[Josh Smith]

The decision to take some bite out of new technology by moving the groove requirement back to a position where less spin could be imparted on the ball seems like a great step forward.  The idea being to make positoning yourself strategically and shot making a more important element of scoring.

However, my questions are: 

1.  Will it not lead to player griping and in turn lead to pressure on superintendents and tournament officials to soften greens and or ease course setup?  Will those players and tournament officials be okay with higher winning scores?

2.  Won't the combination of the new balls which already don't spin much, along with less "bite or spin imparted" by rolled back grooves, lead to less ability to curve the ball?  Won't this actually giving you less shotmaking, and perhaps make the sport more dull?

3.  Will this reverse the current positive trend towards acceptance of firmer conditions by general golfing public? 

I don't know....

[Garland Bayley]

...
2.  Won't the combination of the new balls which already don't spin much, along with less "bite or spin imparted" by rolled back grooves, lead to less ability to curve the ball?  Won't this actually giving you less shotmaking, and perhaps make the sport more dull?
...

Josh,

The reason behind the groove change was to force manufacturers to make balls that spin more, which will have the side effect of reducing driving distance.

[Bill_McBride]

The decision to take some bite out of new technology by moving the groove requirement back to a position where less spin could be imparted on the ball seems like a great step forward.  The idea being to make positoning yourself strategically and shot making a more important element of scoring.

However, my questions are: 

1.  Will it not lead to player griping and in turn lead to pressure on superintendents and tournament officials to soften greens and or ease course setup?  Will those players and tournament officials be okay with higher winning scores?

2.  Won't the combination of the new balls which already don't spin much, along with less "bite or spin imparted" by rolled back grooves, lead to less ability to curve the ball?  Won't this actually giving you less shotmaking, and perhaps make the sport more dull?

3.  Will this reverse the current positive trend towards acceptance of firmer conditions by general golfing public? 

I don't know....

Josh, I think it works like this:

V grooves mean less spin from the club requiring more spin from the balls.  If you remember the Top-Flite type ball - very long, low spin, terrible around the greens - that's what the V grooves will bring back with Pro V1s etc.  I think the concept is that the pros will demand more spin from the balls meaning less distance if they want some touch around the greens. This in turn will mean shorter distances from the balls.

It's kind of a convoluted way to roll back the distance of the balls, and expensive to boot for those who will be required to buy new clubs.  The club manufacturers will no doubt start a new R&D program looking for a competitive edge for their players within the constraints of V grooves.

If the USGA and the R&A had the balls to require a competition ball with 15% less distance, this wouldn't have to happen.  But good luck with that.

[Brent Hutto]

Bill has it right. And mark my words, it will not have the intended effect. There may be some players in the short term accommodating their golf-ball choice to the new wedge grooves but those dudes are never going to give up the distance and control they get from ProV1-generation golf balls. Heck, a lot of elite players complain of spinning the ball too much anyway.

Long term, they may tweak their ball choices slightly but a new equilibrium will be established that looks a lot like the status quo.

[Rick Shefchik]

I agree with Brent. When have you ever heard an announcer saying, "He's going to try to put as much spin as he can on this shot" ? It's always the opposite: "He's got to be careful not to spin this one off the green. He's going to try to take his wrists out of the swing and put as little spin as possible on the ball."

Now, that excludes lies from thick rough, of course, and sometimes the greens are so hard that no amount of spin will keep the ball from bouncing long -- even with today's deep grooves. My guess is that the groove change won't hurt these guys much at all, and the ball will continue to soar.

(Not being a pro, I've bought three Vokey wedges in the past year, because I need all the help I can get stopping the ball. And they do help.)

[Jim_Kennedy]

Josh,

I really don't think there will be a need for easier set-ups. The idea is to force the bomb and gouge player back into the fairway because he won't be able to spin the ball as well from the rough. That will mean more thought will have to go into club selection on the tee and driver won't be the default choice.

I think that most of the best players would say it's 'harder' to work a ball with the modern driver than with any other club they would choose from the tee. Other choices mean more shotmaking, not less.

[mike_beene]

I wonder if we will see some more 64 degree wedges for those that stay with lower spin.

[Garland Bayley]

Josh,

I really don't think there will be a need for easier set-ups. The idea is to force the bomb and gouge player back into the fairway because he won't be able to spin the ball as well from the rough. That will mean more thought will have to go into club selection on the tee and driver won't be the default choice.
...

Jim got the part that I neglected to write.

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