Folks, how about this little question: How many on here know that there is a world professional championship where all players are required to use hickory shafted clubs and turn-of-the-century style golf balls? Its contested every year. But how much of that do you see on TV? None.
Tennis faces the same problems. The only time people watch tennis is one of their majors (Australian, French, US and Wimbledon) or maybe if Roger Federer is playing Nadal in a final some place. Yet they don't try to fiddle with match set-ups, equipment, and other sorts of things.
The general public simply doesn't care to watch golf. They don't appreciate quality shotmaking, quality architecture, and the like. My wife constantly tells me how boring golf is. She's not alone in that statement. Adding in some doofy gimmicks won't boost any ratings for golf.