Golf Datatech: 60% Of Serious Golfers Support Anchoring Ban

You can read the full release and survey results here.

The highlights from a survey of "1,766 randomly selected golfers drawn from Golf Datatech’s exclusive Serious Golfer Database, who play an average of 68 rounds per year with an average handicap of 14.3."

· 60% of respondents believe that the governing bodies of golf should ban the anchoring of clubs to the body, while 40% believe they should not.

· 62% of respondents do not believe the anchoring ban will cause some amateur golfers to enjoy the game less.

· If the proposed rule is enforced in 2016, 31% of current long putter users will continue to anchor their putter, while 31% will not anchor against their body, and 38% will switch to a conventional putter.

Comments

[PABoy]

Define "some"

[DTF]

Titleist = "Serious Clubs for Serious Golfers"

I betcha the utilization of Titleist clubs amongst this sample set of 1,766 is very very very low...

...so somebody is lying here.

[Stord]

Yes.. "some" is rather vague.

[No Longer Used to be Former Stack & Tilt Convert]

Before the ban I was putting conventionally with a 34 inch putter. Because the ban was so poorly done, 3 year grace period, etc, I switched to belly style and will adjust to Kuchar style in 2016.

[MattS]

It's hard to believe that the target for USGA rules has an average index of 14.3. How many of those people will ever see live let alone play in a USGA tournament?

[digsouth]

@No longer--

Man, I really enjoy reading your postings, but this I just don't get.

I assume this is some attempt at a protest, but other than us, who knows about it? And then, and I mean no disrespect-who cares? It seems that you are only hurting yourself, since you must have had success at putting convntionally, or you would have changed before now.

Do you want us to join you in some reveal of your protest? I just don't get it.

[Viz]

I wish they'd ban the long putter tomorrow and be done with it!

[Average Golfer]

Being a club builder I have a hand full of long shafts and 28 lb. putter heads in stock. Watch this space...

[No Longer Used to be Former Stack & Tilt Convert]

digs- Some kind of protest to the half-assed way they implemented the ban and the ridiculous time period before it goes into effect. Illustrating the unintended consequences of doing it the way they did, I will also consider side-saddle. You are right no one cares, unless I play really well and beat somebody someday.

Not hurting myself as my putting is about the same no matter what method I use.

[digsouth]

nolonger...convert

Yes, I totally agree that the implementation time period is not acceptable- I get their ''thought process'', but this absolutely shows the lawyered up way they do everything.

I compare it to cars and German cars, with the USGA being a German car- and by that , I am insulting them..see

If a fuse will work, a German car uses a relay- 50 cents vs 300 bucks--- and so it goes with the USGA--- where simple would work, the USGA gets all complicated.

So use the putter you putt best with, and do it for we, The Shackled.

[AG]

And the British drink warm beer because they have Lucas refrigerators.

[Ted Ray's Pipe]

@ digouth - great analogy! a friend owns a vw/audi repair shop. a customer recently came in with a just-out-of-warranty audi a8. the button to operate the handbrake was broken. why a button? because the engineers decided to spare the driver having to pull up on the handbrake. dealer tells him to fix the handbrake button will be $4,000. - because it is wired into both the ABS and several computer circuits. over-engineering for the sake of its ownself is so similar to lawyers making things too complicated; be it in the rules of golf or the laws that are passed to "improve" our lives.

[Charlie]

the above post is spot on. The more electonics and "luxuries" the more that can go wrong. no different that the fatter the rulebook the more issues and havoc it creates. the more gov regulation the more it hinders business rather that protect. as with anything, if you create a demand for lawyers you're doing something wrong.

usga should've set a much earlier timeframe for the ban, instead we now get 3 years of this back and forth debate.

[Mark]

Mike D's letter:

Since 1894, one of our primary missions is to conduct national championships, and there was plenty of memorable action in 2012, including Webb Simpson’s gutsy play at the U.S. Open, Na Yeon Choi’s remarkable third-round 65 in the U.S. Women’s Open, and the stirring finish at the U.S. Amateur by Steven Fox, who won the last three holes of his 37-hole triumph over Michael Weaver.
...
In addition to helping us to provide arenas of competition for elite golfers, your Membership allows us to serve all golfers at all levels through our support of numerous activities that make the game more fun and welcoming. TEE IT FORWARD has received an overwhelmingly positive response from participants, while programs such as The First Tee and LPGA-USGA Girls Golf have introduced the game to thousands of youngsters around the country.

I believe the USGA is more into the first paragraph, that's why the "proposed" anchoring ban. It is kind of like college football, the US Open pays for everything that they do and like it or not, the USGA makes rules to conduct an open not your Saturday four ball or a stroke play bet with your buddy.

I am a belly putter and even tho I see why people want to ban it, I don't like the USGA telling me how to make a stroke. I also find it strange that this rule is not just for putting and wonder why they have not looked into making you stand astride your line for all strokes. It would simplify the rules just a little and we need more of that. I have studied the rules, made a very good score on the test, I wonder how I am supposed to make a ruling on some one else's word. Easy to walk through we're someone dropped, but if the butt end of the putter is touching a part of the body that it can't on a few strokes, give me a break. You think TV rulings were bad in the past, just wait.