OUR
REGULAR GAME NO. 18
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As most everyone knows, the United
States Golf Association, or USGA, is the governing body of golf in this
country. One of its many
functions is regulating golf equipment so that skill rather than
technology is the principal factor in playing the game well.
To
that end, the USGA regulates the shape and size of clubs and balls.
These regulations are very detailed and serve to maintain the
integrity of the game. They
even place restrictions on the grip, clubhead shape, clubface, and shaft.
In
particular, the USGA says that the shaft of a club must be at least 18
inches in length, measured from the bottom of the club to the top of the
grip. Now, it’s hard to
imagine anyone using an 18 inch club, but I do remember Ken Green, the
quirky pro whose idea of practice was to hit golf balls off his mattress
through this bedroom window, using his son’s putter during a tournament.
It couldn’t have been more than two feet in length.
Green had found the putter stuffed in his bag, messed around with
it, and decided he liked it enough to use it in a tournament.
I don’t remember him winning anything with it, but he was quite a
sight, all hunched over with his PeeWee Putter.
Interestingly,
the Rules of Golf don’t set a limit on the maximum length of a
club. That’s an interesting
omission; I guess the USGA figures that you ought to be able to use any
club that you can swing, no matter how long it is.
They’re
right. The problem takes care
of itself.
A
couple of years ago, a company came out with an extra long driver.
It was called the Killer Bee.
Of course, in my never-ending search to defy the USGA and find
technology that will somehow compensate for my lack of skill, I went out
and bought one.
I
tried it out for several weeks. It
will probably shock you to learn that it didn’t produce a magical
transformation in my game. Mind you, that’s only the 362nd time I’ve
learned that lesson. If I
were ever to go back and count the number of golf clubs and gimmick
devices I’ve bought in my lifetime — and I won’t because the truth
would only shame me — I’m sure the money I spent would be enough for
me to retire on.
The
sad thing is, as long as there’s a Golf Channel and infomercials, I’ll
be dialing 1-800 and giving my credit card number for every laser device
and fly-by-night gimmick money can buy. Before long, I’ll be able to open my own “Golf
Toys-R-Us.”
But
there’s nowhere that length in golf clubs varies more than with the
putter. From Ken Green’s
kiddie putter to the stand up version that was first made famous by
Orville Moody to the “belly” putter that Vijay Singh is now making
popular, everyone has experimented with the length of putters in the hope
of finding some magical distance that will make every ball go in the hole.
I
doubt that there’s any area of golf with more “voodoo” in it than
putting. Not only do putters
come in all sizes and shapes, but the way we grip and use them is
distinctive. We’ve got the
standard “reverse overlap” grip, which sounds like anything but
standard. Then we’ve got
the “left hand low” grip used by Jim Furyk and others, in which the
hands are reversed. Then
there’s the “claw” grip that Mark Calcavecchia uses.
I can’t begin to explain that one.
It’s
enough to give me a headache.
For our Regular Game, this is Mike Veron, hoping you roll the rock
better than I do.
About the Author
J. Michael Veron is the acclaimed author of The
Greatest Player Who Never Lived and The
Greatest Course That Never Was. His third novel, tentatively titled
The Caddie, is scheduled for release in the spring of 2002.
Mike's work has earned him the title of "master
of fiction" from USA Today, and Travel and Leisure Golf Magazine
has called him "The
John Grisham of Golf." In addition, the New York Times hailed The
Greatest Player as "Golf's
Literary Rookie of the Year," and the Seattle Times ranked The
Greatest Player as second on its all-time list of "Five Wonderful
Golf Books." At one time,
The Greatest Player and The
Greatest Course were the first and third best-selling sports fiction
in the country.
Please contact us
for more information on Mike and his work.
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