It's official: USGA, R&A propose anchor ban

[golfcarte]

guess you have to be a media staffer to possess an unlocked thread...

[scooter67]

USGA - You blew it. Boooooo!

[Jim Clark]

Much Ado About Nothing.

I started a thread in General Golf where this belongs, Mods please combine these in General Golf, this is not just about the Tour.

[Chief Illiniwek]

Finally golf will look like golf again. I agree with those who say 460cc drivers and modern golf balls should be regulated as well, but side by side with Bobby Jones swinging a club it still "looks" like golf. Anchored putting didn't. It was a fundamentally different way to take a stroke and I'm glad it'll be gone, statistical data or not. I understand those who disagree with that truly, but it's just how I feel.

[KYMAR]

Davis and Dawson on with Rich "wind bag" Lerner right now.

[worldslasttwfan]

hmm matt kucher you're saved...darn

[MadGolfer76]

I love when rules change, because people come out with some really freaky ways of getting around them.

[Rockminer]

Hey Zak: I realize that you want credit for everything that happens on this site but do you have to lock every thread started, some before yours, on this subject? I didn't know you had exclusive rights.

It's not the first time you have taken credit for something you didn't start:

Remember the Rory to nike thread In which you linked a thread that you started instead of giving credit to the member who actually broke the story?

[b0geyman]

[quote name='Vindog' timestamp='1354114839' post='5989231']
[quote name='b0geyman' timestamp='1354114767' post='5989227']
Fellow USGA members: any support for a mass resignation unless they rescind this proposal? Let's pick a date.

And for the record I do not use an anchored putting stroke
[/quote]

What did your letter say. They must have sent you one to smooth things over?

Standard procedure...
[/quote]

Here is the text of the email they sent out:





November 28, 2012

Dear USGA Member:
The USGA cherishes its strong relationship with our Members, and we appreciate the support you provide in helping us lead the game toward a sustainable future. Your membership bolsters the critical mission of the USGA in many important ways and has helped to make the game more enjoyable for golfers of all ages and skill levels.
Recognizing the role that you play in all that we do to protect and nurture the game, we want you to be among the first to know about some important news. This morning, together with The R&A, the USGA is proposing a change to the Rules of Golf for players at all levels of the game that would disallow direct or indirect anchoring of the club in making a stroke with any club from any location on the golf course.
The proposed Rule 14-1b would prohibit strokes made with the club or a hand gripping the club intentionally held directly against the player’s body, or with a forearm intentionally held against the body to establish an anchor point that indirectly anchors the club.
The proposed Rule would not alter current equipment standards and would allow the continued use of all conforming golf clubs, including belly-length and long putters, provided such clubs are used in a non-anchored manner. The Rule would target only a few types of strokes in which the club is anchored, while preserving the golfer’s ability to play a wide variety of strokes in his or her individual style.
Throughout the game’s 600-year history, the essence of the golf stroke has been to grip the club with the hands and swing it freely at the ball. This Rule change is being proposed to preserve the fundamental challenge that makes golf a unique competitive sport.
The proposed Rule change would take effect on January 1, 2016, at the start of the next four-year cycle for revisions to the Rules of Golf. This timetable provides an extended period during which golfers currently using an anchored stroke may adapt their method of stroke, if necessary, to conform to the requirements of the new Rule.
We are proposing to take action now in response to the recent upsurge in the use of anchored strokes at all levels of the game. We believe that the proposed Rule is necessary to protect the essential nature of the golf swing and to fulfill our fundamental responsibility to the game.
The proposed Rule is the culmination of a review process that began in early 2012, and it reflects the strong consensus of our leadership and the Rules of Golf Committee. Given the high level of public discussion and interest in this issue, we are announcing the proposed change in advance of final action by the Executive Committee, which is expected to occur in early 2013. Between now and then, we will explain our rationale for the Rule and its application, answer questions and solicit feedback on the proposal from the golf community.
Recognizing that you may have questions, and that you may also want to share this information with fellow golfers, we have developed videos, images, graphics and other materials that are available at [url="http://usgamail.org/a/hBQthMHB73vQaB8vaDKMuIpllGm/anchoring"]www.usga.org/anchoring[/url] to help you become more familiar with the specifics of the proposed Rule. We have also provided an opportunity to offer written questions or comments on the proposed change, and we encourage you and others to do so.
Thank you for your support and passion for the game as we continue to serve all golfers around the world and work to secure the health and traditions of the game for current players and for future generations.
Sincerely,





Glen Nager
President



Mike Davis
USGA Executive Director


For the good of the game[sup]®[/sup]

[KYMAR]

BREAKING! Dave Pelz head just exploded. Tragic really

[Vindog]

[quote name='Rockminer' timestamp='1354115370' post='5989283']
Hey Zak: I realize that you want credit for everything that happens on this site but do you have to lock every thread started, some before yours, on this subject? I didn't know you had exclusive rights.

