Longest Putt Prize

[Mr3Putt]

Here's what happened.

Every now and then, the course we play our Saturday skins game will give out group a dozen balls to be used for prizes. We usually use a sleeve each for up 2 Closest to the Pins, one long drive and one long putt.

This past Saturday I made about a 6 foot putt on #18, the long putt hole. The birdie held up, but the last group came in and said, "Joe beat your putt". No big deal because it was just a sleeve of balls.

After Joe left the course and one of the guys with him said IT WAS HIS SECOND PUTT that he beat me with. Realizing he was skunked in the game and out of the hole, he putted to be outside the prevailing long putt mark.

I called BS. Most of the guys were with me, but two of them thought that any putt that drops can win the long putt. My argument to that is that the long drive is always the first shot, you just can't keep reloading until you beat it... Same with closest to the pin, first shot only... You could hypothetically, or even actually, just keep putting near the hole, then back outside the range until you finally make one....

So how would/do you guys play a longest putt prize?

[David in FL]

Seems that if it was supposed to be the prize for making the longest first putt, that's what it should be called. As it is, a putt is a putt.

Having said that, if he really lagged it up there on purpose to have a shot at taking the prize, he's an ass .......at least in my ever so humble opinion.

[klaymon]

I think it should be the first putt. Who the hell in their right mind in normal golf putts a ball 3 feet just so they can try again from 8 feet?

[mdvaldosta]

Longest putt is longest putt... but then again that's pretty lame. What if the guy had a 60 foot putt, came up 10 feet short, then holed the 10 footer. I guess it's all about intent, maybe you should be more clear.

PS - yea, the guy's an ass. People like him is why they need fine print in contracts.

[Pyranha]

I suspect the guys I play with would have given him the sleeve of balls and then politely informed him that if he pulled such a d!ck move again he wouldn't be welcome at the Saturday game any more. I mean seriously....who intentionally putts AWAY from the cup just so they can try and 1 up someone for a sleeve of balls?

-C

[Mr3Putt]

Seems that if it was supposed to be the prize for making the longest

I assure you from now on, that's what it will forever be known as. It's funny, in the 8 years we've played this little game, the issue has never come up. In my league, it's pre marked first putt only, I never thought ever that anyone else would think differently.

Longest putt is longest putt... but then again that's pretty lame. What if the guy had a 60 foot putt, came up 10 feet short, then holed the 10 footer.

That's a good point. Keep in mind my putt was certainly beatable so I wasn't surprised when it got beat. When I found out HOW it was beat, now that surprised me.

What if he shanked one OB on a Par 3, rehit, then stuck the next shot to 6 inches, should he win the closest to the pin?

I suspect the guys I play with would have given him the sleeve of balls and then politely informed him that if he pulled such a d!ck move again he wouldn't be welcome at the Saturday game any more. I mean seriously....who intentionally putts AWAY from the cup just so they can try and 1 up someone for a sleeve of balls?

No one knew (except his group) what had happened until he had gone home. This is a skins game, and he's the type who will pick up his ball if he's putting for bogey or worse. If he's out of the hole, he quits. Me, I have so many other bets going on that everything/hole gets finished regardless of the total.

Personally, I could care less about the balls. (Just glad the birdie held, it was my one shining moment) It was the point regarding the first putt. I'm kinda surprised to see the poll totals, I thought it would be a blowout.

[tjy355]

Here's what happened.

We had the exact same situation in a league I helped manage. We had no specific rule about this because the concept of someone repeatedly putting away from the hole and back again in an attempt to win the long putt prize just never occurred to us. It is so far outside the spirit of the game. So we had to make a rule to state it had to be your first putt. We called it the Scott rule. And yes, Scott was an ASShat of incredible magnitude.