Is the pending ball roll-back enough in light of players like Aldrich Potgieter?

Pictured above: Aldrich Potgieter letting out a tremendous roar after winning his first PGA Tournament at the Rocket Mortgage Classic in Detroit.

Each week, we ask our panel of writers, PGA members and golf industry experts to weigh in with their views on the hot topics of the day.

A decade or so ago, the Round Table was pretty consistent in saying that the Senior Tour (PGA Tour Champions) didn’t hold much interest for them. Now many of the former regular Tour all-stars such as Padraig Harrington, Ernie Els, Steve Stricker etc. are over the age of 50 and Tiger Woods is about to join them at the end of the year. Does that make the Senior circuit any more compelling?

Jim Deeks, Fairways Magazine (@jimdeeks): Not really, for me.  There’s no question these guys can still play outstanding golf, and many of them are more colourful than the boys on the regular Tour, but the Champions Tour just doesn’t grab my attention, and I don’t follow its progress.  My bad, not theirs.

Craig Loughry, Golf Ontario (@craigloughry): Champions Tour still isn’t compelling for me enough to follow to any significant degree. I really only check in on the Champions Tour (Senior golf) for the odd Major, and that’s as much about the venue hosting than it is on player/Tour interest. I don’t see that ever changing (for me).

Michael Schurman, Master Professional / Hall of Fame Member, PGA of Canada: I’ve always been a fan of that Tour. I enjoy the Cinderella stories, the oldies but goodies and journeymen who strike in a major. At the event, access to the players is relaxed. What I don’t like is when Rolex says, “commercial free’ and those horrid split-screen ads follow that. I can’t see the ball on TV, but to televise 2” tall players is unpleasant. Don’t producers know about Peter Puck?

Hal Quinn, Freelance Writer, Vancouver: The only interesting things to come out of that latest so-called Major were the ridiculous course set up and Maltbie not helping Harrington try to find a long-lost ball. The original concept of the Seniors tour was a pension for guys who toiled in the low purse era. Now it’s a career high for some of these guys. Who cares, beside their accountant? Eldrick’s not joining that road show. His game’s no fun to watch anymore anyway.

Peter Mumford, Fairways Magazine: The Senior circuit occasionally yields a compelling story but most of it holds no interest for me. The crowds, if you can call them that, look to be not much more than friends and family, and the tournaments don’t mean anything in terms of legacy or historic significance. Most of us watch golf because we want to see the best, not the guys who used to be the best.

Aldrich Potgieter, a 20-year-old South African bomber, outlasted Chris Kirk and Max Greyserman in a playoff to win the Rocket Mortgage Classic on Sunday. Potgieter is one of the longest drivers on Tour and following on the heels of players such as Rory McIlroy and Bryson DeChambeau may be the next guy stepping it up a notch in overall driving distance on the Tour. At a time when there is still pushback against the ball roll-back due to come into play in 2028, we ask if perhaps in light or players such as Potgieter the USGA isn’t going far enough in its roll-back efforts? 

Deeks: Let’s give the first roll-back a chance and see if it works.  If the next generation continues to pound the new ball 350+ yards, then roll it further back.  (But continue to sell me a ball that goes 180 — my current distance.)

Loughry: A roll back is welcomed; how far do they need/have to go? I’m not sure, as this is across the board (for all golfers in the game: novice to pro). There will always be exceptional players/bombers at some level even with a roll back. It’s certainly a talent, but it’s only one skill in the game. We’ve seen many bombers who can’t putt or have no game management. But it is clear, if you don’t hit it long, you are absolutely at a disadvantage.

Schurman: In early 1903, at the height of the new rubber ball explosion, Britain’s top golf professionals voted on whether to allow it to be used in competition. “Bounding Billy” is not in favour with the English golf professionals. At the first annual meeting of the Professional Golfers’ Association, a motion proposed by James Braid and seconded by C. R. Smith that gutta-percha balls only be used in tournaments held by the association was carried by 33 votes to 9. Among those who spoke in favour of the “guttie” was Harry Vardon, who said that it affords a better test of the golfer’s skill than the rubber-cored ball. With the latter, a player has two chances. If he tops his ball instead of lofting it, the ball may yet reach the green. Although the decision applies only to professional events held by the association, it is believed that the members of the Rules Committee of the Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St. Andrews share the same sentiments.

