Stacy Innerst, Post-Gazette illustration Click photo for larger image.

Dick Rugge is technical director of the United States Golf Association, which means he is the person in charge of regulating the equipment used by golfers, whether professionals on the PGA Tour or a weekend player at a club.

Like just about everyone else associated with the USGA, Rugge seeks to preserve the integrity of the game, doing his best not to stand in the way of progress but making sure golf and the ever-evolving world of equipment technology does not drift too far from its roots, its history, its sanctity. Even its appearance.

But, as the clubheads on titanium drivers kept growing larger and larger, looking more like a frying pan attached to a broom handle, Rugge grew concerned that the drivers that generate more than $500 million in annual sales in the United States were starting to look too unlike the clubs used by Ben Hogan, Byron Nelson and Sam Snead. And he was worried where the inflated head size would lead.

"We thought they were becoming something substantially different than golf clubs," Rugge said.

So Rugge and the USGA decided enough was enough.

On Jan. 1, 2004, they instituted a size limit on clubheads -- 460 cubic centimeters, or 28.06 cubic inches -- and put in guidelines that restrict the length of the head from heel to toe and back to front. The concern was not only that the bigger heads were creating a larger center of gravity, or "sweet spot," thus leading to more solid hits and greater distance, but also that they were becoming -- or, perhaps, threatening to become -- unsightly.

Two years later, nearly every equipment manufacturer has reached the limit. Everyone from TaylorMade to Titleist to Callaway to Ping has unveiled a driver this year with a 460cc clubhead, leading to concern that technological advancement has hit a wall and the days of greater distance -- the marketing mantra that fuels the sale of the big-headed drivers -- might be dwindling.

"They always find ways to create interesting products," Rugge said of equipment manufacturers. "It's more than just making it bigger and bigger."

Long-distance romance

For the past 10 years, since they began using titanium rather than steel to make clubheads, equipment manufacturers built drivers designed with one intent -- to make the ball fly farther. And they kept building them, debuting new drivers every other year to feed an insatiable appetite for distance by the consumer, who would routinely spend $299-$399 for the promise of 5-10 more yards off the tee.

"It's always about distance," said Tom Olsavsky, who works in research and development for TaylorMade-adidas Golf, maker of the popular R7 driver that featured movable weighted ports.

Titanium was the key. Lighter than steel and just as durable, titanium allowed manufacturers to build larger heads that weighed less than their predecessors. Combine those with lighter, more durable shafts, and golfers could generate more speed with clubs that had a greater center of gravity, producing more good shots that traveled farther.

"We've seen that larger clubs have allowed players to swing harder, especially on tour," Rugge said. "You don't have to hit it on the screws anymore. It was an enabler to hit it farther and farther."

Some of that, though, might be coming to an end.

Distance will no longer be the catchword for marketing arms of the manufacturer. If anything, the cap on clubhead size by the USGA will force equipment manufacturers to shift their emphasis from distance and concentrate on developing drivers that are better and even more efficient, if such a thing is possible.

"Have we maximized distance? We probably have if you're talking about size and center of gravity." -- Jesse Ortiz chief operating officer and chief designer for the new line of Bobby Jones Golf equipment

Size will no longer matter. Now researchers, many of whom were NASA engineers and scientists, will focus on materials and weighting to improve drivers and make them easier to hit. Distance will remain part of the marketing nomenclature because the ball will still travel far.

But it, too, may have hit the wall.

"Have we maximized distance? We probably have if you're talking about size and center of gravity," Jesse Ortiz, chief operating officer and chief designer for the new line of Bobby Jones Golf equipment, said in a recent interview in the Detroit News. "But there is so much more we can do to make the clubs easier to hit and straighter."

But, to do so, Olsavsky said players who want to hit the ball farther need to be tested properly on a launch monitor, a computerized device that measures swing speed, ball speed and launch angle -- three of the main components that help optimize distance. Testers can help players reach their maximum levels by mixing and matching shafts and clubhead loft, not to mention the proper type of ball.

After all, if golfers are going to spend nearly $400 for a club, they should get fitted to ensure the driver works best for them.

"The way you get distance is really about the fit of the player to the club," Olsavsky said. "If you don't have a good fit, you're going to leave distance on the table."

A movable feast

Phil Mickelson offered a glimpse into the future of driver performance last week when he used two drivers to win the BellSouth Classic by 13 shots with a near-record score.

Mickelson plays the Callaway Fusion FT-3 driver, which features a 460 cc head with weighted technology (44 grams of weight can be moved to allow a fade, draw or neutral flight path). But he used a 46-inch, 9-degree lofted driver that was weighted to hit a draw when he wanted to move the ball from his left to the right, and used a 45-inch, 9.5-degree driver that was weighted to hit a fade when he wanted to cut the ball from right to left.

For Mickelson, it wasn't about distance.

It was about performance.

"It has worked out really well," Mickelson said. "The internal weighting of the club -- one draws it and takes the left side out of play and one fades it and takes the right side out of play. It's great because I only have to play with half the trouble."

That, of course, was the concept behind the development of TaylorMade's R7 driver, which features movable ports weighing 2 to 14 grams designed to allow the golfer to produce a draw, fade or neutral ball flight.

Two years later, TaylorMade already has taken the driver to another level, unveiling the 425 and 460 driver featuring the same technology in bigger clubheads.

"We see the future as being in fitting," Olsavsky said. "Go see a fitter and get on a launch monitor."

A new twist

Make no mistake, the USGA is intent on curbing the distance the ball travels. In addition to the cap of clubhead size, the USGA also is close to implementing a limit on clubhead moment of inertia (MOI), or the head's resistance to twisting. The less a clubhead twists, the greater the "forgiveness," giving players a greater chance to hit the ball straight.

For example, the USGA tested a wooden driver on its Iron Byron swing machine and deliberately set the machine to produce off-center hits (7/8-inch from the center of gravity). The result: The ball traveled 45 yards less than a ball hit "on the screws."

When the same test was performed with a new titanium driver, the ball traveled only 10 yards less.

"Enough," Rugge said, "is enough."

Curiously, such a restriction likely would have a greater effect on amateur and weekend players who have trouble hitting the ball straight and need a high MOI. PGA Tour players don't necessarily need or want such a quality, though the USGA is concerned better players will be able to swing harder without fear of a poor result if the MOI isn't restricted.

According to Rugge, the MOI in a club has nearly tripled in the past 15 years.

"That's always our dilemma with any of our equipment rules," Rugge said. "What's good for me [as a player] isn't necessarily good for what's on tour. We don't want to make it so you can't play anymore, but we have to be careful what's going on on tour. It's always a juggling act."