Tiger Woods and Ernie Els have called for a ban on belly putters, but the rule-making United States Golf Association (USGA) has turned a deaf ear to the desires of the world’s top-ranked golfers.
Woods and Els have sought a ban on the belly putter used by several players, notably third-ranked Vijay Singh of Fiji. Belly putters, about 40 inches long, rest against the belly as golfers use the anchored base when swinging.
”I’ve never been a fan of belly or long putters because I don’t think anything should be anchored to the body,” Woods said.
”The art of putting is trying to figure out how to coordinate your arms, wrists and shoulders and hands to swing the blade and I think that’s part of the game of golf. I’ve never been in favor of belly putters or long putters.
”I’m sure one day I may need one. But I think that the challenge of it is to just swing the club, just like we do with all the other 13 clubs in our bag.”
On the eve of the 104th US Open here at Shinnecock Hills Golf Club, USGA president Fred Ridley, a former long-putter user, said his group and the fellow rulemakers at Royal and Ancient Golf Association have no plan for a belly ban.
”We do not have any agenda item with respect to taking action with long putters or belly putters at this time,” Ridley said.
”It’s something we discuss and to my knowledge that’s accurate for the R and A [Royal and Ancient] as well.”
Dick Rugge, the USGA’s senior technical director, has said USGA studies showed no evidence of an unfair advantage using belly putters.
And that’s fine with Singh.
”I go with what the USGA says,” Singh said. ”It’s not on their agenda. It’s not banned. It’s legal. I’m going to play with it right now. There’s nothing more to say about that.”
South Africa’s Els sparked the call for a belly putter ban last month at a European PGA event in Heidelberg, Germany, that was won by South African Trevor Immelman using a belly putter.
”I think they should be banned,” Els said in May. ”I think nerves and the skill of putting is part of the game and they get drops in those long putters. Nerves are part of the game. You know, take a tablet if you can’t handle it.”
”It’s becoming such an easy, easier way to putt. You actually push it into the body and then you can make a kind of perfect stroke. You’re going to almost come back on the same angle every time. That’s why I say they should ban it.”
But deciding on a maximum length for putters is problematic given the size differences of players. And Singh said last month that any move to ban belly putters would set off a court fight.
”It will be a difficult thing if they even thought of banning it. There will be a lot of lawsuits,” Singh said. ”It’s not as easy putting with a belly putter as people think. If it’s an advantage, everybody should use it.”
American Paul Azinger became the first US PGA Tour player to win a title with the belly putter, capturing the 2000 Hawaiian Open nine years after countryman Rocco Mediate used a long-shafted putter to win at Miami.
The best of the belly-putter users include Singh, who jumped to the top of US PGA putting statistics after switching to a belly putter in 2001, and Americans Fred Couples, Stewart Cink and Azinger.
Cink ranks second in US PGA putting statistics, barely trailing leader Nick Price of Zimbabwe, with Azinger seventh. Couples ranks eighth in birdies. — Sapa-AFP