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What The Golf Industry Thinks About 59

What an amazing week in golf! The week was capped off with a smooth Sunday 59 by Stuart Appelbey on his way to victory at The Greenbrier Championship along with a stellar 57 carded by a 17 yr old Junior in Alabama. We have seen three 60’s on the PGA Tour in the past 5 weeks and another 59 by Paul Goydos at the John Deere Classic.

I see the average golfer playing in the charity events I host as part of Back 9 Promotions all across the country and what is taking place with games elite doesn’t translate to your average Joe. Sure there are many great players but a good day for most is a score in the low 80’s.

All this lightning in a bottle got me to thinking, what’s going on with this flash of low numbers. I have my opinions, which are deeply rooted with a 15 handicaps slant of “I just want to break 80 again!”. So in order to get a true read on this, I went to people I respect most. They are involved in the game from every level and know a thing or two about scoring.

I talked to the GM at TPC Sawgrass who has helped setup the most exciting hole in golf, a tour caddy that loops for a Green Jacket winner, a major ball and equipment manufacturer, 30 year veteran teachers of the game who have worked with the best and the not so best, single handicap amateurs who compete regularly and a golf writer from Golf Digest that plays great courses all over the country.

Take a gander at their take and notice the common themes!

Courses are way too short…they need to scale back the ball…no such thing as driver/3 or 4 iron any longer…to watch Pebble Beach look so short with guys hitting par 5’s with 2 swings of an iron…well, makes me feel kind of..ughhh!

Barry Goldstien, PGA Teaching Professional

2 time Top 50 teacher in America

Director of Instruction for the Maine Golf and Tennis Academy

Father of Carly Ray national ranked junior

I think it is the hot summer weather they have to keep the greens watered so they don’t lose them therefore soft slow greens and low scores.

Damon Green, PGA Tour Caddy for Zach Johnson

Rob – the scoring phenomenon can be summed up in two words: Soft Greens. If the greens are not firm and fast, today’s PGA TOUR player will eat the golf course alive because they are so good with controlling distances, even out of the rough with “new” grooves. Having the greens firm forces the player to hit the ball in the fairway (if they want the maximum amount of spin on the approach shot).

Chad Parker, PGA Head Golf Professional, East Lake Golf Club

There are more players by ten fold compared to thirty years ago so there are better odds that his can happen. Also the improvements in the ball and the shafts have helped the better players but not the average player. The main reason is better players don’t hit at the ball but make a swing through the ball toward the target where the average golfer hits at the ball and no matter how good the equipment they will still hit it poorly. The average golfer will not see improvement until the way they learn and play the game changes.

Eben Dennis

Master Instructor

Dallas, TX

Notable Student: Nick Faldo

http://www.powerfeelgolf.com

Rob, Thanks for asking. Facts are, it is combination of all the factors you mentioned. Better technology, hotter golf balls, better conditioned athletes, etc. As good as these top players are, when you provide them with soft greens and put wedges in their hands on most holes, these types of scores are inevitable.

What people are not talking about is how well these guys putt the ball. Look at the stats. These guys are unbelievable. They go hundreds of holes in a row without a three putt, miss only 1 or 2 putts inside of 10 feet for the tournament when they win. The bottom line is that the golf course conditioning is so much better than ever before. The greens are PERFECT !
Without perfect greens, no low scores. Regardless of the equipment, no perfect, receptive, smooth, and manicured greens, no low scores.

Bill Hughes, PGA Tour, General Manager TPC Sawgrass

As far as the length issue – everything the governing bodies are doing to make course longer and tougher only hurts the guys that don’t hit it 300+ off the tee. The long hitters will always have an advantage over short hitters. Jack Nicklaus had it, and Sam Snead before him, and Bobby Jones before him. But length alone doesn’t make a course tough. Take Pebble Beach for example – it measured less than 7000 yards in 2000, and barely over 7000 yards for the 2010 US Open. That’s very short by modern standards, yet even par was a very good score for 72 holes and only Graeme McDowell managed to accomplish that feat. The USGA made it tough with small, fast greens, thick rough in spots and the natural design and weather conditions. Don’t further punish the short hitters by rolling back the golf ball or making 8000 yard courses. Make greens smaller and bring the short game back into play with slightly longer rough, and you’ll always see scores go up.

