Hank Haney questions Bernhard Langer's Putting

[Shindig]

29 minutes ago, Vinsk said:

Really? What a pompous dope.

Bernhard Langer, being a pompous dope?  I am shocked, shocked I tell you.

That was a lie;  I am not shocked at all.

[drmevo]

49 minutes ago, Golfingdad said:

Yeah.  Or something else that just popped into my head ... why can't they be a little more strict on the grip?  For example, why not just expand the current rule to say something like your hands must be adjacent to each other on the club, or something like that?

I was thinking the same thing, but that on its own wouldn't disallow belly putters the way they're usually used, right? You would still need the anchoring rule or something else additional.

Edited July 10, 2017 by drmevo

[Golfingdad]

3 minutes ago, drmevo said:

I was thinking the same thing, but that on its own wouldn't disallow belly putters the way they're usually used, right? You would still need the anchoring rule or something else additional.

Right.  That's why it'd have to be an extension of the anchoring rule that is already in place.  To anchor the way most everybody had been doing it, you needed to create a fulcrum.  If you can't stick the club into your body and you can't separate your hands, then you can't create one, and thus anything even resembling anchoring - what Langer and McCarron are (claiming) they're doing - would die.

[drmevo]

9 minutes ago, Golfingdad said:

Right.  That's why it'd have to be an extension of the anchoring rule that is already in place.  To anchor the way most everybody had been doing it, you needed to create a fulcrum.  If you can't stick the club into your body and you can't separate your hands, then you can't create one, and thus anything even resembling anchoring - what Langer and McCarron are (claiming) they're doing - would die.

Hey, I'm all for it since it would also outlaw side-saddle putting and kill two birds with one stone! Perhaps such a rule would logically have to extend to all strokes and that's why they don't want to do it? 

[Golfingdad]

28 minutes ago, drmevo said:

Hey, I'm all for it since it would also outlaw side-saddle putting and kill two birds with one stone! Perhaps such a rule would logically have to extend to all strokes and that's why they don't want to do it? 

Oh, I'm sure there is a reason.  Those people spent infinitely more time coming up with the rule than I've been thinking about it so I'm sure all kids of different ideas were tossed out there.

I can't picture another type of stroke I've seen where players hands are not touching each other or why you'd even want them not to be, though.

[drmevo]

27 minutes ago, Golfingdad said:

Oh, I'm sure there is a reason.  Those people spent infinitely more time coming up with the rule than I've been thinking about it so I'm sure all kids of different ideas were tossed out there.

I can't picture another type of stroke I've seen where players hands are not touching each other or why you'd even want them not to be, though.

Well, you have some specialty shots like this I guess (one-handed backwards chip): http://www.golfdigest.com/story/underrated-moments-in-golf-history-sergio-garcia-climbs-a-tr

 

[Golfingdad]

29 minutes ago, drmevo said:

Well, you have some specialty shots like this I guess (one-handed backwards chip): http://www.golfdigest.com/story/underrated-moments-in-golf-history-sergio-garcia-climbs-a-tr

 

Valid point.  I think Tom Watson did one of those a year or two ago on the Champions Tour as well.

So in my little brainstorming exercise; to get around that how about the rule state that the hands cannot be apart while on the club during a stroke, rather than stating that they must be together on the club during a stroke?  This subtle change would mean you would still be allowed to hit that kind of shot. :)

Edited July 10, 2017 by Golfingdad

[Vinsk]

Oh what the hell, let's just hijack a nuclear warhead and ask for a ransom..mkay?

[colin007]

Just make the rule - The putter must be shorter than the longest club in the bag.

His forearm is touching his chest. He's a cheat.

[Vinsk]

Yeah that's what irks me in this matter. BL keeps saying he's demonstrated his technique to the USGA and they say it's perfectly legal. Lol...what a dope. I'd like to hear his take on the video that shows otherwise. I mean does he think doing it legally most the time is sufficient? 

[iacas]

9 hours ago, colin007 said:

Just make the rule - The putter must be shorter than the longest club in the bag.

His forearm is touching his chest. He's a cheat.

Pretty easy to belly putt with a driver-length club.

[Vinsk]

55 minutes ago, iacas said:

Pretty easy to belly putt with a driver-length club.

Well, he did say 'shorter.' But with this happening, this anchoring nonsense, I think it may be best just to eliminate the long putter. How long is too long? Well, they have rules regarding length of drivers, size of putter head right? It can't be that difficult.

[iacas]

9 minutes ago, Vinsk said:

Well, he did say 'shorter.' But with this happening, this anchoring nonsense, I think it may be best just to eliminate the long putter. How long is too long? Well, they have rules regarding length of drivers, size of putter head right? It can't be that difficult.

Sure it can. What if you're 6'7"? A shorter player could easily belly putt a 6'7" person's "regular" putter.

[Vinsk]

4 minutes ago, iacas said:

Sure it can. What if you're 6'7"? A shorter player could easily belly putt a 6'7" person's "regular" putter.

So Lingmerth could use Brooks Koepka's driver and it wouldn't be cheating? Why not?

6 minutes ago, Vinsk said:

So Lingmerth could use Brooks Koepka's driver and it wouldn't be cheating? Why not?

Cumbersome to enforce, but I think if the putter could not be longer than ones navel to the ground, that would be difficult to anchor putt with.

Edited July 13, 2017 by Vinsk

[iacas]

10 minutes ago, Vinsk said:

So Lingmerth could use Brooks Koepka's driver and it wouldn't be cheating? Why not?

Huh?

I'm saying that the rules kinda have make the putter long enough that a 6'7" player can use a putter… but if that's all the rules say, then a short player could anchor that putter.

Hell, my daughter could anchor any putter over about 30".

[Vinsk]

Just now, iacas said:

Huh?

I'm saying that you have to make the putter long enough that a 6'7" player can use a putter… but if that's all the rules say, then a short player could anchor that putter.

Hell, my daughter could anchor any putter over about 30".

Ah, ok..yeah I see. I just don't recall seeing 'long putters' for years growing up. I think Orville Moody was the first I can remember, if correct. All those years in the 70's, early 80's...wasn't there some 'standard' length being used? Just seems there would be a way to rid the tour of these silly putters since it appears the ban on anchoring isn't really resolving the intent of the USGA.

[iacas]

18 minutes ago, Vinsk said:

Ah, ok..yeah I see. I just don't recall seeing 'long putters' for years growing up. I think Orville Moody was the first I can remember, if correct. All those years in the 70's, early 80's...wasn't there some 'standard' length being used? Just seems there would be a way to rid the tour of these silly putters since it appears the ban on anchoring isn't really resolving the intent of the USGA.

Ray Floyd used a pretty long putter.

And I'm sure there were 6'7" people using pretty long putters, too. Long putters help those with bad backs and stuff, as well, even when used "non-anchoring."

[Vinsk]

Just now, iacas said:

Ray Floyd used a pretty long putter.

And I'm sure there were 6'7" people using pretty long putters, too. Long putters help those with bad backs and stuff, as well.

I guess it's a different stroke, but my point was the USGA doesn't care how tall a player is with regards to driver length. There is a limit, period. Right? It just appears that evidence has shown BL anchored (or anchors) his put and nothing is really being done about it. Not sure how this will be remedied.