2011 was quite an interesting year for golf; sure we didn’t see Tiger return to form (signs are pointing to that occurring this year), but there were a number of things happening that kept golf fans entertained. We were treated to three different number ones in the world in Martin Kaymer, Lee Westwood, and Luke Donald and saw four first-time major winners (Schwartzel, McIlroy, Clarke, and Bradley), which is something that we haven’t seen since 2003.
One of the biggest trends that picked up in 2011 was many players moving towards long or belly putters. It had always seemed like the long putter was for old guys or those that got the yips but the idea has become more popular as of late. Recently we have seen Adam Scott put the broomstick in the bag and the move gained even more steam with Keegan Bradley being the first to win a major with a long putter as he captured the PGA Championship in August. Three straight wins and the steady play of other long putter users such as Webb Simpson (who contended for the money title) only added to the intrigue.
Regardless of your feelings on whether or not long putters should be legal, they are here for now and more and more players, both amateurs and professionals, are putting them in their bags. The question is this: are long putters just a fad and something to be forgotten in a few years or are they the real deal? Do they actually help the players using them sink more putts or is just between the ears? We’ll look at some stats from the PGA tour to see if 1) players using the long putter putt better than those with standard length putters and 2) if players who have made the switch improved upon their own putting regardless of where they ranked before.
Good day golf fans and welcome to yet another informative edition of Hittin’ the Links. So Tiger returns to the winners circle; does this mean Rory and Luke better watch out? I believe that type of thinking might be a little premature, but I do believe that a winning Tiger Woods is good for the game of golf.
This award, while it is nice to be recognized with an award, is not one you want to win. Ms. Congeniality is another way of putting it. Today’s candidates, if I was to pick one, would have to be a very close tie between Luke Donald and Lee Westwood. I think we don’t hear so much about this title anymore because it is not such a clear cut winner as it was a few years ago. Phil Mickelson held this title for the longest time and he could really go nowhere and discuss golf without this topic rearing its ugly head. David Duval held it for a while, but in his case winning a major seemed worse than not winning one. His career has gone down the tubes since kissing the Claret Jug. Don’t get me wrong, I like David and root for him each week that he plays, but one has to be honest at some point.
This seems to be the year where fairway wood technology is the topic of conversation. Top companies are making distance claims, going longer, lighter, adding slots on the crown, slots on the sole to achieve a boost in distance. Tour Edge may not have the big marketing budget of some of these companies but they have a steady history of great fairway woods and the 
Everybody has a few golfers out there that they just like for seemingly no reason. It could be because they won in your hometown, they are sponsored by your favorite brand, or because even the dress in a strange way. Much like picking favorite sports team, picking a favorite golfer doesn’t have to be rational. In fact, a friend of mine from northern New Jersey is a die-hard Miami Dolphins fan. Why? Because as a kid he liked their team colors.