Rick Reilly article on Dustin Johnson and the 'bunker'

I can't stand that guy. I can't really put my finger on what it is but he just annoys me. I think it's the dumb gee whiz style. I used to enjoy his articles when he wrote for SI though.


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Yes math is skill in golf if you are keeping track of your score. A rules official on the GC said that if your ball is on the green an someone walks across your line you
can fix a cleat mark. The only time you can't is when the cleat mark is there before your ball is on the green.
 
I agree with Reilly 100%.

I often see The Rules of Golf as the most contradictory and capricious compilation of commands and criteria ever assembled.

Lee Trevino once said that the Rules of Golf ought to be able to be printed on a matchbook and I couldn't agree more. The number of original Rules totaled thirteen but today the book of "Decisions" which presumably clarifies and augments those original rules stretches over six hundred pages in length and even after all of this evaluation, many rules are still either unclear, illogical and often sorely lacking in common sense.

It has been said by many that the rules of a game can be whatever someone wants them to be and that they needn't apply to "real life". This may be true of "Chutes and Ladders" but I would think that a game which is the basis of a billion dollar industry and one that offers a means of income to tens (if not hundreds) of thousands of people worldwide and for which many hundreds of millions of dollars are spent each year facilitating its existence ought to have rules anchored more solidly in reality and practicality.

And when one adds such things as "local rules", such as "Lift, Clean and Place", well then the entire argument for the rules as doctrine or Holy writ goes out the window.



(In my opinion, of course). :D



-JP
 
Good article and I also agree 100%.
 
I agree with Reilly 100%.

I often see The Rules of Golf as the most contradictory and capricious compilation of commands and criteria ever assembled.

Lee Trevino once said that the Rules of Golf ought to be able to be printed on a matchbook and I couldn't agree more. The number of original Rules totaled thirteen but today the book of "Decisions" which presumably clarifies and augments those original rules stretches over six hundred pages in length and even after all of this evaluation, many rules are still either unclear, illogical and often sorely lacking in common sense.

It has been said by many that the rules of a game can be whatever someone wants them to be and that they needn't apply to "real life". This may be true of "Chutes and Ladders" but I would think that a game which is the basis of a billion dollar industry and one that offers a means of income to tens (if not hundreds) of thousands of people worldwide and for which many hundreds of millions of dollars are spent each year facilitating its existence ought to have rules anchored more solidly in reality and practicality.

And when one adds such things as "local rules", such as "Lift, Clean and Place", well then the entire argument for the rules as doctrine or Holy writ goes out the window.



(In my opinion, of course). :D



-JP

I could not agree more! The USGA and R&A need to do some major ramifications in the next few years to help move the game forward. The NFL and other pro sports changes rules all the time if it helps the gam advance, golf should be no different.
 
Pretty good article and I agree with a lot of it. Rules have changed in golf before, so you never know what will happen. Hell, we could all be trying to jump each other's ball on the green still.
 
We still play rounds with stymie sometimes. Only because we know how not to take divots on the green.
Pretty good article and I agree with a lot of it. Rules have changed in golf before, so you never know what will happen. Hell, we could all be trying to jump each other's ball on the green still.
 
I agree with Reilly 100%.

I often see The Rules of Golf as the most contradictory and capricious compilation of commands and criteria ever assembled.

Lee Trevino once said that the Rules of Golf ought to be able to be printed on a matchbook and I couldn't agree more. The number of original Rules totaled thirteen but today the book of "Decisions" which presumably clarifies and augments those original rules stretches over six hundred pages in length and even after all of this evaluation, many rules are still either unclear, illogical and often sorely lacking in common sense.

It has been said by many that the rules of a game can be whatever someone wants them to be and that they needn't apply to "real life". This may be true of "Chutes and Ladders" but I would think that a game which is the basis of a billion dollar industry and one that offers a means of income to tens (if not hundreds) of thousands of people worldwide and for which many hundreds of millions of dollars are spent each year facilitating its existence ought to have rules anchored more solidly in reality and practicality.

And when one adds such things as "local rules", such as "Lift, Clean and Place", well then the entire argument for the rules as doctrine or Holy writ goes out the window.



(In my opinion, of course). :D



-JP

This is what happens when you have lawyers and accountants run the game.
 
Where does it say a bunker has to be nice and pretty with symmetrical rake lines? NO WHERE!

Remember a few years back at The Memorial, when Nicklaus had the crew use modified rakes to deepen the furroughs in the sand. If you don't like how the bunkers are set up, don't hit you ball into them.

Did anybody think to ask DJ why he hit driver on 18 tee?
 
This is what happens when you have lawyers and accountants run the game.

True, but I think that "Agents" are the primary force behind such rules as "Lift, Clean and Place". The reason I think is because a mud ball (especially the sticky mud often found on southern courses) can make even the best players seem like chumps and with money-list seedings, world rankings, Fedex rankings and general marketability at stake, no one wants to run the risk of having "their guy" look foolish because of some bad breaks in bad weather.

I think that LC&P is ridiculous because it destroys the spirit of the most golden rule of all (to play the ball as it lay) and also tries to mitigate the fact that golf is an outdoor sport played under a variety of weather and ground conditions. If it were at least "Lift, Clean and DROP", it would introduce a certain amount of chance into the equation, but allowing a player to Place a ball on the ground virtually guarantees a perfect lie all the time because even the most ethical players succumb to human nature and will try to place the ball in as perfect a spot as possible.

Another rule I believe was "lobbied" out of existence for the above reasons is the procedure for dropping a ball.
I think golf should return to dropping the ball over one's shoulder and back rather than holding it at arm's length in front. I'll bet that when that rule was changed to "out front" there were a fair amount of pro's who actually took the time to practice dropping the ball so that they could better their chances for a good lie. With the old way, it was pure chance and no amount of practice or manipulation could really influence the outcome. This is another rule that in its original form was again, more grounded in the core of the original rules of the game, but was changed to mitigate the "chance" nature of the outcome and thus less likely to affect anyone's bottom line.


That's why, in many ways, the only "pure" golf left is Amateur golf because in the amateur world, most of the rules still apply and are not often modified for any reason. But I know that's the way us "purists" talk and besides being a dying breed, we "purists" are generally considered to be Luddites because we are thought to be living in the past. But you know something? I'd rather play the game from my point of view because I think the outcome is more honest and it represents a more accurate accounting of my skills. And there's nothing wrong with learning how to hit a mud ball either.

But that's me.


-JP
 
The people who write the rules of golf also write the US tax code. :)
 
The people who write the rules of golf also write the US tax code. :)

:rofl:


Actually the tax code is easier to figure out

-JP
 
I cannot stand Rick Reilly , but JP you hit the nail on the head. Good stuff.
 
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