The R&A once changed golf forever with one equipment decision?

For more than 60 years, golfers around the world played with two different-sized golf balls. British golfers traditionally used the smaller “British ball,” (41.1 mm) in diameter, while American golfers used the larger (42.7 mm) ball.

For many years, The Open Championship allowed players to choose which ball they wanted to use, creating a unique situation where golfers could compete for one of the game’s greatest trophies with different equipment. Some British players remained loyal to tradition, while others switched to the larger ball for greater consistency.

In 1974, the R&A made the historic decision to adopt the larger American-sized golf ball as the official ball for The Open Championship. This brought the oldest major championship in line with international standards and finally ended the era of two different golf balls being used at the highest level.