Masters chairman doubles down on distance rollback: 'Failure's not an option'

Masters Chairman Fred Ridley has not wavered over the last few years in his support of the need to rein in distance at the elite level. On Wednesday, during his press conference on the eve of the 90th Masters, he provided perhaps his most full-throated support of the USGA and R&A’s decision to roll back golf ball distance with a new conformance test set to take effect as early as 2028.

“Failure’s not an option,” he said in his annual gathering with the media. His comments seemed no less about the need for industry-wide support of a distance rollback than it was the ruling bodies’ rollback solution. “Regulation of the golf ball is not an attempt to turn back time.”

Ridley, a former USGA president, went deeper on the topic when pressed about cooperation on the rolling back of the golf ball. “I think we need to continue to work together to come to some agreement,” he said. “Tough issues like this require compromise, and I think there has been some compromise to date. There's certainly commercial interests that are at play here, and we all know what those are. But at the same time, I think, if we can look at this from the standpoint … and it's not just trying to [take us back to] the good old days. That's not what we're trying to do. What we're trying to do is to protect the integrity of what makes golf so great. I think I tried to articulate it in my comments, and that's that it's more than about just hitting prodigious drives.”

He then made reference to amateur Jackson Herrington saying he had hit drives over the bunkers on the first and fifth holes, both 325-yard carries. “I've said that we can make changes, but there's not much we can do to make changes to No. 1, unless we tear down the Eisenhower Cabin," Ridley said, "and we're not going to do that.”

Ridley is right about the ruling bodies offering some degree of compromise in developing the proposals regarding distance. Specifically, the first version of the rule change would have moved the test swing speed to 127 miles per hour for the Overall Distance Standard and would have been only applied to elite events. It ended up at 125 and applying to all golfers, largely when the industry preferred to not bifurcate the professional and recreational games. There also was discussion about setting a lower threshold for the spring-like effect, reducing the limit for moment of inertia on drivers (a measurement of the stability on off-center hits). Those have all been tabled based on industry feedback.

Also, while the USGA and R&A are considering shifting the implementation of the new rule from 2028 for elite golf and 2030 for the remainder of the sport to a single universal implementation date of 2030, Ridley thinks the distance subject needs action and agreement, and not just because of the tournament his club hosts every year. “We will continue to make modifications as are necessary to react to driving distances that in some cases exceed 350 yards,” he said. “Unfortunately, many courses, including some iconic venues, do not have that option. Until recent years golf has been a game of imagination, creativity, and variety. The game has become much more one-dimensional. As players drive the ball prodigious distances and routinely hit short irons into par 4s and even some par 5s, this issue goes beyond competitive impacts. Increased course lengths results in more time, more cost, and more environmental concerns.

“The data that has been shared with all stakeholders makes one thing clear: The impact to the recreational game will be immaterial. All of us in this room and millions of weekend golfers around the world will be hard-pressed to notice the effects of this change, and I do not believe our enjoyment of the game will be affected.”

Ridley’s implication about golf’s other stakeholders did not inspire immediate reaction from the biggest voice not in the room, the PGA Tour. A spokesman said the tour had nothing to add beyond what new PGA Tour CEO Brian Rolapp, on board since July, said about distance during a press conference of his own last month at the Players Championship. At PGA Tour headquarters, Rolapp was distinctly non-committal on the topic despite distance being an initiative from golf's ruling bodies since the announcement of the Distance Insights project nearly eight years ago and specific rollback regulation plans being communicated more than five years ago. “From what I can tell, it comes down to two questions: Is distance a problem, and should it be addressed, question No. 1. Question No. 2, does the current rule being proposed accomplish that. … [A]s far as the PGA Tour is concerned, we have not taken a position. We have not made our mind up of where this is, and when we get comfortable with the rule and the data, at that point we'll make a decision.”

Ridley’s comments, however, suggest he is more than satisfied on both what the data is showing, how the proposed rule would work and, perhaps more importantly, what the elite game should be. “As for professional golf, we hold firm in our belief that the greats of the game are defined not merely by how far they hit the ball, but their extraordinary skill in all aspects of the game,” he said. “Their ability to shape shots, to take on risk, and to execute under pressure is at the heart of championship golf and is best displayed through a full spectrum of shot-making opportunities.”

A recent test of prototype rollback golf balls by Golf Digest suggested tour-level speeds could lose between 10-14 yards, while average golfers with driver swing speeds between 75 and 95 miles per hour might lose between 2-5 yards.

Representatives at the PGA of America, the USGA and several manufacturers also were contacted for comment. They have not offered a response.