WORLD EXCLUSIVE Belly putter inventor hits out at ban

It will be 50 years this June since Richard T. Parmley, from California, was granted a patent for the ‘Body-Pivot Golf Putter’, which is widely acknowledged as the earliest-known forerunner to ‘belly’ putters.

The practice of anchoring those clubs to the body to help stabilise the movement of the putting stroke will be outlawed from January 1, 2016, following the introduction of Rule 14-1b announced by the R&A and USGA in May 2013.

Along with many of the game’s most high-profile advocates of the belly putter, Parmley, its inventor, is also saddened by the upcoming ban.

“I never felt it was unfair” – Richard T. Parmley

“I was a little bit disappointed at first but if the R&A and USGA feel that it gives players an unfair advantage, then okay,” said the 83-year-old in his first magazine interview.

“However, since anyone can choose to use it, I never felt it was unfair. I know from my own experiences that it does help and, in the end, it’s up to the people who make the rules to do what they think is right.”

Parmley, a retired cryogenic research scientist, developed the club as a solution to his own putting problems. A talented amateur golfer, the idea came to him whilst he was at college and he admits it paid instant dividends.

“I started to putt really well,” he says. “Particularly on short putts. My longer putts improved, too, but I felt as though I could hardly miss with my shorter putts. My friends were a little bit sceptical about it at first but they soon came around and took more of an interest in it after I started to drop a lot of putts.

“People ask me how much of a difference it made to my game. Well, I got down to scratch using it, so quite a lot! It definitely helped me improve as a golfer.”

Get issue 138 of bunkered
to read more from Parmley, including:

• How he created his prototype ‘Body-Pivot Golf Putter’.
• Why he never took his invention to market.
• How he felt seeing his creation in the hands of the world’s top players.

Tablet and smartphone users – download your digital edition of issue 138 for just £1.49 from the App Store or via Google Play.

Portrait: Drew Bird Photography (drewbirdphoto.com)

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Michael McEwan is the Deputy Editor of bunkered and has been part of the team since 2004. In that time, he has interviewed almost every major figure within the sport, from Jack Nicklaus, to Rory McIlroy, to Donald Trump. The host of the multi award-winning bunkered Podcast and a member of Balfron Golfing Society, Michael is the author of three books and is the 2023 PPA Scotland 'Writer of the Year' and 'Columnist of the Year'. Dislikes white belts, yellow balls and iron headcovers. Likes being drawn out of the media ballot to play Augusta National.

Deputy Editor

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