Richie Ramsay yesterday accused golf officialdom of “sleeping at the wheel” when it comes to taking action on a number of pertinent issues in the game.
The 33-year-old Scot is representing Scotland in this weekend’s Golf Sixes, the new short-format team contest at the Centurion club which is dabbling with a number of innovations.
One of those experiments is a shot clock, with players given just 40 seconds to execute their strike. Ramsay believes that is a significant step forward in the battle against slow play and the Aberdonian welcomed the efforts of the European Tour in the quest to broaden golf's appeal.
“I’m not going to turn round and say Golf Sixes is the answer to solving golf’s problems but it’s a step in the right direction,” said Ramsay, who is partnering his compatriot, Marc Warren, in the two-day event. “I think there’s been a lot of people sleeping at the wheel. A lot of different bodies have not been doing anything on this. I don’t think some people have done their job very well.”
One of the other major areas of debate has been the length the modern day ball travels. The game’s governing bodies continue to insist that driving distances have plateaued and seem content to preserve the status quo.
But Mike Davis, the head of the USGA, recently expressed “regret” about golf ball distance and said: "It's been the thing, probably more than any, that has been the most harmful to the game.”
Ramsay added: “I saw comments from Mike Davis but that was contrary to what they said a year ago. I don’t think people in positions of power have done a very good job. When you are in positions of power you have a responsibility to take care of the game.”
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