[Rick Shefchik]

Adam,

That's an interesting theory, one I tend to agree with.

I think long putts over contoured putting surfaces are a challenge for the long putter, whose fortay seems to be short to medium length putts

That has been my experience. Since switching to the long putter in July, I've had most difficulty with long putts over undulating surfaces.

There are tradeoffs with any club and any method. I just can't believe the USGA considers this the biggest problem the game is facing.

[John Keenan]

Seems there are 2 issues 

One is the anchoring of the putter to the body the second is the length of the putter. As noted Kuchar uses a belly putter but does not anchor it to his belly.

The  other issue is length of putter such as the "broomstick" that Langer uses. That one from what I can see does not anchor against the body.

Are they looking at defining a length a putter can be and if it can be anchored against the body? Or just one?

They seem to be very different issues at least to me. I suspect you could anchor a 35 inch standard utter if you choose to.

 

[Jud_T]

John,

At this point I believe they're only looking at anchoring for any putter and not at the length of the club.  I agree that it would be pretty simple to just say that a putter can't be longer than 33" or something but then some clown would come along putting with a rescue club or something...Admittedly it would seem to be harder to make a pendulum stroke that didn't involve small twitch muscles without anchoring it...

[John Keenan]

Jud

So that would mean that Bernard Langer could continue to use his long putter and Randy Haag could still put side saddle as I do not think either could be defined as anchoring them to the body.

If the USGA & RA do ban anchoring I wonder if there will then be an outcry on the putter length?

In the end putting with any instrument takes some skill. If the belly putter was guaranteed 100% you hole out every PGA pro would have one. None the less I do find anchoring to the body in no way in the spirit of the game

[Andy Troeger]

I think this whole concept is rather silly, given that these putters have been around in some form for years. The technology issues most affecting the game deal with distance, not putting.

But then regarding anchoring, what is anchoring. When I putt with a long putter the club itself doesn't touch anything but my hands. But, my hand/fist is touching is my chest. Is that anchoring?

If the answer to the previous questions is yes, then what if I move my hand out an inch or two? It's a little tougher stroke, but with practice I bet I could get good at it. And what if I wear a baggy shirt and the wind is blowing and my shirt grazes my hand while putting...

Silly, but the USGA better figure out answers if they go through with this. As a non-tournament golfer, I'm not sure how much I really care, but its a silly thing to do for a game that needs more GOLFERS, not more frustration.

[Dan Byrnes]

A long putter has helped my game.  I think it's easier to putt acceptably with one than a traditional putter for me.  So I think it's more of an advantage to amateurs like me than it would be for Tiger Woods who already is pretty proficient with a short putter.  My statistics aren't overwhelmingly better though.

It's made golf fun again for me.  I am a 9 handicap.  If they get banned I will stop using mine though, I use new wedges with the new standards groves not that it matters at my level but I want to play by the same rules as the best do.

Dan

BTW  a belly putter was a disaster, worse than any other method for me.

[Jud_T]

But then regarding anchoring, what is anchoring. When I putt with a long putter the club itself doesn't touch anything but my hands. But, my hand/fist is touching is my chest. Is that anchoring?

Yes, I believe that's anchoring. You're getting a fixed point to swing your pendulum from. 

[Josh Tarble]

I recall Tim Liddy referring to a quote tat mentioned Fast greens were easier to putt on because you only needed the right line...I think that ties into belly putters pretty directly.

Bring some slope and slower greens back, guarantee less pros will be using them less and looking for more touch on the greens.

[Andy Troeger]

But then regarding anchoring, what is anchoring. When I putt with a long putter the club itself doesn't touch anything but my hands. But, my hand/fist is touching is my chest. Is that anchoring?

Yes, I believe that's anchoring. You're getting a fixed point to swing your pendulum from. 

How would it be any different if the fixed point isn't touching the body? I can find a fixed spot 2 inches out too.

[Jud_T]

Andy,

One moving part is easier than two moving parts.  It's a lot easier to keep your top hand still if it's jammed into your sternum than if it's floating freely in space.  Picture the long pendulum on a grandfather clock.  Now picture the same pendulum detached from the clock...

[Andy Troeger]

Jud,
Is it? I've played around with my putter and its not really THAT different. As with any change it takes some practice, but I expect I could learn to use it that way. You're basically putting with your right hand/arm anyway, so the left one can be kept tighter to avoid movement.

[Adam Clayman]

Perhaps they will try to limit the number of contact points to 2. Calling the entire hand, 1?

That way a person who CHOSE to putt one handed, could anchor the club somewhere else too. i.e. their forearm, sternum, or anywhere a person might creatively make a stroke.

I just don't see how you can write a rule to define anchoring, without saying the club is anchored to the hands.

[Mike Wagner]

There's a reason that everyone on tour hasn't switched and it's pretty simple really. Long/belly putters can make mediocre/poor (Short) putter users better, but if a guy can putt well with the shorty, switching to a long model will not make him improve on top of that.

I can't believe all you guys are whining about this.  Isn't making putts inside 10 feet what separates Tour players from thousands of guys who can bomb and gouge it with the best of 'em  (not to mention money club match players)?  

