Dating back to the PGA Championship two weeks ago controversy had been swirling around the PGA Tour. Mainly with one player, Rory McIlroy, when it became public he had a drive which was deemed non-conforming to the USGA standards for drivers. McIlroy finished the second major of the season tied for 47th with a +3 finish.

As a quick aside, it should be noted McIlroy didn’t help himself by refusing to talk to the media after all four rounds of the tournament, but speculation immediately began suggesting something foul was afoot. Some even went as far as to questioning McIlroy’s Masters championship earlier this season, wondering if he was using the non-conforming driver during that major win.

After Scottie Scheffler admitted after his victory of his drive also being deemed non-conforming, the crowd wanting to crucify Rory certainly eased up a bit. After all, if Scheffler was able to go out and win the PGA Championship after his driver was removed from his bag, how big of a deal is it?

More controversy hit the news from an unlikely source this week, and that unlikely source was Lucas Glover. Glover spoke about how it is easy to skirt the driver tests which happen to about a third of the field every week.

“I’ve been trying to think all morning and all day how to say this without sounding like it’s going to sound, but most guys don’t give them their real driver, anyway,” Glover said when asked why the USGA didn’t just test drivers of every player. “They give them their backup just in case.

“I know a lot of guys, they keep two drivers in their bag just in case,” he said. “‘Hey, oh, yeah, it’s this one. It’s this one right here. Yeah, do this, test this one.’”

The smoldering fire of controversy after the latest major golf tournament had gasoline thrown on it after Glover’s comment.

If anyone would know what does, and does not, happen on the PGA Tour, it would be someone like Glover who has been on the tour for an extremely long time. However, the USGA absolutely disagrees with his assessment of what can happen.

Mike Whan, the CEO of the USGA, suggested getting around these regulations it’s not that easy.

“We keep serial numbers of the driver that were given us, and 90% of the drivers that were given us in those practice facilities when we test are played on the first tee,” Whan said Tuesday ahead of the U.S. Women’s Open in Wisconsin. “And we expect 10% of players to be making changes, anyway.

“I don’t think that’s a real concern for us.”

While Whan didn’t say why the USGA doesn’t simply test every player, he did provide context into the testing and how someone like Scheffler would have a feeling his drive could be getting “close” to being non-conforming.

Whan said test results are green (pass), yellow (getting close) and red (fail). They are kept confidential to prevent a routine matter from getting too much attention, as was the case at Quail Hollow.

“If they got a yellow, they start preparing for a backup driver or switch,” Whan said. “It seemed like a big week to everybody else. But for us, it was a pretty standard week.”

Scheffler spoke about his driver being deemed non-conforming prior to the PGA Championship at Quail Hollow, you can watch that interaction after the tournament below:

“I would argue that if we’re going to test the drivers, we need to be more robust in the way we test them.”

Scottie Scheffler reveals his driver failed testing this week but says it’s time for a more consistent, stricter process. pic.twitter.com/PESL5Sdb0E

— GOLF.com (@GOLF_com) May 19, 2025

As the dust settles on the latest golf controversy, this until Rory McIlroy meets with media the next time he tees it up, you have to wonder if the USGA isn’t bringing this all on themselves. Unless they are physically unable to test every player, there is no reason to believe they shouldn’t be testing as many players as possible, and that would include the entire field.

Throw in the fact some players openly are searching for loopholes in the system, the USGA should be doubling-down on their testing to ensure everything is on the up-and-up when it comes to clubs which might be used in a way to gain an unfair advantage during a tournament.

If McIlroy plays at the RBC Canadian Open next week and speaks to the media, prepare yourself for this controversy to be drudged up once again.

Jeff Hartman is the host of the Fairways & Dreams podcast, and the latest podcast which talks about this controversy can be heard in the player below: