Anchor ban? Tell us your thoughts...

Thursday, 29 November 2012
Adam Scott
Adam Scott

Early this morning Australian time, the R&A and USGA made a joint announcement notifying of their intention to ban anchoring from 2016.

In a statement they said...

“The R&A and the United States Golf Association (USGA), golf’s governing bodies, today announced proposed changes to the Rules of Golf that would prohibit anchoring the club in making a stroke.

The proposed Rule 14-1b, which follows an extensive review by The R&A and the USGA, would prohibit strokes made with the club or a hand gripping the club held directly against the player’s body, or with a forearm held against the body to establish an anchor point that indirectly anchors the club.

The proposed new Rule would not alter current equipment rules and would allow the continued use of all conforming golf clubs, including belly-length and long putters, provided such clubs are not anchored during a stroke. The proposed Rule narrowly targets only a few types of strokes, while preserving a golfer’s ability to play a wide variety of strokes in his or her individual style.

The proposed Rule change would take effect on January 1, 2016, in accordance with the regular four-year cycle for changes to the Rules of Golf. This timetable would also provide an extended period in which golfers may, if necessary, adapt their method of stroke to the requirements of the Rule.”

What do you think? Comment below and tell us your thoughts.

You can also find out more about the newly proposed Rule at www.RandA.org/anchoring.

