Do you think the long putter should be banned?

[treekiller]

Oh, I think the long putter should be allowed, I just can't get one to work anymore.

[iacas]

Again, like I have asked all the other nimwits

It's a benefit to people who can't putt. Tiger can putt.

I think it should be banned because I'm against the idea of anchoring something to your body. Golf is a sport where the connection to your body is the hands only. You swing the club, you don't lock in and rotate your body. The long putter isn't "an advantage" to people that can putt. It's an advantage to people who can't putt. It's like letting people who can't drive the ball very well tee off on a fairway that's five yards wider.

[powerfade]

Equipment manufacturers and the USGA and R&A; have made this game easier in every other aspect... why not continue to allow the long or belly putters?

Obviously, this isn't news but there's...

cavity back irons - for people who can't consistently find the sweet spot
longer flying balls, metal woods, and springy drivers - for people who can't generate enough clubhead speed
hybrids - for people who can't hit long irons
60° lob wedges - for people who can't open up a 54° or 56° sand wedge
square grooves & milled faces - for people who can't spin the ball enough, especially out of the rough

...not to mention all those various putterhead shapes and styles with aiming aids.

These are all advantages that the great majority of golfers around the world use everyday. Are they right or wrong?

I feel the point about anchoring something against your body is a little weak because the golfer is at least using his/her body to create the anchor. There's no artificial device, or a hinge on the club used to create this anchor. The body and anchor are still positioned to the side of the golf ball - not behind it, and I think that still presents a challenge.

The body anchor is still subject to movement.
The arm swing can still go offline and swing at the wrong speed.
The head can still lift up prematurely.

I just don't see the long and belly putters influencing the game as greatly as those items listed above.

As long as the great majority of players continue to struggle with this game (and they always will), all of the above should be allowed for everyone.

[DGStinner]

I think it should be banned because I'm against the idea of anchoring something to your body. Golf is a sport where the connection to your body is the hands only. You swing the club, you don't lock in and rotate your body.

I'd have to agree completely with iacas.

[amking]

i just dont want that big thing sticking out of my golf bag

[Big_M]

I believe the long putter is legal as long as only two parts of your body (hands) touch the putter. I use a long putter (50 inch) but my top hand separates the grip from my body.

I love it... a long putter user says the "other" long putter should be banned...both should be banned, not for traditionalist notions, but because I want to throw up when I see them, they are NOT golf clubs.

[michaeljames92]

when you say long putters do you mean broomstick with the one hand at the top and the other furter down about 2 thirds up?

[DM Dogg]

I have to say no...
Maybe because I use a 50" long putter

[Crafty]

No, Billy Mayfair needs every last piece of help he can get. And also, if a guy can carry a putter thats looks like a space station, why cant he have a longer putter too?

[Big_M]

My Ping Craz-e G2i does have the look of something "otherworldly", but I don't anchor it to my body. Plus, I actually would carry two putters for different types of putts if we had infinate options. My mallet is a tradeoff. Plus, when I see mallets I don't get sick to my stomache like I do when I see a putter that is five feet tall. These long putters just don't appear to be golf glubs... and just for the record I'm also in favor of banning all the odd grips (i.e. left hand low, the claw, etc.)

[SubPar]

Guys with long putters are not exactly winning every tournament.

If they ban long putters in the name of tradition, should they also ban 460cc driver heads, metal woods, cavity back clubs, hybrids?

Let's go back to greens running 7.5 and persimmon woods. Bunk!

SubPar

[sonicblue]

Guys with long putters are not exactly winning every tournament.

Apples and oranges. We're not talking about materials or putter head shapes that magically make the ball roll farther or straighter or with less skip. All of those are fine, just like it's fine to claim a driver that makes it go straighter or farther. I've seen plenty of guys top an R7!

The long putter, and the belly putter, introduce a totally different method of utilizing the club. Anchoring the club in any way to your body reduces the inherent fluctuations that are the challenge of putting. IMO, you hold the club in your hands and swing it. Having a shaft that extends through your hands up into your belly or your chest is against the integrity of the game. Moreover, I believe it's largely a gimmick. People get yips, and this was one more quick fix. I think most everyone, save for very few people with physical ailments, can manage to fix their putting with a conventional club. Granted, pros maybe don't have the luxury of time to wait until they've solved their putting woes, but that's the breaks. That's why this game is so hard, and why skill (and longevity of skill) is so prized.

[rusrus]

I have no problem with the long putter. It'll just make it that much sweeter when I putt your ass into the ground with my weird-looking antique. Last season I had to steel wool the shaft to remove some rust.

[MrSandman]

Who cares what its made of! The fact is its basically a fixed point, it doesn't take nearly as much skill to be a good putter with a long putter.

If you think a belly putter takes less skill, then go use one.

I don't see what advantage they provide. Some people like them, others don't. Every time a person switches to a belly putter, there is likely somebody else switching from a belly putter back to a traditional putter.

[SubPar]

If you think a belly putter takes less skill, then go use one.

Right. If the belly putters are so darn great, why do people like Vijay and Sergio keep going back and forth. You still have to read it right, line it up and knock the ball in the hole.

Els was crying about them a few years ago, but I bet he could not putt any better with a long putter, so what's the point? SubPar

[LottaBalata]

I personally, don't have a problem with the long putters. I agree with the above post, you still have to line it up and put it in the hole. Its not like you're straddling the ball.

And I don't think its much of an advantage when you have it against your body. Its still a fulcrum, you're still working a pendulum, you have to figure proper speed/lag and line. Never tried one because it looks more difficult to me.

[iacas]

And I don't think its much of an advantage when you have it against your body. Its still a fulcrum, you're still working a pendulum, you have to figure proper speed/lag and line. Never tried one because it looks more difficult to me.

What's still a fulcrum? Your belly? That doesn't happen with a regular putter. There is no fulcrum, no anchoring.

[AmenCorner]

No, Billy Mayfair needs every last piece of help he can get. And also, if a guy can carry a putter thats looks like a space station, why cant he have a longer putter too?

Because of the reason that iacus explained.