Hey Everyone,

This week, I shared a new page on the website that will track D1 men’s and women’s results this spring. You can find it here.

Over the course of the spring, I will update team results along with tracking individuals who flew the coop and play D1 golf for non-Massachusetts programs.

While the weather might not feel like it, we are closer to the upcoming golf season than we are from last year’s season. One way to get ready is to attend the Northeast Golf Show from March 14-16 at Gillette Stadium. A bevy of companies will be there and you can try out the latest clubs and do some bargain hunting, too.

If you’re interested in attending, you can use the following promo codes for a discount when you purchase tickets on the website.

BSC = $3 OFF General Admission (Enter in the “Additional Information” section)

BSGVIP = $10 OFF the VIP Experience

News and Notes:

Palmas Del Mar: Boston College teed it up in the Palmas Del Mar this week. They finished 11th. Rutgers’ Weston Jones (Sudbury, Mass.) finished T4. He shot 66-68-76. It was a tough finish for the senior. He had the lead with six holes remaining, but play was suspended. He returned the next morning to finish and a triple bogey on the 14th hole was too much to overcome.

Megan Khang finishes third: Rounds of 62-68 over the weekend shot Khang up the leaderboard in the Founders Cup in Florida. Alexa Pano shot 74-73 to miss the cut.

Davis Chatfield earns top ten: Rounds of 67-70-65-67 locked in a T6 for Davis Chatfield (Attleboro, Mass.) this week. In four events this season, he has made $75,588.

WORMBURNER COMICS

Last week, Wormburner Comics reached out, and I thought it might be fun to have a little levity in the newsletter! You can follow the new account on IG.

Is the Mini-Driver a Trojan Horse?

In 2028, when golf fans tune in to watch The Masters, the competitors will likely be using a rolled-back golf ball. There is some consternation about this, but in 2023, the USGA and R&A announced their intention to change the launch conditions of the golf ball so it doesn’t go as far as it does right now.

There are plenty of reasons to slow down distance gains; however, some organizations, like the PGA Tour and PGA of America have not committed to following this rule. Truthfully, I’d love to see the players use different balls in different competitions.

But that’s a different argument for a different time.

In their press release, the USGA dropped a few little nuggets about other actions they might take in the future to limit distance. The size of the driver is on their radar, and I think that the proliferation of mini-drivers is a Trojan Horse that could lead to a new regulation on the size of the driver head in the coming years.

The explosion of mini-drivers after that announcement got me thinking.

Is this a way for golf companies to test the market on smaller head drivers and collect some real world data?

Will the USGA shrink the driver size in the coming years for all golfers?

I think it’s very possible.

Two years ago, I hopped on eBay and purchased a Titleist 975D driver for about $50. It was the driver in 1998, and I wanted to have the option to bring it out for some rounds on courses that might be shorter or when I wanted to use a half-set.

Currently, drivers are allowed to be 460cc. The mini-drivers range from 240-305cc.

The Titleist 975D is 260cc. In 27 years, the driver size has ballooned, and the forgiveness across the face is immense. Hit one a little off the toe or heel with the 975D, and it’s spinning off the planet. Add in a little wind, and the ball is gone.

I had to use the 975D in a Mass. Public Links qualifier at Presidents GC in 2023 because my clubs were stuck in Scotland. I was dreading the opening tee shot, which is rather mundane if you have a massive driver in your hand. I was wavering between hitting the 975D or my hybrid. There is no range at Presidents, so it was not the type of shot I could practice before the round.

I decided to hit my hybrid and kept the driver in the bag until the fifth hole. After I hit the 975D, one of my playing partners asked, “What the hell is that?” I explained my issue to him, and he looked at the club like it was from another planet.

Using that driver in a competitive round with a modern ball was fine. I kept it in play and hit a few weird shots; thankfully, it didn’t cost me any shots. However, it did make me more uncomfortable than if I had my modern driver because the dispersion was way higher.

In 2014, TaylorMade released its first mini-driver: the SLDR Mini-Driver.

In a review, MyGolfSpy wrote, “Leave it to TaylorMade to create the club you never knew you needed. Actually, leave it to TaylorMade to create the club you needed in 2001.”

But what if…they created the club you’ll need in 2030?

11 years later, PXG, Titleist, and Cobra are all in on the mini-driver craze.

Its purpose right now isn’t to replace a driver, per se. Instead, OEMs are pitching the new club as a 3-wood replacement—a versatile option with a little more “oomph” off the tee that can still be hit off the ground.

Henry Shimp of The Tie Podcast went deep on the mini-driver on their website.

A cynic might say that this is a way of getting sickos to replace a club they almost all have in their bag- 3 wood - and then push hybrids of higher-loft woods (i.e. 7 wood or 9 wood).

It seems as if it could also be a way of getting smaller drivers in golfers' hands to make it feel “normal” to hit a smaller club. The technology is far superior to that of 1998, when the 975D was released. The mini-driver isn’t going to be as penal as the older drivers; we’re not going back to the persimmon days.

Maybe it’s just a trend, or maybe with all the companies pumping out this new model, the USGA might be tinkering with a new rule, and this is the way to ease people into the idea of smaller drivers.

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When I’m not golfing…

I’m reading…

• Maybe someday I’ll share my story about getting a fake ID in New York City… it seems like it’s easier to get them, and they’re far better. “A New Generation of ‘Unbeatable’ Fake IDs Is Bedeviling Bouncers”

I’m listening to…

• I’ve shared the Retail Therapy podcast here before. The cohost of that show, Will DeFries, runs Sunday Scaries and he also hosts Circling Back with three buddies. It’s a pretty good listen if you’re looking for an escape from the real world/news for a couple hours a week.

I’m eating…

• This Roasted Squash and Bacon salad made me feel better about the Garlic Parmesan Wings and nachos I ate during that dud of a Super Bowl.

I’m watching…

• Shetland is one of our favorite TV shows. It’s on its ninth season. We fired it up this week.

Bay State Archives

• A list of golf courses open in the winter.

• Bay State Picks: Best courses you can walk for less than $60.

• Bay State Picks: Nine-hole courses to play before or after work

• Bay State Picks: 18 public golf that is worth your time

• Bay State Picks: Easy 18-hole public walks

• Bay State Deep Dive: Myopia Hunt Club

   

• "On Course" New England Journal Podcast

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• Amateur Golf Podcast

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