Some of our TP Red golf balls were found to exceed the USGA's and R&A initial velocity rule. Not many – less than two-tenths of one percent of what's in the market. The cause was human error – we accidentally made a batch that paired the TP Red cover with the wrong core. This variance was limited to TP Reds only, and didn't affect the TP Black or any other TaylorMade balls.
To remedy the situation we've:
1. Sent a letter to the USGA and R&A asking them to remove the <TP/Red.LDP> stamped ball from its Conforming Ball List effective March 2.
2. We switched to a new side stamp, <TP Red.LDP> while preserving the same design, construction, materials, aerodynamics, etcetera.
The bottom line is that the TP Red stays the same, only the side stamp has changed. Because the TP Red that are in the market now, with the original side stamp, were ruled conforming to the Rules of Golf, they can continue to be used in normal play including those rounds in which scores are posted for handicap purposes.
That's because only high-level tournaments, like tour events and USGA and R&A competitions, typically require contestants to use a ball that's on the List. Most club championships and member guests don't. But no matter what kind of tournament you're playing in, it's a good idea to ask an official beforehand if you need to play a ball that's on the List. If you do, you'll need a TP Red with the new side stamp. If not, the original side stamp will do fine.
The TP Red balls with a new side stamp are currently in production. We will be putting a sticker in the top right-hand corner of the box and on individual sleeves reading ‘TP Red Tournament Edition’’. For professionals and elite amateurs playing in an event which requires a golf ball to be used from the conforming golf ball list, we recommend using this ‘’Tournament Edition’’ ball.
Why was the TaylorMade TP Red removed from the USGA's and R&A Conforming Ball List?
What exactly is the Conforming Ball List?
Does that mean you only have to play a ball that's on the Conforming Ball List if you're competing in a tour event or USGA/R&A tournament?
So any ball that isn't on the List doesn't conform to the Rules of Golf, correct?
Has the TP Red already been removed from the Conforming Ball List?
How many TP Reds were affected?
What caused the problem?
Don't you have quality control measures to prevent this kind of occurrence?
How much longer are the "fast" TP Reds compared to the conforming TP Reds?
What about tour pros who prefer the TP Red but need to play a ball that's on the Conforming Ball List? Are they out of luck come March 2nd?
What's the difference between the TP Red with the old side stamp and TP Red with the new side stamp?
If there's no difference between the two TP Reds other than the side stamp, why wouldn't the ball with the "new" side stamp be removed from the list, too?
How were you able to get the TP Red with the new side stamp on the Conforming Golf Ball List so quickly?
Is the difference in the side stamps the only way to tell the de-listed TP Red apart from the listed one?
Since there are TP Reds with the old side stamp in the market that will be de-listed on March 2nd, are you concerned someone could be disqualified from a tournament for using them?
Could any tour pros have played a TP Red that was too fast for the USGA's and R&AS speed limit? Is Dustin Johnson's recent win at the AT&T tainted?
Going forward, how does this impact the tour pros who play TP Red?
Suppose an amateur used a TP Red to win his club championship last summer – what should he do?
Could the TP ball that rated No. 1 in GOLF Magazine's distance test been too fast?
Why call attention to this if it such a small number of balls were affected?
Why was the TaylorMade TP Red removed from the USGA's and R&A Conforming Ball List?
A small batch of TP Red balls exceeded the USGA's and R&A initial speed (feet-per-second) limit. We asked the USGA to remove the TP Red from the Conforming Ball List.
What exactly is the Conforming Ball List?
The USGA and R&A describes it like this:
[The Conforming Ball List] identifies golf balls that have been tested and found to conform to the Rules of Golf as established by the United States Golf Association and The R&A in St. Andrews, Scotland.
This List is in operation as a Condition of Competition for professional events, as well as all USGA Championships, and only golf balls appearing on the current List may be used during those competitions.
Does that mean you only have to play a ball that's on the Conforming Ball List if you're competing in a tour event or USGA/R&A tournament?
Pretty much. The USGA/R&A say that most tournaments that require contestants to play a ball that's on the List as a Condition of Competition are for "expert" golfers.
What the great majority of golfers don't realize is that almost all recreational golf can be played with a ball that isn't on the List. That includes weekend 4-balls, skins games and any score posted for handicap purposes. Plus, most tournaments the average player competes in, like club championships and member guests, typically don't have a condition of competition that requires use of a listed ball. However, it's always a good idea to ask tournament officials first.
The point here is that the TP Red that will be removed from the List on March 2nd, with the old side stamp, will continue to be perfectly acceptable for almost all recreational play.
So any ball that isn't on the List doesn't conform to the Rules of Golf, correct?
Not necessarily, because the USGA and R&A also say: If it is not [on the list], a golf ball may be used under USGA Rules of Golf provided it is not obviously non-conforming or advertised as such. Which means that most balls that don't conform to the Rules of Golf are labeled as such on the box or sleeve.
