Jack Nicklaus is on his soapbox, again.
The Golden Bear rarely misses an opportunity to discuss changes in the game, and he took time before players teed off at the Memorial Tournament to talk about U-grooves and the U.S. Golf Aassociation's recent proposal to limit their play in competition.
"I think that the grooves are an issue, they've always been an issue," Nicklaus said. "I mean, I see television and I watch the guys playing out of rough like this and I see the ball go, shooooom. I say, 'God, there's no way in the world we could ever do that.'"
But, he continued, he prefers to use traditional V-grooves.
"I play with V grooves and I have all my life just because I like the flight of a golf ball," he said. "I personally have never liked the flight of what a U-groove does because it's square grooves or whatever you want to call them. Out of the rough I like to be able to take the ball and play my trajectory and throw it up softly."
However, Nicklaus said he doesn't think that grooves don't play as much of a role in the changed game of today as the golf ball does. Nicklaus advocates use of a professional ball that doesn't fly as far.
"(The USGA) felt that it was probably 80 percent grooves and head and a small part ball," he said. "They do far more research than I do. I don't do research, but I've played the game and seen it played for too many years, and I see what's happened. That's my feeling."
LUMPY'S NEW OLD DRIVER: Sometimes, you just have to return to what works.
Tim Herron did just that this week by putting his older, shorter TaylorMade r7 driver back in his bag. Because it's a little shorter, he said he thinks it helped him hit straighter.
"I worked hard, put my old driver back in the bag and just putted really well," he said after shooting an opening-round 66. "I've just got to keep working hard on my driver and getting the ball in play. I was looking for distance. I just needed to change and try something different."
SOUND OF SUCCESS: K.J. Choi is one of the few professionals to put a square-shaped driver in play. Choi, who has has the Nike SasQuatch Sumo 2 in his bag for two wins, doesn't seem to mind the odd sound the club makes when hit.
"It's pretty loud," said playing partner Rod Pampling. "The sad thing is you're getting used to it. The first time he hit it, wow, you could hear it across the whole golf course.
"Yeah, it's definitely loud, that's for sure. You know when he's teed off."
Choi tied for second in driving accuracy for the tournament with an 84 percent average.
CRAZY NEW PUTTER: Cristie Kerr decided it was time for a new putter. Despite putting well during the 2006 season, she didn't feel comfortable during a recent trip to Korea.
"I actually putted so poorly with the putter I putted so well with last year, I basically said 'I'm taking that out' and I bought a putter in the pro shop there, a Ping Craz-E putter, and I have just absolutely putted crazy with it. It's funny how things work out," she said.
"I've made little improvements over the last several weeks, finished second in Korea when I went there. Had I had the Ping Craz-E putter there the second day I probably would have done better."
JAPANESE ODYSSEY: It was another big Odyssey putter count this week on the Japanese Tour, with almost 69 percent of the players in the field putting them in play.
SHAFT AND GRIP WATCH: K.J. Choi used a Fujikura ZCom Six shaft in his Nike Sumo2 square driver to win the Memorial. ... Seventeen of the top 20 finishers who played in the Memorial used Golf Pride grips. ... Celtic Manor Wales Open Champion Richard Sterne used Grafalloy's ProLaunch Blue shaft in his driver. ... With Graphite Design's YS-6 shaft model in his driver, YS-7 in his 3-wood and YS-Hybrid 85 in his hybrid club, John Riegger won the Nationwide Tour's LaSalle Bank Open. ... Loren Roberts won the Boeing Championship at Sandestin on the Champions Tour with Graphite Design's YS-8.1 in his driver.
