Europro tour bans belly putters

First topic message reminder :

This was mentioned last night during the Solheim Cup coverage. The announcement mentions belly putters, one can only assume this also includes broomhandles.

Interesting, I know there has been talk for years about unfair advantage etc but to date, there has been no ban imposed. I wonder if this is the tip of the iceberg or a unilateral decision.

http://geckoeuroprotour.com/latest-rules-update/

MPB, I know what you are getting at saying that a long putter or a shorter driver improves the player, I'm looking at it from another point of view in that it might help slow a slide, rather than actually improving.
A putter will improve more by practicing harder and changing the way they view lines/borrows and distance control.

There are few people who have converted to long putters and stuck with them. Putting has probably more of short term "fixes" than any other aspect, but they seldom last.

I don't think I'm explaining my point very well.
I don't want to see long putters banned. I too think golf is about enjoyment and if anyone can use to improve then good for them.
I do not however think we need to kid ourselves that they don't improve anyone's game.
I've looked at Adam Scott. Granted this isn't a comprehensive study! But to be honest he's the only one I can put a date on when he changed for comparison. I know Langer started with the long putter in 97 but I don't have stats immediately before and after.

So, Scott, using the PGA Tour's average 'putts gained' on the field stat -

Conventional putter

2008 - 178th losing 0.436 strokes per round
2009 - 180th losing 0.888 strokes per round
2010 - 186th losing 0.746 strokes per round

Change to long putter

2011 - 136th losing 0.172 strokes per round

I make that a 300% improvement (someone can correct my maths) on the average of the 3 preceding years. And a gain of just over half a stroke per round. So 2 shots per tournament.
Without those 2 shots he would have been 4th rather than 2nd in this years Masters, 10th rather than 7th at the PGA, 10th rather than 6th at the Tour Championship.

I don't know how it can be argued that that doesn't affect anyone else.

If anyone can give me the dates that another player changed to a longer putter I will look up the stats. I'd be amazed if their putting didn't improve.

MPB, it could also be down to him knowing he's a bad putter and trying hard to practice more, perhaps he's employed a psychologist to look at putting differently, putting coach or even that his approach play has improved which means that he's knocking the ball closer, meaning he's more likely to hole more putts. It could be a million different things.
He might also be reading the putts better, changed his putting stroke so that he's not dropping the ball in the hole but making sure he's getting it to a speed where it will at least go past the hole.

I don't think we can categorically say that it is due to his longer putter.
It would be interesting to show the results of robotic testing with a long and a conventional putter on an assortment of putts.

SR, it could be a whole load of other stuff that just happens to coincide with him changing his syle of putting? True but I'd say it's a fair assumption that the putter change is a fair contributor.

As I understand it the putts gained stat is designed to take out things like knocking the ball closer, GIR etc and focuses purely on putting performance. Although I'm not sure how it's calculated. Maybe one for Kwini?

MPB, Your putts gained naturally improve if you start hitting it closer. It's not something that can be normalised.

I would agree that his slight improvement is coincidental with his change of putter, but his putting statistics were pretty wretched in preceding years, he'd be a fool if he was simply relying on a change of putter to make the difference. He'll certainly be doing a lot of other things in addition to changing that.

SR, not necessarily compared to others hitting it equally close. You're still at the same standard comparably. As I say I'm not sure how it's calculated.

Of course he will be practicing etc to improve but he would have been a fool to not having been doing that in the preceding years also.

I thinks it's almost undoubtable that we have a guy here who's putting has improved since changing to a longer putter

Well MPB, I'll agree that his putting has improved since changing to a long putter, but that doesn't necessarily mean that it is the reason for his improvement.

Fair enough SR
I think I a fair assumption that its likely been a major influence.

So I'm off to buy one as it's pay day!

Now that a major has been claimed by a belly putter, it seems inevitable that children may not even begin the game with short putters. Still, given the precise nature, measurement-wise, of these putters one would think they'd have to be changed more often to accommodate a growing chld? Could get very expensive for daddy!

I doubt if the governing bodies will ever be able to in-gather the data necessary to pronounce one way or the other. The only way it could happen is if a large enough section of the next generation putted only with belly putters and then compared putting stats with those who have only used short putters ... always assuming of course that stimp readings remain relative.

Right, I'm off for a wee golfing holiday. Y'all behave now.

Gael, remember to ask the starter for no additions to your two ball so you and Mr Gael can get up to whatever it was you had in mind that you weren't allowed to do at Dornoch.