Has the TP Red already been removed from the Conforming Ball List?
The List is updated on the first Wednesday of every month. The next update is March 2nd; that's the day the TP Red will be removed.
How many TP Reds were affected?
Only about two-tenths of one percent on the market, or about one out of 500 balls.
What caused the problem?
The wrong core was used in one batch. That core, when paired with the TP Red's cover, results in a ball that exceeds the USGA's and R&A’s initial velocity limit. It was human error, plain and simple.
Don't you have quality control measures to prevent this kind of occurrence?
Absolutely, however when you manufacture millions of balls it's impossible to test every one. Instead you test samples, and we stand by the fact that our sample tests are on par with the rest of the industry.
How much longer are the "fast" TP Reds compared to the conforming TP Reds?
We prefer not be specific about that.
What about tour pros who prefer the TP Red but need to play a ball that's on the Conforming Ball List? Are they out of luck come March 2nd?
The TP Red that will be de-listed has a side stamp that reads <TP/Red.LDP>. TaylorMade is producing another TP Red with a different side stamp, <TP Red.LDP>, that's already on the Conforming Ball List. Tour pros who play the TP Red will get the one with the new side stamp well before March 2nd.
What's the difference between the TP Red with the old side stamp and TP Red with the new side stamp?
There's no difference, other than the side stamp. In every other way -- construction, materials, design, aerodynamics, etcetera – they're exactly the same, so players can expect the exact same performance going forward.
If there's no difference between the two TP Reds other than the side stamp, why wouldn't the ball with the "new" side stamp be removed from the list, too?
Because the speed-limit violation resulted from a glitch in engineering that affected one batch of balls, not an inherent issue with the design that made every ball too fast.
How were you able to get the TP Red with the new side stamp on the Conforming Golf Ball List so quickly?
Actually, the TP Red with the "new" side stamp was already on the Conforming Golf Ball List. It's common for ball manufacturers to submit to the USGA and R&A several of the same model ball, each with a slightly different side stamp, in case such an issue occurs like we experienced with the TP Red.
Is the difference in the side stamps the only way to tell the de-listed TP Red apart from the listed one?
Yes: the de-listed TP Red is stamped <TP/Red.LDP>; the new stamp is <TP Red.LDP>. Also, TP Reds with the new stamp come in boxes with a sticker on the upper right-hand corner that reads "Tournament Edition"; the de-listed TP Red box doesn't.
Since there are TP Reds with the old side stamp in the market that will be de-listed on March 2nd, are you concerned someone could be disqualified from a tournament for using them?
The possibility exists that a player could unwittingly use a TP Red with the old side stamp in a tournament that has a condition of competition that requires contestants to use a ball on the Conforming Ball List. That's why we want to get this issue out in the open and do what we can to inform golfers that they need to play the TP Red with the new <TP Red.LDP> side stamp starting on March 2nd in competitions where participants are required to use balls on the Conforming Ball List.
Could any tour pros have played a TP Red that was too fast for the USGA's and R&AS speed limit? Is Dustin Johnson's recent win at the AT&T tainted?
No, because the TP Red he played, with the old side stamp, was on the Conforming Ball List when he won the event.
Going forward, how does this impact the tour pros who play TP Red?
They can play the TP Red with the old side stamp, <TP/Red.LDP>, until March 2nd, when it's removed from the List. After that they have to play the TP Red with the <TP Red.LDP> side stamp. Of course, they can start playing the TP Red with the <TP/Red.LDP> side stamp anytime, since it's already on the Conforming Ball List, so we're making arrangements to supply tour pros with the TP Red <TP/Red.LDP> by the last week in February to eliminate any potential issues with the March 2nd deadline.
Suppose an amateur used a TP Red to win his club championship last summer – what should he do?
Any tournament won with a TP Red with the old side stamp is valid if the event was held before the ball was removed from the List, on March 2nd of this year, so he's got nothing to worry about. Besides, the odds are high that his club championship didn't have a condition of competition in place that required participants to use a ball on the Conforming Golf Ball List, since most tournaments at that level don't.
Could the TP ball that rated No. 1 in GOLF Magazine's distance test been too fast?
No, the ball that topped GOLF Magazine's distance test two years ago was the TP Black.
Why call attention to this if it such a small number of balls were affected?
This hasn't been a big deal for us. We already had another TP Red on the Conforming Ball List with a different side stamp (actually, we had three others), so that change was simple. We had to put stickers on the packaging that holds the balls with the new side stamp, and that isn't hard, either. We need to inform golfers of the situation and that it's a non-issue for almost all of them because they can still use the TP Reds with the old side stamp in almost every case, and we think we've got a good plan in place to do that.
