Was tennis better when rackets were made of wood and all the players dressed in white? Was motor racing better when the cars had narrow tyres and the engines were at the front end and the drivers overalls were plain coloured and unlogo'd? Were soccer and rugby better with a heavy ball made of leather and the players didn't have tattoo's? Things change in sport, and in society and in life in general, they evolve.
However, one of the nicest things about golf is standard’s.
Call me a fuddy duddy if you like, although I ain't that old, but that the vast majority of golf Clubs – note the capital ‘C’ in the word ‘Clubs’, as I’m referring to golf ‘Clubs’ not to golf Facilities like pay-n-play and muni’s - and their members and member based competitive events adhere to standards of dress, behaviour, politeness, rules and regulations etc is one of the great things about golf. I think we golfers call it etiquette and I struggle to think of few other aspects of sport, maybe even life these days, where etiquette still holds any degree of sway.
The world outside the golf course is a busy place but a golf course, especially at a private ‘Club’ is normally a little area of relative peace and quiet away from the hussle and bussle and hurley-burley of everyday life. A refuge if you like, a peaceful and tranquil and maybe even serene refuge and this aspect of golf has a powerful attraction to many people and although things in sport and in life and in society do constantly move on and evolve every day, at least on the course or at the golf ‘Club’ they evolve at a slower pace.
Jud has a lovely line when he says that "Getting my kid to put on a collared shirt and a pair of khakis over basketball shorts and a t-shirt once in a while isn't necessarily a bad thing..." and whilst youngsters (and others!) may want to push the boundaries a bit and dress up like Ronald McDonald or look like the Village People, one day these same youngsters will be older and they’ll probably want peace and calm and tranquillity and serenity in their golfing lives and will (hopefully) be grateful that their forefathers (ie us) didn’t give up on the standards and etiquette in golf in the name of alleged progress and evolution. And if you're really serious about helping youngsters get into golf build the little kids a short pitch-n-putt course and then when they get good enough/big enough/mature enough let them onto the big course, oh and while your at it teach them the importance of standards in dress, behaviour, politeness, rules and regulations etc.
As to equipment evolution and use, well if you want to play social golf or buddies fun golf and use a long or belly putter does it really matter if your not causing hassle to others? In this respect perhaps it might help if some parts of the world moved away from the 'post every card' approach to handicapping, but I guess that's another debate for another day. But if you want to play competitive golf, then stick to the rules and regulations. The key aspect to me is the definition of the rules and regulations and very crucially, who makes and polices them.
In Ian's original post he say’s "This has nothing at all to do with the Anchor Ban debate at all, but does have everything to do with the conflict between traditionalists and those who clearly want to change the game to fit the times."
I would suggest that in the long and belly putter debate "those who clearly want to change the game to fit the times" become, if not regulated by a body or bodies with sufficient strength and determination, ie guts, "those who clearly want to change the game to fit themselves", whether these be players or manufacturers. This aspect IMO is what the long and belly putter debate has become, the power of the manufacturers, their £$£$, their advertising and the exposure of those players they pay to play their products and who become media made roll models.
Whether the regulators have the strength and determination to stand up to them and the ambulance chasers who advise them will be key, not just in the long and belly putter debate, but in other issues that will arise in the game in the future.
To close on a lighter aspect, it did amuse me recently to see a player attempting to putt on an adjacent green with a putter anchored firmly against his chin in a high wind. So strong was the wind that he couldn’t control the club properly and thus managed to miss his ball completely and hit his foot with the clubhead! It’s also difficult not to chuckle when it’s pouring down with rain and a belly putter user is try to keep his hands dry while the water runs down from his waterproof jacket onto the clubs elongated grip that is firmly stuck into his belly.
Off to find the hickories now and play a few holes with my Flat Earth Society friends at Luddites Golf Club and afterwards debate in the bar King Knut’s inability to hold back the tide.
All the best