FAR REACHING REVIEW?

Over the past four years the rules of golf have undergone a far reaching review. It has taken many man-hours and yes I do mean man-hours.

The result; a few amendments (clarifications) to existing rules.

Golf Refugees feel the only remit should have been; can the rules of golf be written on a single sheet of paper?

When I play golf there are no spectator stands or TV cables. For no one would pay to watch me. So when professional golfers ask for a free drop, I’d say no way.

They could try and use a putter off the cables, take a penalty drop for hitting the ball there in the first place or risk an electrifying shot.

It’s not as if they lay the cables down the middle of the fairways or the stands are hidden behind bushes.

I can’t think of a situation where a free drop is valid. It’s just tough. Do professional golfers need any more pampering or sucking up too?

We need to get to a situation where professional golfers do not require a small army of referees to decide what to do next.

Based in Scotland, the R&A have noticed that it can get a bit windy at St. Andrews.

This plays havoc with their toupees and sometimes causes the ball on exposed greens to move without any help from the latest Scotty Cameron putter.

You could go through the whole rule book with a red marker pen and scrap many other rules which penalise the golfer. How about grounding of your club in a bunker?

It would help many average golfers and make no difference to pros that already make exquisite bunker shots.

Amateur status from golf can go. That would save a few pages.

But if the four year review had resulted in a significant reduction and simplification of the rules, what would all of the R&A blazers be left to do?

The R&A need to keep the rules of golf over-complicated for their benefit.

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