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At this quite time of the year, most tour pros are taking time out to familiarise themselves with the new Rules of Golf, which come into effect from January 1, 2019.
The new Rules have been designed to make things more simple for golfers, as well as attempting to speed up the game. Sounds good, right?
Well, a couple of PGA Tour pros aren’t too impressed.
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Mackenzie Hughes, who won the 2016 RSM Classic, believes ‘most of them missed the mark’, while Graham DeLaet said it was ‘absurd’ that the anchoring definition wasn’t addressed.
I just went through the new rules of golf for 2019 again. I feel like a few of the changes are good (ex. caddie alignment, loose impediments in bunkers), but I feel like most of them missed the mark (ex. ball drop from knee height, damaged club, and more). Thoughts?
— Mackenzie Hughes (@MacHughesGolf) December 19, 2018
How they didn’t address the anchoring definition is absurd. It’s the only thing that ACTUALLY matters.
— DeLetty (@GrahamDeLaet) December 20, 2018
Agreed. They had a chance to make that clear and they didn’t. Could have just said it can’t be over a certain length and can’t touch any part of your body.
— Mackenzie Hughes (@MacHughesGolf) December 20, 2018
Making you a better or worse putter is not the issue. Its the fact that some guys are questioning other players ethics and morals because of no exact definition in the rules.
— DeLetty (@GrahamDeLaet) December 20, 2018
The lack of clarity surrounding the anchoring issue was also raised last week by two-time major winner Tony Jacklin.
“When are the lawmakers going to really get to grips with the anchoring problem?” he said. “They got that one badly wrong a few years ago. They haven’t corrected their mistake and now they are ignoring the issue.
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“What makes them think that being able to put your putter alongside your arm isn’t anchoring? If you go back deep into the mists of time, when great players like Harry Vardon and Ted Ray were around, long putters weren’t allowed. Pure and simple.”
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