The argument is all wrong. The antimodernists screech at the top of their lungs that today’s golf equipment is wrecking the game, particularly at the highest level. They couldn’t be more misled.

In fact, there are some areas that today’s PGA Tour players are worse at than they were 20 years ago. We know that there are lies, perfect lies, buried lies, damned lies and statistics. We utilize the latter to throw some light onto some hitherto dark areas. We looked at six statistical categories from last year, 10 years ago and 20 years ago. And we took the No. 1 player and the No. 70 player in each category (see chart). The numbers speak for themselves.

Let’s get the distance issue on the table and out of the way. Today’s drivers, with their super-engineered clubheads, along with advances in shaft technology and the distance the modern ball travels, make players longer off the tee than ever before. There’s no dispute.

Tour players have benefited from 30 extra yards off the tee on average from 20 years ago. So have the rest of us. A combination of forces produces the prodigious length. Clubheads are better and more forgiving. And golf balls – at all levels – perform like never before.

And the least talked about part of a driver – the shaft – has made more technological inroads than perhaps anything else in clubmaking. Shafts can be dialed in to get the most possible distance out of the club without having to change your swing.

Has more distance ruined the game?
Hardly. PGA Tour courses are much longer

DRIVING DISTANCE
2011 1st 318.4
2001 1st 306.7
1991 1st 288.9

70th 293.9

70th 281.7

70th 263.9

SCRAMBLING
2011 1st 65.17%
2001 1st 69.78%
1992 1st 68.26%

70th 58.62

70th 61.01

70th 59.89

MIKE PURKEY

E-MAIL MIKE
DRIVING ACCURACY
2011 1st 75.65%
2001 1st 81.10%
1991 1st 78.31%

70th 63.46

70th 69.96

70th 68.95

PUTTS PER ROUND
2011 1st 27.75
2001 1st 27.90
1991 1st 28.02

70th 29.07

70th 28.92

70th 29.25

GREENS IN REGULATION
2011 1st 71.68% 70th 66.25
2001 1st 74.53% 70th 67.29
1991 1st 73.32% 70th 67.48
SCORING AVERAGE
2011 1st 68.86
2001 1st 68.81
1991 1st 69.59

70th 70.70

70th 70.95

70th 70.90

than they were 10 or 20 years ago, stretching to 7,400 yards or more. At one time, a 430-yard par- 4 was a manly hole. Today, on Tour, it’s 480 yards – or longer. The 500- yard par- 4 is now a staple in the professional game. Courses with a par of 70 are becoming more popular with the PGA Tour staff, which limits the long-ballers to only two par 5s per round instead of four.

Purists claim that distance has rendered great old courses obsolete. From whom? Tour players compete on only about 40 courses a year. That leaves the rest for us to play and extra distance isn’t causing even scratch players to bring the Pine Valleys and the Merions and the Seminoles to their knees. The greats are still great.

With all this extra distance, you’d think
that Tour players are hitting wedges to
every hole, which would mean they are
hitting a lot more greens. In fact, it’s just
the opposite. The 2011 leader in greens in
regulation hit on average just fewer than 13
greens per round. The 70th-ranked player
was just under 12 greens per round. That’s
significantly worse than the stats from 2001
and 1991.

In defense of modern players, they must deal with hole locations that are tucked three paces off the edges of greens in many cases during tournament week. However, nothing is ever wrong with hitting the center of the green. From the fairway.

Putting happens to be the one area today’s Tour player is marginally better than his brethren of 10 and 20 years ago. Last year’s leader averaged 27.75 putts per round, roughly a quarter of a stroke better than 10 years ago and a little more than that 20 years ago. Still, that only amounts to about one shot better per tournament.

There are a couple of reasons for the improvement. One is agronomy. Grass strains and green surfaces are better than ever. Tour players compete on almost perfect greens nearly every week. It’s markedly easier to hole putts when greens are pristine. And Tour players have access to the latest technology to analyze putting strokes, thereby geting a perfectly fit putter.

All of which adds up to scoring, which is statistically about even with 2001 and 1991. The 2001 leader in scoring averaged 68.86 strokes per round, .05 worse than 2001 and about .75 better than 1991.

Hitting the ball farther never made anyone better. And straighter isn’t necessarily the answer, either. You still have to somehow get the ball in the hole. Joe Durant led the PGA Tour in 2011 in driving accuracy and was third in greens in regulation. Yet, he finished 160th on the money list.