Augusta National Golf Club and the R&A released statements Tuesday regarding the merger between the PGA Tour and LIV Golf, calling the deal a “positive development” for the game.
The R&A and USGA have a lot more work to do to convince PGA Tour players that a rollback of the golf ball is in their best interest or the best interest of the game overall, judging by the players’ reaction to a presentation by the governing bodies and several manufacturers Tuesday at Muirfield Village Golf Club.
This is the time of the year where the PGA (Professional Golfers’ Association) of America vs PGA Tour confusion reaches its peak. Confusion reigns about what golf’s other main bodies do, too.
The test would not change for the golf balls used for recreational play, but the balls used under this new proposed test for elite competition could result in a distance decrease of at least 15-20 metres, perhaps more.
The R&A and USGA will be proposing a new golf ball testing standard for elite competition that would roll back performance by 20 yards (18 metres) or more.
The 16-year-old follows in the footsteps of Atthaya Thitikul, who won the inaugural championship in 2018 in Singapore and rose to number one in the Rolex Women’s World Golf Rankings last year.
Three members of the Australian contingent – Justice Bosio, Caitlin Peirce and Sarah Hammett – played in the 2022 championship. They will be joined by debutantes Keeley Marx, Abbie Teasdale and Jazy Roberts in a fresh-faced Aussie team.
Cameron Smith – the reigning Open champion and World No.3 – certainly thinks the four organisations should stay out of a divide in professional golf which has seen the PGA Tour ban LIV golfers and the DP World Tour try to, before a UK court put a hold on sanctions until February 2023.
The rule changes announced by the Royal and Ancient Golf Club (R&A) and the USGA – today that will come into effect on January 1, 2023 – are not as dramatic as in 2019, the last time the rules changed under the four-year cycle. But there are some decent moderations you should know about.
If simplicity and clarity were the buzzwords associated with the sweeping changes the R&A and USGA brought when modernising the Rules of Golf in 2019, then inclusion and sustainability highlight the updates coming in 2023.
In a wide-ranging interview, Martin Slumbers has spoken about whether Cameron Smith and other LIV golfers will be able to play in next year’s Open at Royal Liverpool.
Australian Golf Digest
