Gary Player is one of the most successful golfers ever to have graced our wonderful sport.
Player won 159 professional tournaments worldwide, including nine major championships.
The now 90-year-old South African came from a really poor background, and had to work harder than any other player in order to fulfil his dreams.
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During Gary Player’s prime, the equipment he had to use was far inferior to the clubs that players of the modern era have been blessed with.
Photo by Richard Heathcote/R&A/R&A via Getty Images
Shot-shaping and shot-making were two crucial aspects of succeeding in professional golf back then.
Now, the aim of the game is to hit the ball as hard and as high as you can.
It’s fair to argue that a certain art and skill has been taken away from the game with the advancement in golf club technology.
Gary Player shared the two ‘illegal’ designs he wanted banned
Way back in 2005, Player lamented the fact that golf club design had made the game far too easy.
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“I just hate to see what’s happening today with golf clubs that I consider to be illegal. I’d stop the grooves being so deep (on the ball), and I’d stop the trampoline effect in the wood,“ Player insisted.
“The way to solve all the problems is to quit making metal clubs and go back to wood, but I say that with tongue in cheek.
“If you gave Jack Nicklaus the conditions these guys play in now, none of them (modern-day players) could live with him.
“Also, there’s nobody on the tour today who could hit the ball as well as Lee Trevino or Ben Hogan.“
Photo by Kenneth Richmond/Getty Images
Since 2005, golf club design has advanced even further still.
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Drivers nowadays have hotter faces than ever before, and the grooves on wedges enable players to impart more spin than they ever have been able to.
As a result, players are destroying some of the most famous old layouts, reducing many of them to so-called ‘bomb and gouge’ courses.
The proposed golf ball rollback is expected to come into play in 2030, although that isn’t written in stone.
Numerous players have offered their ideas to help combat the ever-increasing distance problem.
Nick Faldo’s alternative to the golf ball rollback
Back in July, Faldo shared his idea to bring a certain amount of skill back into driving the golf ball.
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“There has been a lot of talk about the golf ball rollback,“ Faldo said.
“We’ve been talking about it for decades, and now we’re going to be thinking about it until 2030.
“Hopefully you know I’m a big fan of trying to bring back the skills, the ball-striking skills, to our game.
“I now believe the answer is right under our noses.
“It’s this fella, the one inch tee. Recent testing, in one of the golf magazines, really caught my attention.
“They tested all the different length tees, 2 and 1/4 inch was the optimum, the one inch tee flew 25 yards shorter than the optimum length tee. Less ball speed, less carry.
“So that would be a wonderful fix, wouldn’t it? As simple as that, go to the one inch tee. Give it some testing. All I’m asking is to do some testing.“
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