World No 2 Jon Rahm has pleaded for “unity” in the PGA Tour locker rooms as the professional game stands on the brink of another great divide concerning the distance debate.

Rahm has already stated his opposition to the recently-announced plan of the R&A and US Golf Association to introduce a “shorter” ball that will travel 15 to 20 yards less when hit by the big-hitters, joining not only the equipment-makers in his objections but also several other top names such as Justin Thomas and Jordan Spieth.

And this apparently collective stance in the elite ranks against the intentions of the governing bodies bolstered the conviction on Tour that the mooted “Model Local Rule” due to be implemented in 2026 would never see the light of day.

However, on Wednesday, Rory McIlroy threw a spanner - if not an entire equipment truck - in the works when declaring that he fully supported the proposal, arguing that it would arrest golf’s “bomb and gouge” trend and restore the “integrity” of a sport in danger of becoming too one-dimensional.