The PGA Tour just dropped some numbers, and for once, we’re not talking about birdies, bogeys, or strokes gained—we’re talking seconds, minutes, and rule changes that are actually working.
After months of testing distance measuring devices (DMDs) and revamping pace-of-play policies, the Tour is reporting some real, measurable progress. And guess what? Players and caddies seem to like it.
DMDs Are Speeding Things Up
You’ve seen them out there, those little laser devices players or caddies pull out to shoot distances. Now, the PGA Tour has confirmed what many suspected: these DMDs are indeed helping to speed up the process. A study based on ShotLink data and surveys of 153 players and 144 caddies showed that a whopping 82% of them were using the devices when permitted.
But here’s where it gets interesting. According to the numbers, approach shots and shots from 40 to 60 yards out—especially on par-5s—were notably faster when DMDs were in use. We’re talking 4.9 seconds shaved off shots from the fairway and 5.1 seconds off from the rough.
That may sound like a blip, but multiply that across a round, a field of 120+ players, and four tournament days, and it adds up. Additionally, three-quarters of the players surveyed stated that they support making DMD a permanent rule. That’s a strong consensus in a sport where change often moves slower than a Sunday group waiting on the tee box.
Penalties Get Real—and Behavior Changes Fast
And it’s not just tech doing the heavy lifting. The Korn Ferry Tour and PGA Tour Americas rolled out a revised Pace of Play Policy this year, and the early returns are crystal clear: one-stroke penalties work.
The change? A player now gets docked a stroke on their first bad time, not the second. The result? The number of bad times decreased from 10 to just one over the same period. That’s a dramatic behavior shift and a clear message—dawdle, and you pay.
Players have responded exactly as the Tour hoped: with urgency. Nobody wants to be “on the clock,” and if they land there, they’re hustling to get off it fast. It’s the kind of consequence that sticks, especially in a game where every stroke counts.
PGA Transparency Gets a Big Boost—for Fans
And here’s a move that’s going to make fans very happy: real-time pace-of-play data will now be available on PGATour.com. That’s right—you’ll be able to see how long it’s taking the field to play each hole, with stats broken down by front nine, back nine, and even by group. It’s the first time fans can actually track slow play and maybe even call out the usual suspects.
Tour officials say this new layer of transparency is part of a broader “fan-forward” initiative. The idea is to give spectators more context and a better overall experience. And if exposing slow play helps speed things up even more? That’s a win-win.
So, while we’re still a long way from lightning rounds and 3-hour 18s, the PGA Tour is clearly tightening things up. Between DMDs, stronger policies, and public accountability, golf might finally be swinging toward a faster, more modern version of itself—and players seem just fine with it.
