As it has indicated all along, the Tour is standing by the U.S. Golf Association's schedule to implement a new rule on grooves beginning Jan. 1. PGA Tour Commsisioner Tim Finchem released a statement to that affect today - the same day the Tour's nine-member Policy Board held a conference call to discuss the issue.
The PGA Tour supports the decision of the United States Golf Association and The R&A regarding new groove specifications, and we plan to implement the rule change as a condition of competition for our events across the three Tours beginning January 1, 2010,'' Finchem said in his statement. "We do so with full confidence that the testing and analytical procedure was extensive and thorough, including significant data provided by the Tour’s ShotLink scoring system and the support from our members for various types of field testing.''
The groove rule change, according to Uihlein, is the first time in the history of contemporary competitive golf that equipment performance has been rolled back.
No problem, Tiger Woods said at this week's AT&T Championship, which he's hosting in Bethesda, MD.
"We've had plenty of time to make our adjustments,'' the Striped One said. "We've known for over a couple years now what this decision was going to be, when it was going to come down, and we've had plenty of time to make our adjustments.
"All the companies have been testing and getting ready for this, and the guys will make the changes.
"It'll be interesting seeing guys catching flyers and not being able to spin the ball back out of the rough. Their decision is how they play par-5s whether they will they try and drive drivable par 4s now. Short-siding yourself is obviously going to pay a little more of a price, and you know, how many more 64-degree wedges you're going to see with the balls being as firm as they are. Are guys going to start going to a spinner ball.''
"Making a change of this precedential significance requires that the conversion process be conducted in a thorough, deliberate manner taking the interests of all constituencies into account. Regardless of how much research and thought wentinto the development of the rule change, as with any significant change, there are unforeseen issues and complexity, particularly at the point of implementation and adoption,'' Uihlein said. "There is no way to predict many of these issues and they only surface during the actual conversion process, as described above. While no one is to blame for these circumstances, the major logistical issues of implementation still need to be taken into account.
"One of the most significant consequences of this equipment roll back is that not aligning adoption of the Condition of Competition with the manufacturer sell by date creates a bifurcation between the equipment that the Tours are using and the equipment consumers have available in the market place. That disconnect is also unprecedented. Our research indicates that the majority of retailers and consumers only have an interest in product with the new groove configuration if product with current grooves is not available. On the current schedule that isJanuary 1, 2011. We believe that alignment of these dates to
January 1, 2011 is critical as it allows for a thoughtful, orderly and comprehensive implementation of the proposed new groovesfor all parties. Non-alignment is not in the best interests of the game of golf and all of its constituencies.
"Now that the PGA Tour has voted to continue with a January 1, 2010 adoption (and we expect all professional tours to follow their lead), we will, as promised all along, make the effort to service all worldwide professional players as best we can. Our irons currently conform to the new rule and we will begin distribution of new wedge product to the professional tours shortly.
However, the decision to adopt the Condition of Competition effective January 1, 2010 does not diminish or alter the challenges described.''
Ping Golf Chairman John Solheim, another powerful and respected name in the equipment industry, earlier this week said the new rule will not only impact new clubs in 2010 and beyond, but older clubs, as well.
"I believe it is important to many golfers, particularly Ping customers, that their used clubs maintain a great trade-in value,' often for 20 years or more,'' Solheim said. "I am concerned that declaring hundreds of millions of previously approved clubs will later be non-conforming will impact the resale value of those golf clubs.
There had been growing speculation that the Tour Policy Board might vote to push back the new rule until 2011. The rule for new restrictions on the cross sectional area and edge sharpness of golf club grooves. The rule calls for the grooves to be "straight and parallel.'' The grooves must have a symmetrical cross-section "and have sides which do not converge.'' The width, spacing and cross-section of the grooves "must be consistent'' throughout the impact area.
Basically the USGA is attempting to keep the world's best players from putting too much back spin on golf balls out of rough thereby allowing them to stop quickly on greens.
The Tour's decision comes despite protests from some its own players as well as from club companies, many of whom see the new rule as little more than another USGA roadblock on their abilities to do business.
Acushnet Company (Titliest, FootJoy, Cobra) Chairman Wally Uihlein, one of the industry's more powerful executives, said in a statement he is disappointed in the Tour's decision.
"For the past several months we have communicated with the USGA, the R&A and variousworldwide professional tours, our support for aligning adoption of the Condition of Competitionwith January 1, 2011, the date that manufacturers are required to begin shipping products with the new groove configuration,'' Uihlein said. "We believe that alignment of those dates is in the best interest of the professional tours, consumers, retailers and manufacturers.''
Uihlein said that although Acushnet incorporated a new conforming groove configuration into its irons in 2007, the company elected to wait to convert its wedges until after the USGA/R&A took final action on the groove proposal.
"Once the new groove dimensions were finalized, in the rule as adopted inAugust 2008, we developed a new groove for wedges and began tour player testing in March 2009. We have since tested a significant number of Tour players comparing the current and thenew groove configurations,'' Uihlein said. "Our test results are consistent with testing conducted by the USGA/R&A that revealed a spin rate reduction of between 30 percent and 50 percent for full shots out of the rough. However, our testing also revealed significant changes in ball launch angle, ball trajectory, angle of descent and roll out onthe green. The testing also revealed significant differences in performance depending on player club head speed and short game technique. Player reaction to what they saw was dramatic.They were caught off guard by the magnitude of the performance difference and expressed concern about the extent of the transition process.
"We believe, and players have confirmed, that the conversion process will not be a simple exchange of existing wedges with new grooves,'' Uihlein continued. "The conversion process may involve different wedge designs and lofts, different shot technique, different golf balls and different setconfiguration (including drivers). These types of changes are iterative and take time. They alsorequire significant support from players and equipment manufacturers. There are approximately 1,500 exempt tour players worldwide. We don’t believe that this extensive transition process will begin in earnest until late in 2009, when manufacturer tour support is almost non existent. That is particularly true for tours outside of the United States.
"It is wrong to diminsh the value of these previously approved clubs purchased by hard working men and women simply because a few Tour pros (who get their clubs free) seem to complain that 'golfers today have it too easy.' I do not know of a single golfer who quit playing the game because "it became too easy."This new rule wll harm the tradition of passing clubs to children and grandchildren. Used clubs are also an affordable way for many beginners to give the game a try. These concerns may not resonate with some, but they mean a lot to many who love this game and want to pass the passion for golf on to the next generation. Are we throwing all of that away simply so the PGA Tour can keep its rough.''
Golf officials said recreational players could continue using irons that were manufactured through 2010, and the new rules would not apply to them until at least 2024. Also, the grooves rule would not apply for events like the U.S. Amateur until 2014.
It will be interesting to see how this impacts down under.
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