 
Comments
Posted by Tim Bell (golf professional 42years) at 05/12/2012 07:23 AM
The club should be free swinging. The bellie and long putter can still be used without anchoring by standing side on to the line much in the same way that Sam Snead putted in his latter years.
Posted by Pine Pienaar at 04/12/2012 02:25 PM
If the advantage by using a long putter wheter you anchor it or not, is such an advantage, why doesn't more players change to the longer putter??? A few old "sissies" started to complain because they can't improve their putting doesn't matter what putter they use! What percentage of players in the world use the long putter today?
Posted by col Lott at 04/12/2012 12:48 PM
Being the only accredited rules official at our club, I hate to think of the problem I will have determining what is a legal stoke in competitions. Particularly Pennants if there is some dispute between players, some of our larger members forearms are always hard against their bodies to begin with.
Posted by Steve Orgias at 30/11/2012 04:05 PM
Ask Doug Sanders how hard it is to hole a putt to win a Major, or Scott Hoch.Weight of head just sweeps it in from a metre.Dealing with nerves are part of the game.
Posted by Trevor Perry at 30/11/2012 03:11 PM
I use the long putter because I have to! or not play the game I enjoy. Due to 2 accidents I have fractured vertebrae in my back and a vertebral dislocation. The hunched stance of a short putter means I cannot complete 18 holes without extreme pain. Are the R&A and the USGA now going to rescind the rule hat stopped Ben Hogan from using his lever style putting stroke? How will you stop the top hand moving if the arm is not anchored in some fashion? The long putter does not detract from the game it keeps people like me in the game!!! When clubs are folding or struggling to get members. Use it or not it is just a club and comes down to personal preference just like a driver or a wedge. I am sure some pro out there is going to come up with a way to make this new rule into an advantage for the long putters like me. You still need to read the line, apply the right force and pray a little to get the ball in the hole, with either the long or short putter.
Posted by Trevor Perry at 30/11/2012 03:05 PM
I use the long putter because I have to! or not play the game I enjoy. Due to 2 accidents I have fractured vertebrae in my back and a vertebral dislocation. The hunched stance of a short putter means I cannot complete 18 holes without extreme pain. Are the R&A and the USGA now going to rescind the rule hat stopped Ben Hogan from using his lever style putting stroke? How will you stop the top hand moving if the arm is not anchored in some fashion? The long putter does not detract from the game it keeps people like me in the game!!! When clubs are folding or struggling to get members. Use it or not it is just a club and comes down to personal preference just like a driver or a wedge. I am sure some pro out there is going to come up with a way to make this new rule into an advantage for the long putters like me. You still need to read the line, apply the right force and pray a little to get the ball in the hole, with either the long or short putter.
Posted by Scott Nesbit at 30/11/2012 01:53 PM
Have been using a broomstick for 20 years. Playing off 4 and now will be back to double hitting putts. May as well put my clubs on eBay. Bye bye golf hello lawn bowls
Posted by deano thatcheo at 30/11/2012 01:01 PM
its happened, stop moaning and deal with it!!
Posted by Kev at 30/11/2012 11:59 AM
So the picture of Adam Scott that is alongside this article shows him putting without anchoring his hand or forearm? Does this mean that Adam's improved putting stroke will remain allowable?
Posted by chris at 29/11/2012 10:47 PM
As far as i know the game of golf has always been a test against the player against the course and the prevailing conditions. The advent of new equipment re clubs and balls have made a mockery of some of the classical courses worldwide.Its about time governing bodies bring golf back to a true test man against course and conditions not equipment overload.
Posted by Jeff Myers at 29/11/2012 10:00 PM
5% of the players in your club use long putters.Take away the putter, lose the golfer. Where are the clubs going to find new players to fill the void. Most sports are doing what they can to encourage participants.Obviously the powers to be feel we can afford to lose players from the sport as many will leave.
Posted by BJ at 29/11/2012 09:43 PM
I don't think anyone on here has a right to put their two cents in unless they have actually tried using a belly or broomstick putter. Some people honestly believe that by just having one of these putters in their bags makes them a better putter. It is an art form that some people can either do or they can't. Just because JB & like minded people don't believe it's in the "spirit" of putting, shouldn't stop those that choose to putt less conventionally from enjoying their golf! The game is not broken, so why try to fix it???
Posted by Simon G at 29/11/2012 09:00 PM
I think the egos of older and more traditional thinkers at R&A have to take a more logical scientific approach to long putters. The stats are just not there, the top players of the world don't all use long putters ( because there is no significant advantage). I now use a broomstick putter and my handycap has not moved. Confidence and practice is what makes a good putter. You still have to align, read and stoke. If one of these elements are not perfect the ball misses the hole. Perhaps when I miss with a short putter I'll blame the club not the poor read!
Posted by GR at 29/11/2012 05:59 PM
I wonder if the R & A have taken into consideration people like myself with back issues that find the extra length of the belly putter a great help. I have not been able to practice put for any length of time until i got the belly putter which i hold the same as i would a standard length but it allows me to stand more upright taking most of the strain involved.
Posted by Webb Simpson at 29/11/2012 05:38 PM
These blokes are cracking jokes, next thing you know they will ban the hybrid because it is easier to hit than a long iron. My lawyers will sort this out, amen.
Posted by eddie gutierrez at 29/11/2012 05:24 PM
it only effects the pro's not the everyday hacker. So don't give this great game away so early. Just another excuse for not having a good game over a few beers. Don't forget their is another 13 clubs we can blame.
Posted by KENFIN at 29/11/2012 04:59 PM
Seems like the R&A been talking to the AFL.
Posted by Kev at 29/11/2012 02:45 PM
So the picture of Adam Scott that is alongside this article shows him putting without anchoring his hand or forearm? Does this mean that Adam's improved putting stroke will remain allowable?
Posted by Eric Elliott at 29/11/2012 02:08 PM
