"For those who love the game."

Mark: Thanks for the letter and info. Attached is my letter to the USGA.  Also, look for Sports Illustrated Golf Plus issue due in the next 10 days. All best, Deane Beman. February 1, 2005 Dear Fred (Ridley, President of the USGA): I would appreciate your conveying to your associates at the annual meeting my growing concern for the future of golf as a direct result of the effect of technology on the game. It is also my intention to share this letter with others whom I believe share my concern about this issue. The attached article by Bill Nichols of "The Dallas Morning News"  is an illustration of where we are today. The thing that should concern the USGA even more is that the players are just starting to catch up to the technology available to them. In the next fifteen years a new generation of Tour players routinely will be able to drive the ball 330-360 yards, rendering all courses obsolete. All of us in golf revere and honor the shot-making skills of Ben Hogan. He must be turning over in his grave knowing that we have allowed the use of a golf ball that is so forgiving and goes so straight that size and power have completely eclipsed his total ball-striking skills we all once sought to emulate. Distance trumps everything. Of course, the ball is not the sole culprit; but it is the prime facilitator. All other technology--large-headed drivers, perimeter-weighting,etc.-- would be marginalized with a golf ball that curves. Scoring on the PGA Tour keeps going down and will go even lower. The attached scoring study was done in 1998. The Hawaiian Open is a good example of where we are headed. On 10 tournament courses that remain the same or substantially the same, PGA Tour winning scores and cut scores have dropped considerably over the past 25 years. In a comparison of three-year averages from 1970-1972 and 1995-1997, winning scores have dropped an average of 5.6 strokes while cut scores have gone down by 4.9 shots. These 10 tournaments were used because they are the only ones that were contested on the same courses during this 25-year period.                    Winning Score   Winning Score     Cut Score        Cut Score Event              1970-1972            1995-1997          1970-1972         1995-1997 T of C               277.3                     274.5                   n/a                     n/a Hawaii              273.5                     272.3                 144.5                 144.0 Pebble Beach   280.0                     269.5                 221.6                  214.0 Bob Hope         341.7                     333.0                 291.7                  281.0 San Diego        274.0                     271.0                 145.0                  141.0 Doral                276.7                    272.3                 147.7                  143.3 Hilton Head      280.0                     269.7                 149.3                  144.0 Colonial           277.0                     269.3                 147.0                  141.3 Westchester    271.0                     272.3                 144.7                  145.0 New England   275.7                      267.3                146.3                   140.7 As the above figures illustrate, some events have seen a dramatic drop in scoring averages. For example, the average winning score at Pebble Beach has dropped 10.5 strokes, while the average cut at the Bob Hope Chrysler Classic has dropped 10.7 strokes. Hawaiian Open:     '70-'72                '95-'97                '02-'04                     Winning Scores:    273.5                  272.3                   264.0 Cut Scores            144.5                 144.0                    139.6 Make no mistake about it; this is not just a "Tour" problem. The trend has been led by the USGA's policy of lengthening established golf courses for its championships in an attempt to protect par. Golf course architects trying to keep par meaningful build and rebuild courses longer with more water, forced carries and repelling greens. This may be okay for the highly skilled player; but these courses become torture chambers for the average player and impossible for beginners. Millions of potential golfers have been and will be literally "driven" away from this great game. Is the USGA going to exercise its traditional mandate to protect and preserve the game of golf? I hope so. If you are unwilling to do so, it is imperative that you make it clear to all concerned that you are dropping the banner we all depended on you to carry and support those who have the courage to pick it up and firmly place it in the ground once again. The time for equivocating has passed. My fondest hope is that the USGA still wishes to be the total rules maker of the game in America. In closing, I would ask each member of the Executive Committee and the Ball & Implement Committee one question. When the decision was made to go to the 1.68 ball as a worldwide standard, would you have voted for the 1.62 as the worldwide standard? Know then,that I cannot find anyone who competed with the 1.62 ball back then who doesn't think that today's ball with its aerodynamic cover and its technologically super core performs better (i.e. it's longer and straighter) than the old 1.62 ball. I don't think that any of your committee would have voted for the British size 1.62 ball. The consequence of the USGA's failure to control the ball has given us a ball that plays like a ball smaller than 1.62. It's time that somebody stands up and does the right thing for the game. The net result of all of the above is that the wonderful balance that once existed between driving, iron play, chipping and putting has been destroyed. Please restore these lost values to this great game. Respectfully, Deane R. Beman February 1, 2005 For the full opinion of PreserveGolf.com, please click here.

 © 2003-2007 Preserve Golf. Founded November 10, 2003. All Rights Reserved.

golf clubs golf clubs golf clubs golf equipment