Lee Westwood doesn’t just want the golf ball rolled back, but the driver too.
Amid the governing bodies’ plans to alter the ball at all levels of the game, the Englishman also holds the driver responsible for the “premium on accuracy” becoming diminished.
The R&A and USGA announced tour pros could see up to 11 yards cut off their tee shots when changes come in 2028, while the recreational game will be minimally affected.
With 44 professional wins to his name, Westwood excelled off the tee when arriving on the scene in the late 1990s as wooden drivers were on their way out.
As well as a sustainability standpoint, Westwood says the best drivers of the ball have “lost their edge” during an age where he believes technology has brought players to the same level.
“I think there needs to be a roll back on distance,” he told NCG. “I think golf courses – the length of them are getting out of control from a sustainability approach.
“It’s costing more, it’s of detriment to the environment and, like I’ve said on X/Twitter, they’ve gone hand in hand, the driver and the ball.
“One is matched to the other. The driver head has got bigger and easier to hit balls. They’re made for the driver and the driver is then made to suit the golf ball and how quickly that was progressing.
“What you do see now is my generation that used smaller heads and balls that spun a lot swinging very differently from the generation that’s playing now.
“The generation that comes out now, they’re technically different in that they swing to try and launch the driver higher with no spin on it, basically they go 110% at it because the driver heads are bigger and the ball is made to go straighter.
