During the Charles Schwab Challenge, a lot of little things started bubbling up. Scottie Scheffler is keeping his cut streak, but he struggled with an injury. Ben Griffin took home the win while getting some backlash from fans for using a free relief drop. The fans have taken notice of something else. Fans are accusing German golfer Matti Schmid of anchoring his putts.
Schmid Anchoring?
Although originally allowed, anchoring was banned for being against the “spirit of what a stroke is.” The rule just means that a club should swing freely. A golfer is not allowed to hold the club against their body to stabilize the stroke. This is what it looks like Schmid is doing on the green, but the referees didn’t call it out. Therefore, adding more fuel to the fire of fans having problems with the refs. The refs mostly looked at it and couldn’t really see definitive proof of anchoring. Some say that it was very likely that his thumb was just brushing up against his shirt, which was sagging forward.
Rule Change?
During the discussion around Matti Schmid and anchoring, an old debate came up again. The solution to anchoring on the green is out there. Pro golfer Eddie Pepperell has stated that the way to go about this is to insist that the putter should be the shortest club in the bag. A simple solution that not only forces the players to start extending their arms more but also makes anchoring far easier to detect. That last point is a major issue that referees face when they need to make an anchoring call. A referee for the DP World Tour has stated as much in an interview with BBC Sport’s Lain Carter.
“It is super difficult to enforce,” the referee said. “We have spoken to a couple of players who we felt were getting close to breaching the rule, and they actually have gone back to shorter putters, which is good. But ultimately, you have to go with the integrity of the players. How do you enforce it? It is your word against theirs. You’re in no man’s land.”
Schmid Shined Light On Needed Rule Change
Schmid’s way of putting was just one of many events this season that highlighted a need for a rule change. He also brought the pace of play debate to the Charles Schwab Challenge, as fans found his pace to be slow. As for the anchoring, it really is just too close to call. The shorter clubs could easily bring that debate to a conclusion, and should be enforced. As to how well that rule would be enforced is another story.
Recently, fans learned that bag inspections are conducted randomly and only on a limited number of players. Who knows what all slips through because of those limitations? For now, though, Schmid’s club was held close, but not in a way that refs could have called it. Fans will continue to debate whether or not he did it, but the refs’ word is final, and they also know how to end the conversation.
Main Photo Credit: © Raymond Carlin III-Imagn Images
