Green-reading books likely gone from the tour next season

[jdl]

The PGA Tour is likely to ban the controversial green-reading books used by many of its players before the start of next season, Golfweek has learned. The Tour’s Player Advisory Council voted to outlaw the books at a meeting two weeks ago. Support for the ban among the 16 players who comprise the Council was described by one person who was present as “overwhelming.”

The issue will now be voted on by the full board of the PGA Tour, perhaps as early as next week.

 

https://golfweek.usatoday.com/2021/06/16/pga-tour-green-reading-books-outlaw-next-season/

Edited June 16, 2021 by jdl

[Holy Moses]

Great news. Learn by experience, a good caddie, and being good at reading greens. 

[wildcatden]

Awesome news. 

[johnseg]

This is a funny thing because they will still have them for practice rounds I am sure. I am not really bothered by them all that much.

[BHI 99]

The Play Station Generation might actually have to play? 

 

Oh the horrors...

[BC33]

I'm a big fan of this news.  Maybe this speeds up play a little.

 

Buddy of mine who I play with frequently bought one for our home course and I looked at it once and couldn't make any sense of it.  He used it our first year there but now rarely carries it.  I could see where it helps a player their first time seeing a course but I've always thought your eyes and feet could tell you as much.

[BHI 99]

Ben Hogan is laughing his a** off right now. 

[Christosterone]

I shoot low 60s, high 50s…

 

guess it’s back to trying to break 100

 

-chris

[elwhippy]

Yes indeed.

[TiScape]

38 minutes ago, Holy Moses said:

Great news. Learn by experience, a good caddie, and being good at reading greens. 

💯 

[woodriff]

I’m not in favour of discontinuing. Really most players glance at them rather than studying them. The books are good as a starting point only. What can it hurt. 

[tiderider]

[sittingbull]

Lol... whats next no beer in staff bags

[MPAndreassi]

If this means watching Bryson struggle on the greens like he did at Augusta this year it has my vote. I’ll still keep mine though. 

[bcski]

This should slow them down even more on the greens trying to figure it out.

 

This is not good for pace of their play

[wildcatden]

Caddies are next!!  If my junior can't have a caddie at his events, neither can the pros.  😉 Just give them those remote control powered carts. You can have volunteers rake the bunkers.

[jholz]

About frickin' time IMHO. 

[woodriff]

5 minutes ago, Par Be A Joke said:

This should slow them down even more on the greens trying to figure it out.

 

This is not good for pace of their play

Exactly. Anything that picks up pace of play is good. Rangefinders are good. As I mentioned they just glance at these books anyway. It’s a starting point, not an ending point.

[Pepperturbo]

Good decision. 

 

For the most part, tour professionals regularly play the same courses, so they should have a handle on course specifics.  But let's not forget, even with all that data, they still miss putts after spending extended time reading it, and confirming visually.  It should improve PoP too.

 

I haven't paid much attention as to the extent those books are used, if at all, on other tours.  But hope it becomes reality where ever they have been used. 

 

 

Edited June 16, 2021 by Pepperturbo

[BombinJim]

Bryson should just retire now or flip to Professional Long Drive. Seems like every course will now be “Augusta National” to him without greens books!

[carrier street]

The fact that this is coming from a PAC vote is telling: The best players in the world think this is a crutch, and a useful one at that. I'm buying them for every course I play. 

[karl1111]

50 minutes ago, Par Be A Joke said:

This should slow them down even more on the greens trying to figure it out.

 

This is not good for pace of their play

It wouldn't be a problem if officials were enforcing slow play. Players would be slow with or without rangefinders if they're not punished. 

[BlackDiamondPar5]

 

Edited June 16, 2021 by BlackDiamondPar5

[chigolfer1]

how much do people think this will hurt the putting stats, if at all?  Will this actually slow down the game more?

[Creedo77]

1 hour ago, woodriff said:

Exactly. Anything that picks up pace of play is good. Rangefinders are good. As I mentioned they just glance at these books anyway. It’s a starting point, not an ending point.

Glance? No, they’re in them as often as they get them out 

[Creedo77]

7 minutes ago, chigolfer1 said:

how much do people think this will hurt the putting stats, if at all?  Will this actually slow down the game more?

It’ll speed it up and the stats should get worse. These books are 100% accurate but they are really good

[King_Slender]

Just reading about Rory's thoughts on it on ESPN: https://www.espn.com/golf/story/_/id/31645621/four-pga-champ-rory-mcilroy-says-green-reading-books-banned-eliminated

 

Looks like arm-lock putting is next, which does seem to go against the spirit of the anchoring rule, as "locking" the putter to your left arm essentially creates a single anchor point of your left shoulder.  All for that too.

[bcski]

22 minutes ago, Creedo77 said:

It’ll speed it up and the stats should get worse. These books are 100% accurate but they are really good

I will disagree.  This will cause even more time wandering the greens doubting the fist, second and third look.

 

No one will know until we get to the season where they actually stop using the books.

[Blonde Line Lizard]

1 hour ago, Par Be A Joke said:

This should slow them down even more on the greens trying to figure it out.

 

This is not good for pace of their play

I agree.  By getting rid of the books, I think we will see a lot more of the Furyk garbage he does on the green; and I mean EVERY putt from 60 feet away to 2 feet from the hole:

 

Squat, stand, move back look at the grass.

 

Squat, play with the line on the ball, stand.

 

Move back, look at the grass.

 

Move to the other side of the hole and repeat the process.

 

As I said, FOR EVERY PUTT!!

[BlackDiamondPar5]

Take away green books and add one of these and that TV show called the pga tour might improve...