Jud,

No - that isn't what separates bomb and gougers from tour players.  It could be in a list of a million reasons, but here's a few to get some perspective:

1.  The ability to consistently hit solid shots under pressure
2.  The ability to hit great shots with hundreds of people just feet away
3.  The ability to hit great shots with thousands of people watching on tv
4.  The ability to hit great shots for hundreds of thousands of dollars on the line
5.  The ability to do it over and over again....over 4 days, weeks, years.
6.  The ability to play golf courses set up with a rating that would smoke a large percentage of those thousands of others you say bomb and gouge it
7.  Hitting golf shots when your livelihood depends on it
8.  Playing with the pressure that you don't get paid if you don't perform Thursday and Friday...most club guys only know "casual Fridays"
8.   Doing all this while traveling a good portion of the year being away from their family
9.  Keeping all those bombs IN PLAY
10.  Practicing these things over and over just to stay out there.

I could go on and on.

Now, wouldn't it seem that we'd have a huge percentage of young players on tour right now using a belly or long putter if it as so much easier?  We don't, and it's been around forever.  I've seen more guys try it and put it down because they can't do it or just hate it. 

I understand your position, but that argument doesn't hold water.

If you want to change rules because you think something's become too easy, you should start with drivers and the golf ball itself.

[Jud_T]

Mike,

Perhaps.  Just don't try and sell it to Gary Groh.

[Ken Moum]

I'd rather see a rule of no more than 56 degrees of loft in the bag.  Totally doable, could happen overnight without having to manufacture anything, and would make the game MUCH more interesting IMO.

Why?

60-degree wedges have been around for almost 100 years.

I don't get it.

K

FWIW, I have a "collection" of wedges as evidenced by these pictures of my garage ceiling:









Among those 125-odd wedges and the other boxes I have stashed, there are clubs that go back to hickory shafts. A few of them  from pre-1935 have lofts of 60 degrees. Some from the 1950s and 60s have 58-60 degrees.

You have to remember that 50 years ago pitching wedges often had more than 50* of loft.

K

[George Pazin]

Can't say I agree at all with the notion that an anchored hand doesn't move - ie one fixed point for the pendulum. Damn near everyone's body moves to some degree, in the case of the anchored belly or long putter, it just moves differently than it would with a "regular" putting stroke. It's not like your anchoring to a cement wall, pulling the club back and just letting go with your other hand, allowing gravity to do the trick. Heck, even if you were doing that, you'd still have to calibrate the pressure of your hand doing the anchoring.

Similarly, I can't say I understand the hubbub over belly/long putters. They are far less ugly to me than 400+ cc drivers or some of the other bizarro putters out there. Big drivers help poor drivers of the ball, just like hybrids help people who can't hit long irons and sand wedges help people get out of the sand. Everyone believes his clubs are the best ones chosen for the intended purpose.

Just makes me appreciate Pat Brockwell's simple wisdom even more...

[Jud_T]

George,

On the face of it, which would you say most likely provides a better anchor:  a club/hand resting on your chest or a club/hand held in place in space?

[Garland Bayley]

... Big drivers help poor drivers of the ball, ...

Big drivers give people more confidence to swing hard. Small drivers might just force them to learn to swing well.
There are teachers out there that claim that small clubheads and blades allow their pupils to learn faster, because they get more feedback.

[Patrick_Mucci]

Ken,

Do you have any Berylium Ping Eye 2 Sand and L-Wedges that you want to part with ?

[Andy Troeger]

Jud,
Next time you're in a pro shop with a long putter, try holding the putter out from your body with your left hand, holding your left elbow and arm tight against the rest of your body. It may not be quite as stable as holding your hand against your chest, but there's really not much difference. If all that's banned is anchoring the club (or your hand and the club) against your body, its an easy solution.

The belly putter and the long putter are two pretty different strokes. There aren't many pros using the long putter, so its probably not as much of an issue for the USGA.

[Ken Moum]

Ken,

Do you have any Berylium Ping Eye 2 Sand and L-Wedges that you want to part with ?

I only have one L wedge and it gets enough bag time that I'm not selling.

Truthfully, the price on the sand wedges has gotten pretty low, the one I have I only bought a year or two ago.

It's about like this one http://www.ebay.com/itm/PING-EYE2-Beryllium-Copper-BeCu-Orange-Dot-Sand-Wedge-S-Titanium-Shaft-/271077441321?pt=Golf_Clubs&hash=item3f1d797f29 which is only going for $60 buy it now.

There are somemuch nicer ones being offered for less than $150

http://www.ebay.com/itm/SUPERB-PING-EYE-2-BeCu-Copper-SQUARE-GROOVE-57-SAND-WEDGE-SW-ORANGE-DOT-/160892646706?pt=Golf_Clubs&hash=item2575f2f532

The L wedges, OTOH, are really getting hard to find.  But even so, they aren't bringing $300 like they were a few years ago.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/PING-EYE-2-BERYLLIUM-COPPER-BECU-BLUE-DOT-LOB-WEDGE-W-STEEL-STIFF-SHAFT-/330815471355?pt=Golf_Clubs&hash=item4d06237efb

[Jud_T]

Any good will built up from the Ryder Cup is officially gone:

http://golfweek.com/news/2012/oct/31/bradley-intends-fight-usga-anchoring/

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