It's not the first time you have taken credit for something you didn't start:

Remember the Rory to nike thread In which you linked a thread that you started instead of giving credit to the member who actually broke the story?
[/quote]

I don't know anything about the "taking credit" thing, but definitely makes more sense to only have one thread, fwiw

[markp]

[i]I partialy think they will wait till 2016 to put into affect so all the details can be put into the rulling, As for everyone throwing a fit about it I would think if your a weekend golfer or play a few times a year this will not affect you at all, If your not playing in a event that requires you to play according to USGA [/i]
[i]rules then any putter would be allowed.[/i]
[i] The rule will affect those of us that compete in USGA ruled events, I am working towards trying to qualify for champions tour events in 3 years, I struggle [/i]
[i]with my putting the most and was hopping that they would allow a different set of rules for amatuers and seinors.[/i]

[ej002]

[quote name='Rockminer' timestamp='1354115370' post='5989283']
Hey Zak: I realize that you want credit for everything that happens on this site but do you have to lock every thread started, some before yours, on this subject? I didn't know you had exclusive rights.

It's not the first time you have taken credit for something you didn't start:

Remember the Rory to nike thread In which you linked a thread that you started instead of giving credit to the member who actually broke the story?

Yes and resurrect the Hogan forum please this place is turning into Russia.
[/quote]

[TexasAg]

[quote name='Rockminer' timestamp='1354115370' post='5989283']
Hey Zak: I realize that you want credit for everything that happens on this site but do you have to lock every thread started, some before yours, on this subject? I didn't know you had exclusive rights.

It's not the first time you have taken credit for something you didn't start:

Remember the Rory to nike thread In which you linked a thread that you started instead of giving credit to the member who actually broke the story?
[/quote]

+1. Hey Zak, thanks for locking up a nice thread that's been going since October on the subject...

[wick_dawg]

I didn't see the illustration of someone anchoring the putter to their ... like I do. Is that still allowed?

[markp]

[quote name='KYMAR' timestamp='1354115454' post='5989293']
BREAKING! Dave Pelz head just exploded. Tragic really
[/quote]
LOL no dought there

[KYMAR]

Dawson on bifurcation (Paraphrased) "The rule regards how a stroke is made. Its fundamental to the way the game is played. If there is ever the case for bifurcation, This is not it"

[zukszoo]

This proposed rule change is really quite fair. After some of the rules makers past goof ups, I was afraid it would be clear as mud. While I get the four year cycle on the rules, makes 2016 seem a long way off.

Purely anecdotal; as one who has used a long-putter off and on for the last 10 years or so, I will continue to use my broomstick. With all the talk of banning the anchored stroke, I began putting without anchoring it in any way in late July. No change in my ability to make putts, but my lag putting improved immensely over lag putting with the anchored stroke. Also, I never switched out of "desperation". My decision to use it was based on it being a different perspective on putting. Plus, in the minority here, I thought it looked cool. lol

[ragweed10]

This is all part of the conspiracy to help Tiger catch Jack, this was done to slow down the youth movement on tour. Next the USGA will ban playing golf in sunglasses hoping this will stop Rory from winning. LOL!!!!!

[kg92lefty]

^ LOL.

Mike davis is an idiot. Always has been.

But why not look at the golf ball now?

[KYMAR]

Really good demo on golf channel with Micheal "No caffine needed" Breed and some rule guy whose name I missed.

[dplasters]

Its unfortunate that this rule will make golf more painful for a decent percentage of players. Truly, golf for the masses was becoming too easy.

[ultra45]

i would like to see the belly putter guys adopt the kuchar method and have that banned too... taking the hands/wrists out is helping fight the yips... i think the ban is ridiculous either way...

I guess i'll just continue to play scrambles while wearing shorts

[Vindog]

[quote name='ultra45' timestamp='1354116120' post='5989367']
i would like to see the belly putter guys adopt the kuchar method and have that banned too... taking the hands/wrists out is helping fight the yips... i think the ban is ridiculous either way...

I guess i'll just continue to play [s]scrambles[/s] [i]drinking golf[/i] while wearing [i]cargo [/i]shorts
[/quote]

fixed it!!

[Rockminer]

[quote name='Vindog' timestamp='1354115655' post='5989315']
[quote name='Rockminer' timestamp='1354115370' post='5989283']
Hey Zak: I realize that you want credit for everything that happens on this site but do you have to lock every thread started, some before yours, on this subject? I didn't know you had exclusive rights.

It's not the first time you have taken credit for something you didn't start:

Remember the Rory to nike thread In which you linked a thread that you started instead of giving credit to the member who actually broke the story?
[/quote]

I don't know anything about the "taking credit" thing, but definitely makes more sense to only have one thread, fwiw
[/quote]

IMO there is no other way to take it other than he want's credit for it. Every thread that has to do with this subject has been locked by [b]ZAK[/b]. ( many started a long time ago). I agree that one thread would be good, but there we're plenty of good conversations going on, that we're blown up, so that Zak could have the only ulocked thread on the subject.

