The Golf Ball to Beat New Grooves Regulation?
by Ryan Ballengee on Oct 28, 2008 11:00 AM EDT
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PrintGOLF NERD ALERT! GOLF NERD ALERT! GOLF NERD ALERT!
Just wanted to fill you in of that in advance because, as a golf nerd, I feel that I should tell you about posts that are extremely nerdy.
I normally stop by Golf Patents, which is a golf intellectual property blog that discusses the various patent filings for golf technology and innovation with the USPTO. David Dawsey does a wonderful job breaking down the applications into easily digestible parts. (It can be very lengthy if viewed in full.)
In a recent post, Dawsey takes a look at a patent application that Titleist-parent Acushnet submitted for a new kind of golf ball. In addition to traditional dimples (or potentially in place of them), Titleist is looking for a patent for spiral shaped depressions. In effect, the idea is to reduce drag and promote lift on the golf ball - allowing it to fly further. If you read the post, you can get a glimpse into the physics principles behind this, but I'll leave that to you.
Of course, then, this leads to me extrapolating that this could be the patent that Titleist may be filing as a potential solution to the new grooves regulation from the USGA. After all, it has been hypothesized that pros will turn to softer core golf balls in order to give them more control from the rough with new, modified V-grooves. This means taking away from the kind of golf ball core and multi-piece construction advances that have been developed in the past seven years or so. But, if one can make a golf ball that is better on the outside against drag and lift, then perhaps it could balance out the distance lost by going to more of a balata-style ball.
Maybe this is the answer?
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they're all doing it
We had Mike Yagley, the vice president of product management for golf balls at Callaway, on the air two years ago when this groove discussion got started. He told us then that they already had the capabilities to give the players the spin they wanted along with the distance.
These physics and aerodynamics guys are amazing. Yagley was an aerospace engineer before moving to Callaway.
"this ball will fit in that fairway"
Ya gotta love golf technology
Except the equipment companies are dumping a lot of money into development that lets them do more in the little box the USGA keeps them in. Unfortunately, they miss the point that the USGA doesn’t want more distance and spin. I’m impressed that they’re constantly finding new ways to get around it, but with one wave of its magic wand, spiral dimples could be gone too.
The companies need to look at why the USGA does what it does. It basically comes down to courses becoming obsolete for high-level play. They’re protecting distance, just like they protect par at the U.S. Open. These manufacturers are swimming against the current.
If they really want to innovate, then straight is what people need. That’s something much harder for the USGA to touch. But with limits on ball speed, distance, grooves, COR, and so on, it’s going to be a constant battle to stay ahead of the regulations.
If they don’t want to live in the shrinking box, then maybe they need to start developing two kinds of equipment: stuff for use in competition, and stuff that lets Joe Schmoe hit the ball 300 yards with his buddies, ignoring what the USGA says.
Though, to continue my previous thoughts...
…it probably makes sense for the companies to be continually pushing the limits, because every time the USGA shrinks the box, they get to sell a bunch of new conforming equipment to people. Not to mention all the stuff they sell before the rules change to all the people that don’t care one way or the other.
by Double Eagle on Oct 28, 2008 12:21 PM EDT up reply actions
How about PC marketing ?
Ok – here’s my ridiculous idea for the day. How about these companies advertising that they are going to start making ball that limit distance so that golf courses don’t have to keep expanding – taking up valuable land and natural resources ? :-D
"this ball will fit in that fairway"
Even better
My ridiculous idea is to convince the USGA to stop getting so bent out of shape about par and that fact that there are a very small number of players in the world that are capable of obliterating it. Since, after all, par is supposed to be the score that an expert player would make on a hole. “Expert player” is open to interpretation, but I think it would be fair to say that could apply to a scratch player. So, given that definition, I’d expect the last place guy on the PGA Tour to be beyond an “expert player”.
Therefore, they should stop getting so bent out of shape about distance.
by Double Eagle on Oct 28, 2008 1:03 PM EDT up reply actions
I come down on this on the side of bifurcation
of equipment rules. I wrote a piece about it for Sports Central. I think it makes sense and then would allow the USGA to create regulations for expert level players that really do restrict the golf ball and still allow average Joes to have some fun out there with some looser regulations.
What the USGA did with grooves is essentially two things: (1) set the precedent with club companies for sweeping regulation without lawsuit (because they could just invent their way around the rule) and (2) gave manufacturers a quid pro quo reward for not suing – the mentioned boon of making everyone buy new equipment.
Just in case
You want to read the piece in Spanish as written by Fuera de Limites, here’s the link.
by Ryan Ballengee on Oct 31, 2008 10:56 AM EDT reply actions
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