They say that in golf, tournaments are won on the greens. That the most important club is not the driver or the wedge, but the putter. And there was a time when some players took this statement to the extreme, finding in the long putter a lifeline when their nerves betrayed them.
A five-foot putt can rattle even the most experienced players. The pressure on the green is a silent rival that is trained, but for some it was an impossible challenge to overcome. And when you choke, you don’t look at what the string looks like, you just hold on to it.
Thus was born the long putter, a club that, anchored to the chest, eliminated the dreaded ‘yips’ and restored confidence to players on the verge of retirement. With it, trembling hands were stabilised and second chances multiplied. Adam Scott won the Masters, Vijay Singh added trophies to his trophy cabinet and Keegan Bradley made a name for himself among the elite. Suddenly, the long putter seemed too good to be true.
But when something is too easy, golf always finds a way to restore the balance. In 2016, the rules changed: anchoring the putter to the body was banned. Overnight, those who relied on that technique were exposed. Some adapted, others disappeared.
The long putter was never the villain in this story. It was just another tool, destined to find its true place in golf.