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America's golf courses -- especially the ones played by the PGA Tour -- are getting longer and longer. Is the end in sight?

If you haven't noticed the not-so-gradual increase in length, let me point out some interesting facts. Generally speaking, the 7,000-yard course played by the tour was a rarity 20 years ago, usually seen only at high altitudes where the air was thin and the ball was expected to carry farther. But the trend toward length continues nationwide.

The point is made unequivocally in the Triad with Greensboro's long-running PGA Tour event, now known as the Wyndham Championship, which will be played at Sedgefield Country Club for the first time since 1976. Al Geiberger won that year by two shots over Lee Trevino on a course playing 6,643 yards. It was a par-70 then and this year it's also a par-70, but playing at more than 7,100 yards.

It used to be thought that the game's longest hitters-turned-course-designers were the ones likely to stretch the bounds of reason: Jack Nicklaus, Fred Couples, Davis Love, etc. Not necessarily so.

Mark O'Meara, one of the shorter hitters, designed Tuhaye Golf Club in Park City, Utah, and it measures 7,800. Unconfirmed reports also making the rounds contend that there may be several layouts in the deep South -- where the air isn't so thin -- that are pushing 8,000 yards. Near O'Meara's Tuhaye -- in Promontory, Utah -- is a Nicklaus design of 8,000 yards, according to sales representative Kyle Witt, who says he hasn't played it yet since the full 18 holes were only recently completed.

Another recent example of the PGA going to lengthier venues was the Nationwide Tour's South Georgia Classic, played May 1-4 in Valdosta, Ga., on a layout that measured 7,781 yards.

The collegians are getting an early taste of what awaits them in the pro ranks. In the NCAA Division I Central Regional this year, Wake Forest won with a 27-over-par score on Ohio State's 7,420-yard Scarlet Course in Columbus.

Jack Nance, longtime executive director of the Carolinas Golf Association, the governing body for North and South Carolina, sees a major problem ahead because courses may become landlocked with no room to grow. Economics also is a factor.

"Adding length (to new or existing courses) is costing billions of dollars in construction and renovation work," Nance says. "Some courses will lose their edge because they have no room to expand."

Kelly Miller, president of Pine Needles Lodge and Golf Club and the Mid Pines Inn and Golf Club of Southern Pines, says courses that are unable to add length "might see the reposition of bunkers, hazards, etc., that reflect current distances and design integrity the original course architect had."

'technology Is The Culprit'

So, where does this lengthening process end?

While not predicting a stopping point, Nance says courses "are trying to keep up with the increased flight of the golf ball" and to "keep golf challenging based on new technology, both with the ball and the golf club."

Miller, voted one of the five North Carolinians who have had the most dramatic influence on golf in the state, says: "I'm not really sure there is an end, although I think a lot of people are hopeful we're done with significant increases."

Nance and Miller agree that equipment has become the driving force in golf.

"Technology is the culprit," Nance says.

Miller adds, "There's no question that technology has helped the average golfer, the better amateur and club pros, but I feel the greatest benefit has been to the touring professional who can generate 115-plus-mph clubhead speed."

And Nance and Miller agree on yet another factor in the course-lengthening phenomenon: Golfers are better conditioned athletes today, though this is secondary to the technological aspect.

But, Nance says, "that alone would not justify the unusual spike in length of the golf ball."

Miller concurs.

"The way current touring professionals train and the fact that there are now better athletes playing golf vs. 30 years ago have contributed to the tremendous increase in length for the pros," he says.

Going The Distance

So, who are these bastions of power that necessitate ever-longer courses to accommodate advances in equipment? Probably not the names that immediately come to mind.

The top three players on the PGA Tour in driving distance are Bubba Watson, J.B. Holmes and Dustin Johnson. Where, you ask, are John Daly and Tiger Woods? Woods is No. 29 and Daly is No. 34.

According to statistician Gil Capps, a walking, breathing encyclopedia of golf data who lives in Davidson and furnishes this information for Johnny Miller on NBC's golf telecasts, driving averages "are determined by the average number of yards per measured drive, and these drives are measured on two holes per round.

"Care is taken," Capps adds, "to select two holes which face opposite directions to counteract the effect of wind. Drives are measured to the point at which they come to rest, regardless of whether they are in the fairway or not."

While length certainly is not the sole determinant of financial success on the circuit, it is a major contributor. Witness the fact that Corey Pavin won 15 times on the PGA Tour and was the 1995 U.S. Open champion; he's won just once in the past 12 years, and that was at Brown Deer Park in Milwaukee, one of the shortest courses on tour. Pavin currently ranks 199th on the tour in driving distance and 93rd on the money list.

The Long And Short Of It

The striving for driving will continue. Courses will continue -- for the foreseeable future, at least -- to stretch the boundaries of geography. Yet, we're reminded that length off the tee is not a guarantee of wealth on the PGA Tour.

Daly was the King of the Acushnet for 11 years out of 12 from 1991-2002, yet he never led the money winners at year's end. Now he's depending largely on sponsor exemptions to get into tournament fields and struggling to make the cut.

The one year Daly's reign was interrupted was 1994, when Davis Love averaged 283.8. Distance since Tom Purtzer's Tour-leading 279.6 in 1990 has grown to Bubba Watson's 315.2 in 2007.

So, what are we to surmise from these facts and figures? Use the latest equipment, stay in good condition and improve your putting.