Cameron Young, 29, of the United States is leading the FedEx Cup rankings on the PGA Tour while hitting massive drives with a "distance-limited" golf ball, putting the U.S. Golf Association (USGA) and Britain's R&A in an awkward position as they push their "rollback" policy.
Young fielded questions about his current ball at a press conference held at Aronimink Golf Club in Pennsylvania on Tuesday, a day before the start of the PGA Championship major tournament. The ball Young uses is the "double dot" version of the Titleist Pro V1x, designed to comply with rollback regulations, with two dots marked to the left of the product name line. "I didn't even know it was that kind of (distance-limited) ball when I started using it," Young said. "About two years ago, I was testing balls and it felt good with an ideal trajectory, so I started using it. The control on iron and wedge shots is especially good."
The USGA and R&A announced the rollback regulation in 2023, citing concerns that long drives could make golf monotonous and that continuously extending hole lengths places growing burdens on course maintenance and the environment. Under the rule, when struck by a test machine at a head speed of 127 miles per hour, the ball's total distance (carry plus roll) must not exceed 317 yards. The USGA and R&A projected that the regulation would reduce tour players' driver shot distances by more than 10 yards. Initially set to take effect this year, the rollback rule is now being discussed for postponement until 2030.
However, Young hit a massive 375-yard drive at The Players Championship in March using the double dot ball designed to comply with rollback regulations. It was the longest drive ever measured on the 18th hole of TPC Sawgrass, the tournament venue. Compared to his average driver distance before switching to the double dot, there is virtually no difference. Advances in clubs and player skill have easily overcome the changes in the ball. According to Titleist, five other PGA Tour players besides Young are using the double dot.
U.S. golf media outlet Golf Channel said, "Young's recent performance is likely to bolster opponents of the golf ball rollback policy," and also introduced the view of Adam Scott of Australia, who said, "A better way to curb long drives would be to reduce driver head size and shaft length."
