Jack Nicklaus has complaint about modern-day golf which has had an impact on Augusta that nobody could have imagined

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Jack Nicklaus is a man of great wisdom, experience and knowledge about the great game of golf.

So when Nicklaus speaks about any topic, golf fans’ ears prick up.

The Golden Bear spoke to the world’s press on Tuesday, and discussed a lengthy list of topics.

Nicklaus opened up on his admiration for world number one Scottie Scheffler, as well as how much Muirfield Village means to him.

The 85-year-old is probably the most highly thought-of person in the game of golf right now.

So who better to ask about the staggering distances the longest players in the world are hitting the ball these days than Nicklaus himself?

Jack Nicklaus complains about modern-day golf and how it has affected Augusta

Augusta National is a course that has had to be lengthened considerably over the past decade.

Could there ever become a time when even Augusta is defenceless against the longest hitters in the game though?

There’s a real chance that that could happen.

Nicklaus discussed a wide range of topics during his press conference at Muirfield Village on Tuesday afternoon.

And something that he is clearly very passionate about is golf ball technology. Do the governing bodies need to roll it back? Nicklaus thinks so.

He explained, “Well, I don’t know how to answer that question, but to me, even par was always a great score at a U.S. Open. And why was it a great score? Because, I mean, I go back to the days of Joe Dey. I thought that Joe Dey did just a magnificent job of setting up — first of all, he set up the juniors, okay? He set the juniors with a modest rough and semi-narrow fairways and firm greens. He would then go to the amateur. And we had a little narrower fairways, a little bit more rough, and firm the greens. You go to the U.S. Open, we had the deeper rough — the width of fairways that he felt like was fair, but the right width, and the greens firm.

“I loved those kind of setups. And those setups were all designed to have par be fairly precious. Now, today, you know, I think that the USGA and the R & A both allowed the golf ball to get away from them in 1995 when we went to a composite golf ball. I’ve said that many times. And as a result, we now have holes that are becoming drivable. I mean, the third hole at Augusta. I mean, whoever dreamed you were going to be driving the ball on the green at the third hole at Augusta? You’re going to have to stand on the green and wave the guys behind you through? I mean, come on.

“I mean, the golf ball goes too far. It has gone too far for a while. Then they continue to lengthen things. But to me, lengthening only does a couple things: One, it takes longer to play. It costs more money, it costs more money, it costs more money. The whole thing, it just gets expensive.

“So, you know, the game has gotten to where all of a sudden it was 4- or 5-under par, then 10-under par, then 15-under par. Personally, I never liked that. I always — and I hate to use the example of Hartford, but you’ve heard me use it before. And Hartford, it’s a nice tournament and the people are very nice, but it used to be played at Wethersfield. And I never played because I didn’t like the scores.

“And finally, they said, Jack, you need to play. I said, Well, I’ve never played. I’ll go play. I think you’re right. I got to try to go to places that I haven’t been. So I went to Wethersfield, and I shot 68 the first round, and I was in 17th place. I shot 67 the second round, and I was in 25th place. I shot 67 the third round, and I was in 35th place. I finished with 67 and finished 42nd. That’s why I didn’t go to Wethersfield.

“Now, it had nothing to do with Wethersfield. It was a very nice golf course. I just didn’t like the putter being what — I’ve never believed that the putter should dictate what the golf game is. I never believed in the thing you drive for show and putt for dough. I always believed that part of the game is being able to get the ball to the green, on the green, and if you make some putts, that’s part of it.

“Sure, some guys are better putters, some guys are better hitters of the ball, but it’s the combination. And when it becomes a putting contest, that’s where I wanted to get out of it. Even though I was a good putter, I just didn’t like it being a putting contest. I always thought that what Joe Dey did in setting up the U.S. Opens, where — you know, we went to the Oakmonts, we went to — let’s see. We went to Brookline the next year, then we went to Congressional, then we went to Bellerive. All those required a couple under-par-type scores, not very much under par. And par was a precious thing. Do people probably like birdies? Yeah, I can understand that. We got a lot of tournaments that make birdies. Let’s have some we don’t have to make so many birdies. That’s just sort of the way I look at it.

“And I mean, we’ve had conditions here. Tom Lehman shot four 67s here. That’s a pretty low score. That’s what, 18-under par — or no, wait, 20-under par. I mean, yeah, shoot 68, that’s 20-under par. That’s a low score on this golf course. But I didn’t mind that because the conditions dictated that. I mean, our rough was plenty deep that week. We had a little bit of rain, but not a terrible amount, and the greens were just were perfect for holding a golf ball, so it allowed you to shoot a low score.

“I have no problem with shooting a low score when the conditions allow that to happen. What I don’t like to do is artificially see a golf course taken to a level where you play good shots and you get bad results. So there’s a fairness in it. There’s a right and there’s a wrong about how good golf needs to be played to get a good result. And I was always a little bit on the edge, and I always like to stay a little bit on that edge because I think it really produces really good golf. And, frankly, I always thought that’s what a golf tournament was all about, try to be the guy that’s going to play the best golf that week.“

Nicklaus was then pushed on how Muirfield Village will be able to stand up against the mammoth hitters in the game in this day and age.

The Golden Bear said, “As long as the golf ball doesn’t change too much. I think that this golf course, when and if they ever enact their new golf ball rule, it will only help this golf course. I guess they pushed it back two more years, did they? They pushed it back from what, ’26 to ’28. I really don’t know. I mean, I don’t follow it as much as I used to follow it. But they pushed the golf ball back, and as I understand the ball is about 14 yards shorter for the longest of hitters out here, maybe two or three yards shorter for the average golfer.

“I think that only will help sort of put a line in the sand, hopefully the line doesn’t go anywhere. We can’t just keep buying land. You can’t, you can’t just buy the golf course next door. Not many people can afford what Augusta did at Augusta Country Club, you just can’t do that.

“We don’t have any land to buy. I mean, I can go buy houses and knock ’em down. I obviously can’t do that, but, you know, that’s what we would have to do. But I don’t think — the game’s controlled by how far a golf ball goes. If you control it within some reason then we know that a golf course that is here today will still be sufficient 20 years from now.

“I mean, they talked about, well the golf ball is only increasing, you know, a yard a year. Well what happens in 40 years? That’s 40 yards. And I don’t think that there are many golf courses that can sustain that kind of a change. Insane is not the right word, but can’t allow that to happen. It just doesn’t work.

“So my feeling, obviously, is that the more that the USGA and the R & A get to bring it back to where it’s — I don’t care if the standard doesn’t change from here — I don’t think we’re ever going to go back to where I think it should have been. I mean, right now we probably have, in this country, maybe a hundred golf courses that really could handle a significant event. We used to have a couple thousand. If we brought the golf ball back to where it was in 1995 when we went from a wound golf ball to a composite golf ball we would have a couple thousand golf courses that could hold a major event without totally having to redo ’em, you know, but we don’t. And so the ball is what it is. As long as it doesn’t go any further this golf course will be fine for a long time.“

Jack Nicklaus is spot on about golf ball roll-back being crucial

Nicklaus has absolutely nailed it with his comments above.

The 85-year-old is widely regarded as the greatest golfer of all time, so when he speaks, we all listen.

Golf is heading down a very dangerous path whereby some of the greatest golf courses in history will become obsolete if nothing changes.

‘Rolling back’ the golf ball for tour players will make some of the most famous courses incredibly challenging again.

And what’s more, they will play how they were meant to be played when they were originally designed.

The last thing we want is for golf courses to become obsolete, and there’s only a certain amount of land left to go around.

A golf ball roll-back really is the only option.