Analysis: "The vast majority of legal precedents say clearly and unequivocally that governing bodies like the USGA enjoy unfettered authority to determine the rules..."

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Lester Munson considers the legal case of belly putterers and does not deliver good news for the Keegan's and Carl's of the world contemplating a court fight.

If the golfing authorities were attempting to ban the long putter itself, there may be some relief in the courts for equipment manufacturers, but even that would not be not a sure thing. The change being considered, however, is not a ban on long putters; it's a change in the definition of the golf stroke that would prohibit anchoring the long putter against the chest or the body.

In some circumstances, litigation or the threat of litigation can become leverage in a settlement discussion with the ruling body of a sport. The square-grooves-on-golf-clubs controversy is one example. But the legal basis for any claim on anchoring is so weak that the litigation would end before the players could begin to negotiate for, say, a grandfather clause that would allow them to continue to use their long putters but ban anchoring for new players.

Owen On Gairloch Golf

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Some of you may recall my images and positive comments about Inverness this summer and after seeing David Owen's review of Gairloch Golf Club, there's yet another reason to make this the base of a phenomenal links trip with stunning scenery thrown in.

Based on maps, this 9-holer looks like it's about ninety minutes from Inverness, where you can also easily access Royal Dornoch, Castle Stuart, Nairn, etc...

Agent: 5-Hour Energy Wanted Furyk For "Family-Man" Persona, Not For His Kinetic Acting Presence

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Alan Bastable follows up with Jim Furyk's agent following a New York Times report of health issues initiated by the 5-hour Energy drink that has become synonymous with the veteran pro.

Witlieb would not reveal how much his client is paid to endorse the supplement, but he did say, "Lord knows this deal was out there for everyone." According to Witlieb, the company also considered signing Bubba Watson, Dustin Johnson, or Gary Woodland, but settled on Furyk because of his "family-man" persona.

The ad, in case you were just released from Guantanamo Bay:

Willie Park Jr. In The WGHOF!

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Still no Tillinghast, but Willie Park Jr. is a worthy inductee into the World Golf Hall of Fame. This will be the second father-son tandem in the hall, following Old Tom and Young Tom Morris, explains Garry Smits.

For Immediate Release... 

St. Augustine, Fla. (Nov. 15, 2012) – The World Golf Hall of Fame & Museum will induct Willie Park Jr. as part of the Class of 2013. Along with his father, World Golf Hall of Fame member Willie Park Sr., Park helped form one of the legendary families in golf history. He is the third member of the Class of 2013 and will be inducted through the Veterans Category.

Park will be inducted into the Hall of Fame at its Induction Ceremony on Monday, May 6, 2013, at World Golf Village in St. Augustine, Fla. The Ceremony will once again kick off THE PLAYERS Championship week.

Park is one of the Open Championship’s most distinguished players, winning in 1887 and 1889 while compiling 12 top-10 finishes in golf’s oldest major. He also did pioneering work in many other areas of the game both in Europe and the United States.

"Willie Park Jr.’s contributions to the game as a player, architect, innovator and writer were truly extraordinary," said Mike Davis, USGA Executive Director and chairman of the World Golf Foundation Board of Directors. “He not only advanced the status of professional golfers, but also was influential in shaping the early development of golf in the United States. This is an overdue, well-deserved recognition.”

Park was born in Musselburgh, Scotland in 1864; four years after his father won the first Open Championship at Prestwick. Young Willie quickly took to the family business of ball and club making. He developed a reputation as an outstanding player and played his first Open Championship as a 16-year-old in 1880.

After five top-10 finishes without a victory, Park finally broke through and won the Open title in 1887, fittingly at Prestwick. Park added his second Open title in 1889 at another special place, his home of Musselburgh – the final time it was played there.

Park used his prowess as a player as a springboard to other facets of the game. He continued pioneering ball and club design, registering several patents and expanding the family business. Park's seminal 1896 book “The Game of Golf” was the first about golf written by a professional golfer. His widely acclaimed “The Art of Putting” was published in 1920.

Park made an impressive mark in golf course architecture as well, having designed or modified more than 200 courses in Europe, the U.S. and Canada. Sunningdale Golf Club outside of London is one of his most famous designs. His success in this arena carried him to the United States and Canada in 1916, where he continued to design courses of the highest quality, including the Maidstone Club in New York and Royal Quebec Golf Club.

"It is a tremendous honor for the family to have a second member recognized for his contribution to the game,” said Mungo Park, Willie Park Jr.’s great nephew and family historian. “Willie Jr., possibly more than any other, marked the transition from the old-school caddy and player to the modern professional golfer and businessman. He gave up high-stake money matches for energetic golf course design. His playing skill was undoubted, particularly with the putter, but it is his courses that provide the most impressive legacy.”

Park joins Fred Couples and Ken Venturi in the Class of 2013. The Hall of Fame will round out the Class, including the International Ballot, in a future announcement.

“The addition of Willie Park Jr. to the Hall of Fame is a significant one,” said Hall of Fame Chief Operating Officer Jack Peter. “The Hall of Fame celebrates the rich history of the game, and that story cannot be told without the tremendous contributions of the Park family. To have Willie Park Jr. join his father in the Hall of Fame is truly fitting.”

Here's a nice Tom MacWood write up of Willie Jr.

A view of one of Park Jr.'s sleek putter designs...take that Jonny Ive!

NY Times Recovers: Beta Blocker Ban And Anxiety

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After a severely overplayed A1 story and a ludicrous examination of average golfers suffering extreme heartburn, The New York Times finally gets around to doing what it does best: taking a story like Charlie Beljan's panic attack and talking to experts about the efficacy of anxiety treatments and PGA Tour drug use rules that ban such treatments (with medical exemptions).

Bill Pennington saves the day reports:

The permissibility of beta blockers in golf’s top level has come into focus anew this week. Charlie Beljan won a PGA Tour event Sunday, two days after being hospitalized with a panic attack. Beljan, who said that this week he was going to consult doctors near his home in Arizona, might be treated with medication to prevent future panic attacks.

For those of you following this epic saga, Beljan got a clean bill of health Tuesday from Jim Rome, Diane Sawyer and Inside Edition. There is no mention in the linked story of the Mayo Clinic that he was supposed to visit on Tuesday (reported here, here and here.)

Anyway, back to beta blockers and their ability to help...some:

“Some level of anxiety is good for performance,” said Richard Ginsburg, a sports psychologist at the Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts General Hospital. “It keeps you on your game. A beta blocker can take away some edge, mellow you too much.”

Danforth, who twice played in the United States Women’s Open, agreed, though she added that beta blockers, purely from a golf perspective, had been likened to the stabilizing advantage some find using a long putter.

There are medical concerns for those who acquire beta blockers without a prescription, perhaps through the plethora of Web sites selling the drugs. Singh said there was a serious risk for people using beta blockers without a genuine, long-term medical need for them.

“They are a very powerful class of drugs that have enormous impact on essential bodily functions,” he said. “They are not without adverse effects.”

You can read the banned drug list here (PDF).