Whatever Happened To The Overall Distance Standard?

When I first started playing golf it was the start of 1990. In my first year playing I remember reading the Rules of Golf. One Rule I specifically remember concerned the golf ball and the Overall Distance Standard. I remember that the USGA had an Iron Byron machine and they tested golf balls on it. I remember that the golf ball cannot have an initial velocity of 250 feet per second and cannot exceed 280 yards carry and roll. Nowadays we see Tour pros using long irons and hitting the ball 280 yards, and their drivers way exceed that distance. Is the Overall Distance Standard rule still in effect, or did the USGA repealed that rule and that is why we now have pros hitting the ball 350 yards?

The overall distance standard is still there - it is a test used to determine whether a specific ball submitted for testing meets the requirement to be considered "conforming". Rule 4.2 requires that only a conforming golf ball must be used when playing golf. The Equipment Standards tell us: This provision was first introduced in 1976 in order to restrict the overall distance (carry and roll) a ball can travel under certain specific conditions. This test protocol is continuously reviewed to ensure that it reflects the modern game and modern equipment.

You can find the current specs for this test if you search for Overall Distance and Symmetry Test Procedure, latest version released by RBs in 2019. Key features of the test standard are ball temperature (75), clubhead speed (120), ball speed (175) and spin rate (2520). With those specs met, a ball hit by the programmed robot that travels more than 320 yards is not conforming.

But when you give a conforming ball to someone that swings at well over 120, it can go a fair bit further (around 3 yards per 1 mph club speed, other things equal).

I learn something new every day

It was a bit technical to read, but the equipment standards state that the maximum allowable distance is 317 yards with a tolerance of 3 yards, so 320 yards is the absolute limit. They merely raised the limit. Any idea when they dropped the 280-yard limit? I suppose they gradually increased that limit over time.https://www.usga.org/content/dam/usga/pdf/2019/equipment-standards/TPX3006%20Overall%20Distance%20and%20Symmetry%20Test%20Protocol.pdf

So people have been blaming the ball for lengthening golf courses, but the real fault lies in the USGA for enabling it. They should have kept the Overall Distance Standard to 280.

I don't think its as simple as the USGA just increasing the distance allowed. The ball speed portion of the test hasn't changed since the 1970s. I think the distance increased along with clubhead speed to reflect modern parameters. I'm trying to verify, but I'm having trouble fining old test procedures.

Edit - I found that the initial velocity test is done at about 98 mph (143.8 Ft/s). If the old distance standard was tested at the same speed it would make sense that the distance was increased if the clubhead speed was increased to 120 mph (current test spec).