Oct 22 (Reuters) – U.S. Open champion Webb Simpson, one of three players to win a major with the controversial long putter, says he is not worried by a possible ban but believes that outlawing the club would be wrong.
American Simpson has already begun practising with a conventional ‘short’ putter in anticipation of a possible rule change, though he feels that large-headed drivers have had a much bigger impact on golf.
The United States Golf Association (USGA) and the Royal and Ancient (RA), the game’s two governing bodies, have been discussing the status of ‘anchored putters’ with a ban among the options being considered.
“There’s a bunch of arguments going around but I haven’t heard a good one yet,” Simpson told reporters on Monday ahead of this week’s elite PGA Grand Slam of Golf in Bermuda.
“I’m friends with a lot of the RA guys and the USGA guys. It’s nothing personal and I know they are trying to do it for the betterment of the game, but I don’t think it’s a good decision.”
Simpson switched to the belly putter in 2004 but says he has seen no evidence in the PGA Tour’s ‘strokes gained over the field’ putting statistic that the longer putter gives players any advantage.
“Last year there was no one in the top 20 in strokes gained category that anchored a putter,” he said. “So the argument of, ‘it’s an advantage’, you have to throw that out there.
“It’s going to be tough if they do ban it. It’s going to be tough for a lot of people, not just players. It’s going to be tough for committees to really have a stance on it and explain why.”
The use of an extended putter seems to be totally at odds with the spirit of the game, but it has played a key role in reviving the careers of several players who have suffered from the yips, or the putting twitches.
Continued…