Quinn: Remember when the ERC (Callaway’s initials) driver introduced Co-efficient of Restitution to the game’s lexicon? Those were fun days, as Callaway and Arnie unsuccessfully tried to convince golf that allowing hackers to have fun was good for the game. Then when the ball debate started about 45 years ago, high handicappers were introduced to the term ‘bifurcation’, one that few could pronounce let alone define. Yet while it was seldom if ever uttered in a grill room, it was plastered all over all the golf publications. We’re back! Multi-million-dollar purses and fanatical gym training under high-priced tutelage (hey Rory, remember that tennis star you dated who first got you into the gym) has transformed the golf swing and all the metrics, including distance. Time to bring the two terms together. Let the recreational golfers have fun with the current balls and let the guys and gals who hit 1,000 balls a week and devote free time to the gym, play a ball adapted to their new game.

Mumford: I never used to be a fan of bifurcation, as I felt it removed an aspirational element from the game. However, the gap between amateurs and professionals has gotten so wide that most would agree that ship sailed a long time ago. If they can curtail the Tour bombers with an even bigger roll-back and leave the rest of us bunters alone, I’d be ok with it.

The latest elite player to have a beef with the media is Collin Morikawa, who changed caddies for the second time this year, and bristled when questioned about it. Rory McIlroy went through a period of not talking to the press following his Masters win and several others have pushed back against reporters. What are your thoughts on a player’s obligations to speak to the press and is the golf media pushing the envelope?

Deeks: I think it’s a player’s duty to speak with the media, occasionally, and smart players are media savvy and usually cooperate, even against their will.  That said, I think there’s WAY too much demand and expectation of the players by the media, and the mindlessness and repetition of questions, week-in, week-out, must be stultifying for the players.  As a former journalist, I was very sympathetic to Rory’s prickly comments at the US Open.  Not so much to Morikawa’s frustration, however; it’s a legitimate question to ask about changing caddies.

Loughry: Players are a finnicky bunch. I think they can do whatever they want (speak to media or not), but they should realize every time they act out or pass, there may be consequences that come with that. Telling a good story surrounding events, or moments in the event or the players play (on field) are all relevant and some fans want to hear about. If fans don’t get as much entertainment, they’ll show less interest, sponsors will leave, there will be less money for all involved and players, and so on. I like to ask myself this; would Arnold Palmer act like any of these players today, who is one of the most successful players in history and in brand recognition? Granted these players have their own persona, but I’d like to think they’d look at the greats and maybe learn from the ones who were/are the most respected (it’s clear some don’t).

Schurman: When a player earns their Tour card, there used to be an introductory meeting to educate them on things to expect. One of the subjects dealt with the media. Obviously, the course should be taught annually, accompanied by an exam. Dean Beaman would have called the offender to meet with him at Ponte Vedra and told them point blank, “The only part you play in the scenario is to play golf. Hundreds of people contribute to you getting paid.”

Quinn: Have had to interview dozens and dozens of athletes after wins and losses in Olympics, Stanley Cups, World Series, Briers, and season-ending playoff and regular season games, and after golf tournaments. Never fun, never easy. They all knew that without print (back in the day), TV and radio, they wouldn’t be making the coin they were making. It’s still an awkward obligation on both sides of the notepad, mic, and camera. But, back in the day, to get to that awkward situation used to take years of training, dedication, and proving that you belonged in that rarefied space — not just as an athlete but as a journalist. Guys like Morikawa have run that gauntlet. Don’t know if his interrogator has.

Mumford: Whoever said there’s no such thing as a stupid question has never sat in on a Tour media conference. On the flip side, some players would have trouble with a single question if they received it the night before. Most, however, embrace the give and take and the best of them aren’t afraid to push back and use the publicity to their advantage. It would be boring if every press conference sounded scripted. An occasional flare up isn’t a bad thing. It shows some personality.