The decision to introduce new limits to how far the golf ball will travel from 2028 certainly seems to have divided opinion among those within the game.
The R&A and USGA announced plans in 2023 to roll back the golf ball. There is an expectation that professionals will see their driving distance decrease by up to 15 yards.
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Meanwhile, amateur golfers will have until 2030 to comply with the new regulations. It is hoped that the change will have less of an impact on the casual player.
The idea is to make the game more sustainable as modern courses get longer and longer. But it seems that Jason Day would argue that there is a much better solution than changing the golf ball.
How Jason Day felt about the idea of a golf ball roll back in 2018
The Australian spent much of the early part of his career as one of the longer hitters on the PGA Tour. He has, however, spent much of the last six years hovering around the 300 yards for driving distance – he averaged 300.3 yards in 2025 – having dealt with a number of injuries since his time at the top.
Speaking to Golf Digest in 2018, Day was asked about the idea of Augusta National introducing a limited golf ball at The Masters to try and combat players overpowering the course.
And he went on to make it very clear what he believes to be the bigger problem within the game.
“First off, people would still play The Masters. But if they did that, then they better shorten the tees again. If we have limited-flight balls, we’re going to have four irons into number seven and things like that. But do I want the ball to go shorter? No. Why? Isn’t it fun watching Dustin Johnson crush a drive over a lake 300 yards away? No one wants to see someone plod it down the right and not take it on. That’s boring,” he said.
“If you push trying to rein it in too far, then people will stop watching golf. People want to see risk.
“The problem is the architects – some of them, anyway – decided that because the ball is going forever, they need to make courses longer to make them harder. No, you don’t. Just be a better architect.”
Jason Day was correct in what he saw as being golf’s big issue
Some have taken a very different view on the upcoming changes – of which Day, of course, would not have known all the details seven years ago.
Rory McIlroy has backed a roll back of the golf ball. The five-time major champion does not believe that amateur golfers will notice any difference.
But it appears that there are some important conversations still to be held. Neither the PGA of America nor the PGA Tour have given the changes their support. So it remains to be seen how that rift plays out.
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Anyone who regularly watches the PGA Tour will know that Day was correct in his criticism. While there are a number of gems on the calendar, there are plenty of golf courses which feel bland and completely forgettable.
There should be talk of different strategies in the build-up to a tournament. There should be golf holes with memorable features which have the potential to make the world’s best players look slightly silly.
So you can understand why Day does not think that a limited golf ball is going to address all of the game’s issues.
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