Slumbers’ recent remarks with both class and wisdom.

Many players might bristle or give signs of a narcissistic blow. Mercifully, DeChambeau is confident that the recent advantage he’s gained would likely remain if the governing bodies ever did something to lessen the role of technology over skill. He seems fine with any rule change and willing to take responsibility for adjusting to the rules. Many a lesser man would have taken all of this personally.

From today’s pre-Memorial Tournament presser:

Q. I wanted to ask, Slumbers talked about the fact that they're going to have to address what's going on, and you seem to be now the newest poster boy for this. Would you be upset if they rolled things back in regards to equipment because you've shown them that you can hit the ball as far as you can hit it?

BRYSON DECHAMBEAU: Hmm. No, I wouldn't. No matter what rules they give me, I'm going to try and do my best to maximize my athletic ability. They can't take working out away from me. I know that. At least as of right now. Whatever -- look, 1998 the COR test was put in stone where you couldn't have a certain number off the face, and they've used that ever since. It's now a CT test. The ball speeds coming off the face are what they are, and they really haven't changed that much. If anything, the clubs have gotten longer, the shafts have gotten stiffer, and we can swing it faster with more control. Back in the day, the shafts were a little more flexible, and LA Golf Shafts has provided me with a shaft that's super stiff, super stable and allowed me to swing at the speeds while retaining the same control with the face.

Yeah, it's a lot of work on my end, too, to gain strength and to swing it hard, to train. It's a lot of hard work. People don't realize how hard I've worked to get here. It's been working out for at least an hour every single day for the past five, six months, fixing my body when it breaks down. I have to go, okay, I've got to go fix my body and work out and train in the right way to be able to tolerate all these forces going through my body and out of my body.

So in regards to whoever is saying we're going to have to look at equipment, I've got no problem. I'm, again, just going to look at my game and how I can improve it in the best way possible, no matter if they roll the ball back there's still going to be a percentage difference. Even if it gets rolled back there's still going to be a gap. Whether it's closer now, it is what it is. I'm not really worried about it. I'm just going to keep trying to make those athletic gains so that I can be the best golfer that I can possibly be.

Commissioner Jay Monahan, who is on the record as pro-distance, was asked about DeChambeau and distance in his pre-Memorial session with reporters on hand. He mentions how DeChambeau disrupted himself (his bacon and milkshake supplier would concur) and then largely dances around the R&A/USGA position.

Q. Jay, two things. Obviously the discussion most of the time seems to be on COVID, but the other part of the equation has been a lot on the length of Bryson DeChambeau. I know that you've had what I assume is the policy in the past of saying you're very comfortable with the golf ball, where it's going, so forth and so on, but slowly but surely you're starting to hear the critics say, this is something that we have to address again. Just to confirm, what is your position on the length issue?

JAY MONAHAN: Well, my position hasn't changed. You asked really two questions. You raised Bryson, I think, what Bryson has done. Bryson was able to use the time off in a way that I don't think anybody could have envisioned, and what he's done has been remarkable, in a short period of time. I go back to what he accomplished at the Rocket Mortgage Classic, and there's a ton of focus on how far he's hitting the ball, and rightfully so, and how he has disrupted himself to be able to put himself in the best -- himself and his game to put himself in the best position to compete and to win, but look at his putting statistics, finest putting week I believe on TOUR this year, and to me it was a great demonstration of his skill.

As it relates to distance, I think the fact of the matter is that we always have looked at distance. We look at it over a longer term horizon, not in a short-term horizon, so if you look at our data right now, average driving distance is up slightly year to date, it's down relative to two years ago, and I think that the USGA and the R&A came out with their report, they issued that report, they said that they're going to work with their industry partners, including us, to identify solutions.

That process has obviously stalled. When it takes itself back up, we're going to be a part of that conversation and make certain ultimately that we represent what we think is in the best interest of PGA TOUR, our players and our fans.

But I think that any time you have a player that is doing what Bryson has done, I think it does call attention to driving distance. But I think you have to look at the manner in which he prepared himself to do that, and some of the remarkable things that he's doing in the process, some of which other players talked about over the last couple days

DeChambeau and Monahan’s sessions can be viewed here:

2018 @MemorialGolf champion @B_DeChambeau speaks with the media at Muirfield Village. https://t.co/1nENTTGX3Q

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) July 15, 2020

PGA TOUR commissioner Jay Monahan meets with the media @MemorialGolf. https://t.co/wQZlnWXIV7

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) July 15, 2020