[Crab Daddy]

Cool! Should be some good deals on belly putters now. I better pick up a broomstick in case of back issues down the road.
I'm all for bifurcation of the rules. Golf is a game, albeit a challenging game, and, therefore, should be fun. A belly putter has helped [i]me, [/i]and it's more fun to sink putts with some degree of consistency. I'm not worried about the pros or the USGA, so mine stays in the bag through 2016 and beyond.

[TexasAg]

From Kymar's transcription of the audio:

[quote]
[color=#282828][size=3][background=rgb(247, 247, 247)]Very logical question. Boils down to 2 things. In the last 18 to 24 months we've seen a significant increase in use. For years we saw 2-3% use. and in 2010 it jumped to 6% In 2011 it jumped to 11 and now we are seeing upwards of 15% and in some events 20%. Also a definite increase high level amateurs and high level juniors. The other big reason is for years the users of long putters is that for years, most golfers who went to the long putter were unable to putt naturally with a standard putter."[/background][/size][/color]

[color=#000000][size=3][color=#282828][size=3][background=rgb(247, 247, 247)]"rule change is NOT directly performance related. It's about defining what is a golf stroke"[/background][/size][/color][/size][/color][/quote]

This just proves that the governing bodies are run by morons. It's okay as long as only a small % of players do it? It's okay as long as it's only used by older golfers that can't putt any other way? What kind of reasoning is that? If it's a violation of the spirit of the game, it's a violation of the spirit of the game. The numbers shouldn't matter. The profile of the users shouldn't matter.

This is the magician waving his hands around in the air so you don't notice the elephant being wheeled off the other side of the stage. This is easy compared to the issues surrounding the golf ball.

I'm quite certain that the fact they're only banning "anchoring" and not the equipment itself is so they don't get sued into oblivion by the manufacturers.

[KYMAR]

[quote name='Rockminer' timestamp='1354116477' post='5989395']
[quote name='Vindog' timestamp='1354115655' post='5989315']
[quote name='Rockminer' timestamp='1354115370' post='5989283']
Hey Zak: I realize that you want credit for everything that happens on this site but do you have to lock every thread started, some before yours, on this subject? I didn't know you had exclusive rights.

It's not the first time you have taken credit for something you didn't start:

Remember the Rory to nike thread In which you linked a thread that you started instead of giving credit to the member who actually broke the story?
[/quote]

I don't know anything about the "taking credit" thing, but definitely makes more sense to only have one thread, fwiw
[/quote]

IMO there is no other way to take it other than he want's credit for it. Every thread that has to do with this subject has been locked by [b]ZAK[/b]. ( many started a long time ago). I agree that one thread would be good, but there we're plenty of good conversations going on, that we're blown up, so that Zak could have the only ulocked thread on the subject.
[/quote]

Yeah Zak is totally doing this. He figured out this plan while he was waiting on the grassy knoll. In between finalizing plans to fake the lunar landing and being ever mindful of his hope that bigfoot would stay out of sight, as they agreed.

[Dess]

I personally think this sux. I make more putts with my long putter. Therefore I enjoy the game more. Thus I play more, spend more money on the sport, help expand the game, etc. lame.

[hogans71]

[quote name='KYMAR' timestamp='1354116766' post='5989419']
[quote name='Rockminer' timestamp='1354116477' post='5989395']
[quote name='Vindog' timestamp='1354115655' post='5989315']
[quote name='Rockminer' timestamp='1354115370' post='5989283']
Hey Zak: I realize that you want credit for everything that happens on this site but do you have to lock every thread started, some before yours, on this subject? I didn't know you had exclusive rights.

It's not the first time you have taken credit for something you didn't start:

Remember the Rory to nike thread In which you linked a thread that you started instead of giving credit to the member who actually broke the story?
[/quote]

I don't know anything about the "taking credit" thing, but definitely makes more sense to only have one thread, fwiw
[/quote]

IMO there is no other way to take it other than he want's credit for it. Every thread that has to do with this subject has been locked by [b]ZAK[/b]. ( many started a long time ago). I agree that one thread would be good, but there we're plenty of good conversations going on, that we're blown up, so that Zak could have the only ulocked thread on the subject.
[/quote]

Yeah Zak is totally doing this. He figured out this plan while he was waiting on the grassy knoll. In between finalizing plans to fake the lunar landing and being ever mindful of his hope that bigfoot would stay out of sight, as they agreed.
[/quote]

All that and still writing for Golfwrx? Wow...

I don't necessarily know the motivation behind it but to be sure, it's most definitely odd. We had a perfectly good thread going for MONTHS. No reason to shut it down whatsoever...