JB I appreciate you addressing me directly and by the definition is what my argument is about. There are forms of Anchoring throughout the entire golf game. The Club of a broomstick does not touch the body, its your hand, so tell me what the differnce is when a traditional stroke has a larger proportion of your arms anchored to the body. I dont think in a court of law you could prove that otherwise.
Posted by Charles at 29/11/2012 01:19 PM
Dennis is spot on - it should have happened years ago. Golf is about holding the club in your hands and free swinging. The anchoring applies to all clubs in the bag, not just the putter.To Eric, I doubt legal action would achieve anything, except make some lawyers very happy.
Posted by Darrell at 29/11/2012 01:14 PM
To mention a quote made by some bloke that goes by the name of jack nicklaus "i dont know what all the fuss is about u still have to get it in the hole"
Posted by Simon G at 29/11/2012 01:07 PM
I think the egos of older and more traditional thinkers at R&A have to take a more logical scientific approach to long putters. The stats are just not there, the top players of the world don't all use long putters ( because there is no significant advantage). I now use a broomstick putter and my handycap has not moved. Confidence and practice is what makes a good putter. You still have to align, read and stoke. If one of these elements are not perfect the ball misses the hole. Perhaps when I miss with a short putter I'll blame the club not the poor read!
Posted by GC PGA Professional at 29/11/2012 12:30 PM
As if it isn't hard enough getting or keeping players in the game! So now we are going to ban players because they use an alternative method to putt. It doesn't matter how you putt, it is still about speed, feel & control!It is not an advantage to hinge the club. To all my previous pupils who would have been lost to the game unless I had encouraged them to have a go with the long putter, get your boats out! What a ludicrous decision from those "in high places."
Posted by Ross C at 29/11/2012 11:48 AM
I complained to the R & A when long putters were first introduced in the 80's stating the body could not be used as an outside influence (as per the rules of golf), just as in on purpose moving branches with your arm or body to behind your back, by then using your body to hold back branches to help gain a clear swing if you are up against or in the tree's. Their answer was they in priciple agreed in part, but because not all players used it by anchoring, they felt the long putters would never be used by many players....how wrong they were. Be honest nearly all players who have gone to the long putter have had a problem with the yips one way or the other, it is an advantage to anchor, and is already aginst the rules of golf as they are written. I am happy for them to keep the long putter in play, but ONLY if the player does not anchor it against their body.
Posted by Brad Gallant at 29/11/2012 11:33 AM
I think its a case of closing the gate after the horse has bolted. Had to happen eventually. Nerves/yips are a part of the game. Must admit I never liked the anchor part of these putters, unfair advantage and in short has always in my eyes been cheating. Glad to see them go.Will it make a difference? only to the few. The many and the best will not be unaffected.
Posted by Ross C at 29/11/2012 11:25 AM
I complained to the R & A when long putters were first introduced in the 80's stating the body could not be used as an outside influence (as per the rules of golf), just as in on purpose moving branches with your arm or body to behind your back, by then using your body to hold back branches to help gain a clear swing if you are up against or in the tree's. Their answer was they in priciple agreed in part, but because not all players used it by anchoring, they felt the long putters would never be used by many players....how wrong they were. Be honest nearly all players who have gone to the long putter have had a problem with the yips one way or the other, it is an advantage to anchor, and is already aginst the rules of golf as they are written. I am happy for them to keep the long putter in play, but ONLY if the player does not anchor it against their body.
Posted by JB at 29/11/2012 10:14 AM
Eric i think you need to brush up on the definition of anchoring. I agree with the ruling. The long putter has never been in the spirit of putting. The ruling does not stop the progression of equipment or golf. Agree with Dennis the putter should always have remained the shortest club in the bag.
Posted by Greg at 29/11/2012 10:13 AM
What makes this game so great is the fair application of the rules to all. The evolution of the game is based on these principals. A person has a desire to compete and play the game, one portion of his game collapses, for what ever reason, the use of a club anchored in some way to his body allows him to continue to play to a level that satisfies him. What is the problem. When the rules of golf start affecting the enjoyment of playing the game, then the rules become the problem.
Posted by Luke Elkhuizen at 29/11/2012 09:47 AM
Goodbye golf, for most people...
Posted by david tootell at 29/11/2012 09:35 AM
Ive used the belly putter for about 12 months now and find it fantastic ive even got my handicap down to single figures. Having said that i agree to stopping the use of all long putters, oh well out comes the short putter again
Posted by Eric Elliott at 29/11/2012 09:32 AM
I'll put my second point accross that traditional putting has more anchoring than that of a broomstick. Think about it, you have a larger proportion of your arms against the body almost down to the point of your elbows.
Posted by Dennis Clark at 29/11/2012 08:57 AM
Should have happened years ago. In fact making the putter the shortest club in the bag would have solved all the problems and grey areas
Posted by Eric Elliott at 29/11/2012 08:53 AM
I dont think this ruling is fair, they might as well ban all new equipment and make everybody use the same set of clubs. Most of the top players use traditional putters so I dont see how it was giving players who use broomsticks an advantage. I hope there is legal action against this ruling.
Posted by Neville Wright at 29/11/2012 08:49 AM
Sir, I have a 61 year old brother in law in USA who played all his life until recently, his yips meant he gave the game away. I sent him a long putter and he is back playing and enjoying the game again, what about those players? And you mention the free swinging of the club as a basic reason, do you see the anchoring moving to the other 13 clubs? So what if a majority of players use the anchoring long putter, is not putting a special and different part of the game? Why have finely manicured greens just for the purpose? Even Tiger Woods may go to the long putter one day, who knows?
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