Garland,
I cannot for the life of me see how you can seriously contend that PIF does not result in more GIR's.
There is a rule of thumb in golf equipment called the "24/36 Rule" I believe. The gist of it is that the average golfer struggles to hit any club with less that 24 degrees or loft and/or a shaft of 36" or longer, which is roughly the modern 4 or 5 iron. If you reduce the number of times that ANY golfer hits those clubs, you improve his/her accuracy, which means more GIR's. It is pointless to argue otherwise.
Holes on every golf course in the country are handicapped based on the need of a bogey golfer to get a stroke to equalize on the hole. The single most pertinent factor in that is the length of the hole. Good, middling, or bad, any golfer will get to the green in fewer strokes from closer than from farther, all other things equal. Again, it is pointless to argue otherwise.
And that is why YOU only hit driver 8 times, by your own account! YOU say that if you hit driver more, you bring things into play that in effect would prevent you from getting to the green in the smallest possible number of strokes; sidehill lies, partial shots, OB, and so on.
And lastly, advocating a return to matchplay IS a fundamental change. Saying that it is going back to the way the game was originally played is also pointless; the game was also originally played with hickory shafts and balls stuffed with feathers. There is just no matchplay ethic in this country, and there isn't going to be. Railing against stoke play and PIF on that basis is a complete red herring and a non-starter as an alternative.