Anchors away - Ban looms for many

Post by Sports Writer, Derek Clements

FROM January 1 next year, anchored putting will be banned. You would think that would mean that broomhandle and belly putters would also be illegal when the clock strikes midnight on December 30. That's certainly what I thought. But I am wrong. And if that was your understanding, then you are wrong too.

It will still be all right to carry one of these abominations in your golf bag, just as long as you don't anchor it. I was also astonished to learn that the method employed by Matt Kuchar will not be outlawed. Kuchar, who is a fine fellow and one of the best players in the world not to have won a major, uses a longer-than-average putter and locks part of the grip against his left forearm when making his stroke.

Now, you can call me old-fashioned if you like, but surely locking the grip against your arm is anchoring. And if it is not regarded as anchoring, somebody needs to explain why it is not. To my way of thinking, there is no difference.

View the USGA info-graphic explaining the anchoring ban >>>

You may remember that when Bernhard Langer first suffered with his putting he adopted a method that involved grabbing his forearm with one hand, with the putter grip locked against his arm. He was using that grip when the US beat Europe in the Ryder Cup in 1991, the so-called War on the Shore.

That grip surely involved anchoring the putter, but it appears that Langer will be free to return to it next year. Or he can carry on using his broomhandle putter, provided he doesn't rest it against any part of his body. Will somebody please explain to me what the difference is between resting a putter against your chin or chest and locking it against your forearm because, for the life of me, I can't work it out.

Don't get me wrong. I know that a lot of golfers struggle on the greens - Adam Scott, Langer, Tim Clark, Kevin Stadler and many more - and I have no wish to see anybody's career come to an end because of this issue. Scott suffers so badly that, having tried to return to the 36-inch putter this year, he has abandoned it and continued using his broomhandle putter, and will do so until January 1.

However, I do believe that there is a lack of clarity and that the R&A and the USGA, the game's rule-makers, owe it to the millions of people who play golf to explain what does and what does not constitute anchoring. And if it is all right rest a putter grip against your forearm, why is it all right?

I know several keen amateurs who currently use long putters and believe that the new rules do not apply to them. They intend to carry on using those clubs after January 1 and aim to continue anchoring them. So, does the ban apply just to the professional game or to the entire sport? My understanding is that if you play golf, to whatever standard, then from January 1, 2016, you cannot anchor a putter.

But I say again, what constitutes anchoring? This needs to be clarified, and it needs to be clarified soon.