Justin Rose has responded to being asked about the golf ball rollback which is set to impact the professional game from 2028.
The R&A have taken action with power playing such an important role in the current game. While there is still a place for the shorter hitters – Brian Campbell won twice on the PGA Tour in 2025 – distance appears to be a must for anyone looking to regularly compete.
The changes will see golf balls not travel as far. They will come into effect from 2028, while recreational golfers will have until 2030 to use up their current supplies.
It is fair to say that the prospective changes have divided opinion. Rory McIlroy backed the decision in 2023, in comments reported by BBC Sport. But Sir Nick Faldo suggested he would prefer to see certain clubs banned in an interview earlier this week.
However, it seems that not everyone has taken a side just yet.
Justin Rose comments on the golf ball rollback coming in 2028
Speaking on The NCG Golf Podcast, Justin Rose admitted that he is not yet thinking about the changes, noting that he has little faith that the move will transform the game in any capacity.
“This might shock you, but I’ve got no idea. I actually paid no attention to it. I really, really haven’t. And given I’m diligent about a lot of things, I concern myself with things I can really control in the short-term I suppose. But the way I understand is the metrics around it are the ball cannot go past a certain distance at 126 mph club head speed. I don’t play at 126 mph club head speed and I don’t really know if they’re hurting the guy at 126 mph or if they’re hurting more the guy at 115 mph. So it’s going to be very, very interesting to see how that plays out. But you’re right, it is imminent,” he said.
“I play at about 116 to 118. I’m pretty efficient at that, so I get about 175 ball speed, fly it 300 is what the Trackman would say. I kind of feel on the golf course, it never actually flies 300.
“The other reason I haven’t paid attention to it is I’ve never seen a rule change that’s made any difference. There was the changing from square grooves to V grooves, and the whole ethos there was meant to be you can’t control the ball out of the rough with V grooves, so you’re going to have to put the emphasis back on hitting the fairway. I think the game’s gone even more in the direction of bombing it. So that hasn’t made a difference. I don’t think greens books have made the slightest bit of difference.”
The PGA Tour needs to take more responsibility as Justin Rose expresses doubt over the success of the golf ball rollback
Some players may initially struggle to adapt, particularly those who have absolutely nailed down their yardages. However, it will simply take a little bit of time to recalibrate everything again.
Rose’s comment about the changes making little impact will resonate with a lot of people. The powers that be could arguably be a lot more ruthless if they were really worried about distances getting out of hand.
Having said that, there are arguably too many stops on the PGA Tour where players are able to simply get away with being extremely wayward as long as they are a long way down the hole.
Obviously, the PGA Tour should not necessarily look to how Thomas Bjorn had Le Golf National set up for the 2018 Ryder Cup, with the extremely penal rough. But there is definitely a middle ground which ensures that events do not become birdie-fests.
Clearly, Rose is not convinced that changing the rules of the golf ball will make a significant difference.
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