As far as guys shooting 59s and 57s – I can try to explain it from a psychology standpoint, since I was a psych major in college. The 57 was a remarkable round, made even more amazing because it was done by a 17 year old. In recent weeks we’ve seen two 59s on the PGA Tour, and three 60s. The more it happens, the more other guys will start to believe it can be duplicated. The mental barrier of the “59” is starting to crumble. Who said 59 was the score that all others are measured against? Why not 58? Or 56? Just like the 4 minute mile was once seemingly unattainable by runners, it’s now commonplace. There is now an entire mental school of thought based on the idea that a perfect round of 18 birdies is out there, and they are teaching players to believe that they can do it. http://www.vision54.com

John Duval, Accomplished Amateur Player

Editor, Into The Grain

http://www.intothegrain.com

Ball-Fitting has been something we've done for a long time with our Tour
pros.  The first thing we do is bring our players to the R&D
Test Center in Covington, Georgia, to undergo an exhaustive
ball-fitting.  In fact, it was through that same process that
we learned Paula Creamer was better suited to play a TOUR ball
designed for amateur swing speeds.  Paula still have tremendous
feel and spin around the greens, but by giving her a softer
compression ball, we've been able to get her better distance
and accuracy off the tee, because we've cut down on her sidespin.
Bridgestone is the first company to bring ball-fitting to the
every day golfer too.  As of July 2010, we have conducted over
70,000 consumer ball-fittings throughout North America.  Almost
always, it amazes people how much having the right ball for
your swing really can impact scoring and overall enjoyment of
the game. For information on ball-fittings nearest you
visit www.bridgestonegolf.com.

Dan Murphy, VP of Marketing, Bridgestone Golf, Inc.

Until I start shooting 59 from 6,500 yards then scoring on tour
doesn't concern me. For now I struggle to break 80, and I play a
lot of golf. Personally I like the fact that we, the average
golfer and the pros, play the same courses with the same
equipment. I like a direct comparison to a place they play, even
if they're playing it from 7,200 yards, etc. I just think more
courses need "tour tees"...or more narrow fairways, thicker rough
and faster greens for the weeks of tour events.

MATT GINELA, Writer, Golf Digest Where’s Matty G.

http://www.golfdigest.com/golf-courses/blogs/wheres-matty-g/

Three things are finally playing a role with the low scores…Improved fitness actually does matter… the guys are significantly stronger than from one generation ago, people in general are bigger – which translates to mover leverage, greater torque, and increased clubhead speed.

Technology – Driver fitting, Ball Fitting, Iron Fitting, – spin ratio, ball speed, clubface angle… technology at the tour disposal has always been available…now it is based on scientific data to maximize each players swing.

Better instruction earlier in a player’s life… long are the days of Larry Nelson and Calvin Peete who picked up the game in their late twenties… doesn’t happen, kids have reached the 10,000 hour practice point by the time they are in college…hence with better instruction, better fitness, better technology, better course conditions all point to lower scores.

Finally – 60 is the 4:00 minute mile…. It only takes one or two to break it….

Sean Taylor, PGA

Mid Atlantic Section Board Of Directors

25 yr teaching professional

http://www.easterngolftv.com/

The game of golf certainly has not gotten any easier for players at any level, nor are the courses weaker or more vulnerable to these ultra low scores. I went out on Saturday morning with a lot of quality technology in my bag and some semblance of skill in my arsenal. It was a perfectly conditioned course and I played it from the proper set of tees for my game. There was no sign of 59, 69 or even 79 being in any danger from me. Fact is, getting the ball into the hole from 100 yards and in is where scoring happens… and while perhaps a great sphere and sharp wedge grooves might make the task slightly more manageable… there is no technology or shortcut for scoring technique, practice, intelligence, creativity, imagination, guts and execution.

The high-profile increase in scores 62 and below can only be attributable to the quality and consistency of the playing conditions (fewer bad bounces, uneven lies or bumps on the greens to divert great putting strokes) and the extraordinary skills and mental fortitude of the worlds’ best players. Training methods and mental/physical fitness have been improved and motivation has been pushed for more than a decade by Mr. Woods. Courses becoming “obsolete” is a joke… courses being obsolete for one week a year isn’t really an issue, is it? It’s only a tough situation for very few courses with a great desire to host professional golf tournaments. There are plenty of worthwhile tracks to choose from that can stand up to the world’s best. Furthermore, quite a few classic courses have been “ruined” by redesigns focused on that one championship week in one year, rather than for the golfers who play there every other day.

The folks who play golf for money are undoubtedly getting better and these scores are the result. Maybe the slogan should change to “These guys are great!”

Greg Nathan, National Golf Foundation

I think you would agree that the common theme is perfect putting conditions, the world’s best putters, great athletes continuing to get better, proper ball fittings and mental games that are light years ahead of the average hack!

I wish I could add more….. Now make sure your clubs and ball are properly fit to your game and then get to work on your putting and short game!!!!!!!!!

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