It has been a year since the ruling that anchoring the putter is not allowed.

My feelings:
a) People are confused. Many think the long-putter is illegal. It is just anchoring that is a violation.
b) Many people don't know if you can anchor your arm. For "regular" length, golfers anchor their arms.
c) No clue what the penalty is for violating the rule.
d) The dumbest ruling ever.

Why dumb?

What other business (and golf is a business) voluntarily target their best customers and make their experience worse.

Long-putters tend to be:
a) Very good. It is the golfer that is looking for a minimal improvement that would try this.
b) Older. Always been the case.
c) Devoted. Anybody who tried the anchored long-putting method put a lot of effort into making the change.
d) Wealthier. Older, devoted, very good golfers are going to have more money than average.

With golf play and participation cratering, what a ridiculous measure to take and for what reason. "Golf" should be working feverishly to make the game more enjoyable. 99.999% of long-putters do not play on the tour. There is no statistical data that it even gives an advantage. If it did give an advantage, every tour player would have used it. Just one shot a round could be the difference between working at the local golf course or being on tour.

I think the USGA and R&A got caught up with trying to look good as the rule-making bodies without care to the impact of golf. You could have told them golf participation would fall 10%, and it wouldn't have changed their minds. There wasn't a vote on this either. Decree.

Don't care much about the rule either way, but I can't imagine it making anyone who enjoys golf, give up the game.

Anyway if you're ever paired with me and you like anchoring, just keep doing it I say. I won't report you to the PGA.

It makes it more frustrating. Especially after 15 years of use. I didn't see any marking on the putter that said, "Use of the club in an anchored way may violate the rules of golf and be stricken at any moment". If I had known this would happen, I would have never started using it in the first place.

I respect that golf is a sport where the pros and amateurs play by the same rule. It does feel like cheating now. I know it shouldn't matter in non-tournament golf, but it does. And if you gamble, you should honor the rules the best you can.

My point is that this rule targets the exact demographic that golf desires. High-use, high-income, good players. No other company would intentional harm a key demographic of their business. The USGA and R&A are non-profits that can make this ruling without any oversight.

I think a business in significant decline should do everything they can to keep all customers. I believer there were 148 golf course closings and 3 opening in 2016. In the midst of the Great Recovery. It should be the other way around after 8 years of economic growth. Imagine what will happen during the next recession.

Try and tell the old farts at my club that it's illegal. They still do it. But then again I never see any of them playing our MGA events either.

Great demographic to target. Older people at country clubs.

High use, high income good players are not going to quit golf because they can't anchor.

Most long putters can still be used without anchoring anyways.

They were not the targets of this rule.

Collateral damage. Bigger hit than actually target.

Stupid rule. If the long putter really made putting that much easier, wouldn't all the pros have been using them? So dumb.

Regardless of the merits of the rule I disagree with the premise that it in any way hurts the overall participation or growth of the game. Courses are closing because we had too many courses, not because all the anchored putters are quitting the game.

The number of people who would legitimately stop playing golf because of this rule has to be infinitesimal. The benefit of the rule is that the pro players on TV look less ridiculous, as in Adam Scott. Having the players look less ridiculous is probably good for the overall game in the long run.

This is a good point I hadn't thought of.

I still think the USGA has better things to do though.

Courses are closing because golf takes too long, is expensive, tough, and the perception of exclusive.

The participation of golf has severely contradicted. A ruling that negatively impacts an avid customer is poor business. I don't think Adam Scott looks ridiculous anymore than Matt Kuchar. And there is no data to support that it even provides an advantage.

I think the perception of whether guys like Scott/Keegan looked dumb with the broomstick is probably subjective.

However the ruling bodies have to be concerned with a game that is seen by many as elitist and "not really a sport". Watching guys anchor a long putter to their sternum etc. reinforces the "not a sport" aspect. It may not be any easier, but it certainly looks less athletic and less like making a golf stroke.

I never minded, I did think Scott looked dumb but it would never make me stop watching golf. That being said, golf has been around a long time and sometimes changes that cause some frustration short-term are better for the game in the long run. In a few years all the old guys who played with anchored putters will be gone, and it will be a historical footnote like croquet style putting (another putting style banned mainly because it looked strange).

If golf was started today, the hole would be 14 inches and the course would be 10 to 12 holes instead of 18. Other sports have made moves. Golf is stuck in the past. Which is what the 'sport' prides itself. Besides having ridiculous golf clubs and balls that necessitate the back tees being pushed back a thousand yards.

Old guys dying and millennials showing no interest is problematic. For the number of golf players to nosedive during an economic recovery shows that something has to drastically change. Unless people are fine with all the golf courses and country clubs that continue to close.

USGA should allow be the first organization to allow anchored putting if that is what a select group of golf enthusiasts want with the caveat that there is no statistical advantage.

Don't forget its also illegal to rest your forearms against your body unless your hands aren't separated on the grip. So just make sure you're not using one of those goofy long putter where you'd normally use a split grip so you can "create an anchor point". Rule makes a lot of sense.

Not sure exactly what you mean, but many "regular" putters anchor their arms against the sides of their body.

Interesting that side-saddle putting is legal. Talk about ridiculous...

thats what im saying, u can only anchor your arms if u arent using a split grip

http://www.usga.org/content/usga/hom...ule-14-1b.html

I don't see that space between your hands matter. Anchoring of your forearm is illegal. Which seems like it should illegal for a regular putter too.

I understand the need to evolve but golf will simply never be as popular as basketball, baseball, football, etc, and I don't think making dramatic changes (such as enlarging the hole or reducing the number of holes) is the answer to the growth problem.

Need to get kids playing since they will constitute the majority of great players. Basketball does a good job with lowering hoop to 8 1/2 feet to provide the positive feedback loop. Baseball you have t-ball and coach pitch and mounds that are closer than majors.

Even playing a par 3 for a kid is tough. The putting and sandtraps are the same. A bigger hole would give the opportunity for birdies.

Playing golf on a course is tough for beginners, even adults. I don't think making the hole larger would help all that much since beginners have far more trouble with (and get far more frustrated with) the full swing, than putting. Kids already play mini-golf with a standard size hole, and seem to enjoy it, because a)putting is easier than the full swing, and b)it's a low-pressure, low-embarrassment, fun activity.

What I think would help are more Top Shot type places where kids can hang out and have fun hitting in a low-pressure atmosphere. Atmosphere more like mini-golf, but with a full swing. Once they get hooked on how good a solid shot feels, many will stick with the game.