Anchoring Decision Update And An Enforcement Question

Ron Sirak considers the upcoming decision on anchoring a putter against the torso and says the great legal minds at Force, Majeure and Breach are just buttoning up the language for the USGA Executive Committee's consideration.

Reader Tim has raised an issue worth considering in the likelihood that long putters are allowed but anchoring is banned: enforcement.

"For example," Tim writes, "Cabrera has a gut and uses a belly putter, who determines if he is not anchoring?"

Furthermore what happens if someone wears a baggy shirt and his hand touches his shirt but it can't be determined if his hand is anchored against his torso? 

Comments

[Tom T.]

Then you go to the Konica Minolta slo-mo biz hub camera thing for video review, just like in football. Please, allow only one grip, no more than 14 inches in length, and be done with it.

[jack]

Re: Tim's question of enforcement, it will be up to the committee in stroke play or the opponent or referee in match play to determine if there's a breach of the (apparently impending) rule. My guess is that any doubt as to whether a breach occurred or not will go against the player. There are plenty of current Decisions which say "any doubt ... should be resolved against the player." There are far fewer places where the player is given the benefit of the doubt.

[BrianS]

Once anchoring is banned, having a long putter will become a disadvantage, since the lever is longer, and accuracy of the stroke will be harder to control. I doubt you will see many guys putting regular with belly putters or especially the broomsticks.

[MG]

Angel Cabrera determines if he is anchoring or not.....

Why would an anchoring ban be any different than most of the rules of golf where the onus is on the player to report an infraction ? We don't have rules "enforces" in golf.

[fyg]

Assuming a ban, is there much chance the pro tours will make it effective sooner than 2016?

Hope so.

[digsouth]

When anchoring is banned only boats will have anchors, or something like that.


Anyway, aren't golfers honest? What's the problem?

[DTF]

Based on the leaf in the bunker Q-School incident clearly all golfers are not honest.

This is gonna get ugly....

[Pat Burke]

DTF J'accuse! hahaa

[digsouth]

So it would seem the ''anchor anarchists'' should be dieting in the style of Stadler and such, where the ''natural'' ''dock'' will be a certainty in the ''naval(sic)'' area...maybe Ping can create a line of Ping Pier Putters for the men with ''dock stock''.
Please someone stop me.....

[kenoneputt]

I've been saying for some time that this change is going to create LOTS of arguments in regular club play. FWIW, I know one very good player who says he'll quite competition if they ban the long putter. Of course he's also practiced with not anchored to his chest and says it worked fine.

K

[mark b]

I'll be happy to answer those questions right after I finish calculating how many angels can fit on the head of a pin.

[PGT]

@ ken - i've heard people say they'll move to Canada if Obama wins... sure enough they are still here. No different with the bellyputter. Although personally I was in favor of bifurcation and allowing anchoring for amateurs - pipe dream I know.