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Average driving distances are around 300 yards
on the PGA Tour but many players hit well in excess of that,
meaning some courses are in danger of becoming obsolete.
The proposal by the Royal and Ancient (R&A) and United States
Golf Association (USGA) would give competition organisers the
option to require players to use only balls that meet
maximum-distance criteria.
"You're trying to create a solution for a problem that doesn't
exist. To me, it's just so bad for the game of golf," Thomas
told reporters ahead of this week's Valspar Championship in Palm
Harbor, Florida.
Under the proposal, which would be effective from 2026, balls
will have to not exceed 320 yards with a clubhead speed of
127mph.
"If you can swing 127mph, power to you," Thomas said.
"People are running faster, so ... are they just going to make
the length of a mile longer so that the fastest mile time
doesn't change ...? Like, no. It's evolution."
Former U.S. Open champion Bryson DeChambeau, one of the longest
hitters in the sport, said it would be "the most atrocious thing
that you could possibly do to the game of golf".
"It's not about rolling golf balls back, it's about making golf
courses more difficult," DeChambeau said on Tuesday ahead of a
LIV Golf event at the Gallery Golf Club in Tucson.
"I think it's the most unimaginative, uninspiring, game-cutting
thing you could do. Everybody wants to see people hit it
farther."
(Reporting by Aadi Nair in Bengaluru; Editing by Peter
Rutherford)
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