Adam Scott unhappy his long putter could be banned

It seems Adam Scott isn’t happy about the impending announcement by the USGA and R&A that may see a ban placed on the long putter.

Adam Scott has been quite vocal over the past few weeks in expressing his concerns about the potential ban on anchoring, which would see his long putter technique deemed illegal.

In a recent interview with Golf.com, Scott was asked what has feelings were on the idea that long putters could be banned;

“I know what purists say. They want to protect the traditions of the game. But that’s not even an argument. Otherwise, we’d be playing with hickory shafts.”

“Some guys don’t like it. That’s because they haven’t putted well with it, or they haven’t tried it. That’s my argument — it’s still a learned skill. It’s not like you just pick it up and make putts. You have to learn how to use it.”

And just today in the lead up to the Singapore Open, Scott responded to a line of questioning that pointed out that Tiger Woods wants anchoring banned;

“It is very hard to find a good reason to do that (ban it) at this stage so my conversation was to find out where things sit because it is very hard to get information,”

“My opinion would be I don’t think it is in the best interests of the game to ban the long putter I think there are some more important issues that probably should have time spent on them than putting.”

I’m not sure Scott is looking hard enough for a reason. No one is arguing it’s not a learned skill, and he’s somehow forgotten, or neglected to mention that anchoring the putter to some part of the body makes it easier to putt under pressure.

While I agree that there are other important issues that need careful consideration – (ball distance, club specs and slow play, for example), this does mean we need to forget about the anchoring issue which quite clearly must be making it easier to putt. Scott indirectly admitted this during last year’s WGC Bridgestone Invitational, a tournament he went on to win by four shots.

“I just want to make putts and make the game a little easier for myself, so it didn’t bother me too much”, Scott said.

Scott has performed very well with the long putter with recent years but I’m inclined to think it’s given him confidence in his whole game rather than being a huge influence on the greens. He has managed to contend in nearly every major since the long stick was placed in the bag but again, I think this is largely due to preparation and ball striking rather than the long putter.

Adam Scott will still be a great player without the long putter. And somewhat confusingly, Scott also believes this too as he mentioned in the article with Golf.com;

“The long putter has taught me how to putt again. I don’t see [putter length] as a crucial thing for me at all. I think I’ve won 18 tournaments with a short putter and one with a long putter, so maybe I’m the idiot.”

3 thoughts on “Adam Scott unhappy his long putter could be banned

  • I think the ball is more of an issue than the putters,
    they really need to slow that thing down to keep
    the great courses relevant,
    Saying that there will be a manufacturer revolt and that average golfers will be disadvantaged is short sighted, truth be told its only the guys on the tour who have a fast enough swing speed to get the most out of AAA1 ball anyway,

    Reply
  • I agree with the commenter above. I believe the issues lie with the ball and not the putter.

    Reply
  • Yes I agree with both these guys. The putter is not that big a deal. You still need to learn how to use it effectively.

    If you look at the stats on tour users of the traditional flat sticks are leading the short game statistics.

    Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *