Bryson DeChambeau is the longest hitter in the game right now, so he may well be affected more than most by the golf ball rollback rule change that will come into play in 2028.
DeChambeau completely changed the face of golf in 2019 when he piled on the pounds, and indeed the muscle, and began overpowering golf courses with pure brute strength.
The moment that made everyone really stand up and take notice of the changes that the LIV Golf star had made was when he won the US Open at Winged Foot after taking an approach which nobody else had taken previously at America’s national championship.
The 32-year-old hit his driver as hard as he could off every single tee on the premise that hitting a lob wedge out of the rough from 100 yards was preferable to hitting into the green from 160 yards or so from the middle of the fairway.
DeChambeau actually clocked a personal best of 221.5 mph ball speed with his driver, although he does tone down his speed during tournaments.
It’s fair to say that nobody can live with DeChambeau when he’s in ‘full send’ mode.
So with that in mind, it is interesting to see what the LIV golfer made of the proposed golf ball rollback rule, which will come into play in three years’ time.
How far Bryson DeChambeau hit the ‘rollback’ golf ball during testing
The golf ball rollback rule will come into play in 2028 for professionals and 2030 for amateur golfers.
The upcoming golf ball rollback has received huge criticism with some claiming that it will not be a good thing for the game.
It is suggested that the very longest hitters will be affected the most by the change.
Back in 2024, DeChambeau had the chance to test one of the ‘rollback’ golf balls.
The American tried out the golf ball and compared the numbers to those he generates with the ball that he currently uses.
The results were quite incredible.
With the ‘rollback’ ball, DeChambeau smoked his driver and clocked a 187 mph ball speed and recorded a 315 yard carry.
However, with his current golf ball, the two-time US Open champion hit his driver a ‘little skinny’ and carried it 331 yards with a ball speed of 192 mph.
DeChambeau said: “Were they saying it’s like a 10/11 yard difference? Nah, It’s like 15/20. If I hit that good it was probably 25. I don’t like it.”
Rory McIlroy supports the golf ball rollback
McIlroy made it very clear that he is a firm believer that the golf ball rollback will be good for the game of golf.
Back in 2023, the Northern Irishman took to his X account to outline why he supports the move by the USGA.
He said: “I don’t understand the anger about the golf ball roll back. It will make no difference whatsoever to the average golfer and puts golf back on a path of sustainability. It will also help bring back certain skills in the pro game that have been eradicated over the past 2 decades.
The people who are upset about this decision shouldn’t be mad at the governing bodies, they should be mad at elite pros and club/ball manufacturers because they didn’t want bifurcation. The governing bodies presented us with that option earlier this year. Elite pros and ball manufacturers think bifurcation would negatively affect their bottom lines, when in reality, the game is already bifurcated.
“You think we play the same stuff you do? They put pressure on the governing bodies to roll it back to a lesser degree for everyone. Bifurcation was the logical answer for everyone, but yet again in this game, money talks.“
McIlroy makes a great point about the sustainability that the golf ball rollback will help achieve.
Some of the greatest old, traditional golf courses were becoming obsolete due to the distances that the modern-day players are hitting the ball.
Hopefully, some of the best golf courses around the world will continue to thrive once the rollback comes into effect in 2028.
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