Gary Player fears the worst for The Old Course at St Andrews with the new power-hitting game brought to the Tour by the likes of Bryson DeChambeau.
Player believes today’s biggest hitters are able to drive half of the Home of Golf’s greens.
‘Bryson has put on 40 yards. I don’t know where we are going,’ said Player.
‘Right now, they are in gyms building their bodies. I don’t know what the limit is to where a ball can go but we are going to see things we’ve never dreamed of. It’s going to just ruin the game.
‘Isn’t it sad, when you think of the great Home of Golf, St Andrews, a place that we all love and adore? That is so obsolete. You’ve got people there who will drive eight or nine greens.’
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DeChambeau’s driving has been the talk of the Tour since the restart but Player believes the American is just paving the way for those behind him to do even more damage.
‘Bryson is Mickey Mouse. This is the thing we’ve got to realise. This is Mickey Mouse compared to what’s coming along,’ added Player.
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But the South African great did go on record to give credit to the gym work done by DeChambeau as well as praise his swing.
‘First of all, he has a very good golf swing – contrary to what people have been saying. If you look at his swing step by step it’s outstanding. He puts the club at the top of his backswing in the most perfect position.
‘I admire him. A lot of people have been critical but I admire him because it takes tremendous discipline to have to go to that gym. I found, throughout my career, people go to the gym, they stop. If you go to that gym every day, as I have done for 70 years, let me tell you there are some days you just don’t want to go.
‘You are tired, you don’t want to go, but you have to go. To have built his body up, I admire that so much to have done that. He’s been rewarded.
‘I have been saying, since I was nine, you’ve got to lift weights, you’ve got to build your body up if you want to have longevity.’
