Nicklaus, Watson, Player favor rolling back golf ball distance - ESPN

AUGUSTA, Ga. — Three-time Masters winner Gary Player called the issue of increased driving distance in the game a «tragedy» and said the professional game should roll back the ball 60 yards.

«We got away from the concept of golf when it started originally, a par-5, a par-4, and a par-3. There is no such thing as a par-5 in the world today,» Player said. «We saw Rory with a 7-iron last year when he won the Masters, they're hitting 8-irons and 7-irons to par-5s.»

Player, 18-time major champion Jack Nicklaus and two-time Masters winner Tom Watson all voiced their strong stances on the topic of rolling back the golf ball shortly after their ceremonial opening-round tee shots Thursday.

«The golf ball needs to be reined in. What they're doing right now is throwing a deck chair off the Titanic, and it's not getting enough done,» Nicklaus said. «It needs to really come back. I know a lot of people don't like that, but I think Gary is absolutely right.»

The honorary starters echoed Augusta chairman Fred Ridley's comments Wednesday, which once again outlined Augusta National's strong position that a rollback of some sort is necessary in order to protect golf's «integrity.»

«Regulation of the golf ball is not an attempt to turn back time or stifle progress,» Ridley said. «It is an effort to preserve the essence of what makes golf the great game that it is.… My feeling on this subject is [that] failure's not an option.»

The United States Golf Association announced in March that it might not implement a new overall distance standard, which would reduce elite driving distances by 15 yards, until 2030. The USGA and R&A had previously stated the new testing rules would apply to elite players in 2028 before affecting all golfers in 2030.