In early 2023, GolfWRX Featured Writer Brendan Ryan was playing golf with a group of friends. They were on their third round of the day, and one quipped about a Golf Digest article discussing who had played the most golf in America.

Soon, they had the article open. After a quick scan, Brendan started laughing, “Golf people are so stupid!”

Everyone looked puzzled. All of the assembled wanted to start firing questions and chiming in. What was it? The story looked clear-cut, Barry Gibbons of Austin, Texas, in 2020 played 1,234 rounds. What was the problem with that?

For one, 2020 was the year of the great Texas ice storm. There was a stretch of six days of snow, where the weather didn’t get above freezing. Another 14 days below freezing, where the course couldn’t be open first thing. Yet somehow, the article claims, Gibbons only missed “Three days. One of which was Christmas.”

Ryan shakes his head, “You’re telling me, the guy played 54 holes a day, three days in a row, in negative temperatures? In snow. Who’s this yahoo reporter? It’s pure science fiction and people believe it.”

Next, Ryan quips, “Over-under on the length of the course for the other guy mentioned in the article?”

Everyone now keenly focused. A maintenance guys drive up to join the discussion. Guesses start flying and range from 3,100-3,600 yards for the nine-hole muni in Wisconsin where Nolan Krentz claims to have played 18,000 holes.

Actual answer: Norsk Golf Club is 2,946 yards from the tips. It features a 244-yard par 4 and 420-yard par 5.

So what is the actual Guinness record? 812.5 rounds. Riding. By Chris Adam. All riding. All in Hawaii.

Brendan Ryan was pretty sure he could do better than that.

“Let me tell you,” says Ryan. “This is not about playing a lot of golf. It’s about luck. Having the weather to play that many rounds is not that easy.”

Luckily, Ryan, retired, lives half the year in Florida and half the year in Utah. Basically the best weather you can have, on a budget!

By the end of the 2023 calendar year, he’d racked up 820 rounds, 347 of them walking. All played from over 7,000 yards. Each round was recorded in a journal. Each round was played with a core group of people who have attested to the record.

Is it good enough? Could this GolfWRX Featured Writer be the new Guinness World Record holder?

“I’m not sure. Guinness has asked for video evidence.” The fact is that the 820 rounds averaged just over four hours of time. In total, the attempt took about 22 full weeks of time.

“Thank God I didn’t try to record video. Think my iPhone 4 would go ballistic,” laughs Ryan.

Besides video, Ryan has all the other elements required for proof. So maybe the new record for most rounds of golf played in a year is 820. We will have to wait and see what the official decision is from Guinness.

Bettinardi has long been known as one of the best putter manufacturers in golf. The BB line is considered the company’s flagship. This year, Bettinardi took more input from the tour in order to optimize CG placements and refine the feel in the lineup. To optimize the CG and ensure that the sweet sport is in the correct location, Bettinardi engineers reshaped the shoulders and bumpers on the back of the head for better weight placement. The face also features a brand new Perpetual Flymill milling that enhances feel and feedback as well as gets the ball rolling more consistently. You can check out all of the details on the 2024 Bettinardi BB line of putters in our launch report. For a full review check out the Club Junkie podcast on all platforms or on YouTube below.

I have been using a Bettinardi BB8 Wide for the past two years, both previous generations, and really loved those putters. They were the first blade putters I have actually gamed in well over 10 years, so you know I was excited to see the 2024 BB lineup.

The BB1 Wide jumped out to me immediately, because it is similar to the BB8 Wide, just a little softer and with more rounded edges. Out of the box, the BB1 Wide looks great, and I think the new Black Pearl PVD finish has a slight shine to it that looks a little nicer and more high quality than the matte grey from the last generation. The gloss black stepless shaft and bright blue Lamkin grip are solid editions to the whole package and give the putter a little glitz that doesn’t distract. Finally, Bettinardi updated the BB covers to magnetic closure, and I am way too happy about that!

Out on the green, the BB1 Wide frames the ball well and you can easily see that it has a shorter heel-to-toe measurement than the BB8 Wide. From face to back the putter is wide, but I think the stubbiness of the head makes it look a touch wider than it really is. The look from address also greets you with a softer and more rounded look from the bumpers and overall shape of the head. As you would expect the flange is longer and includes a single site line for alignment. I like this setup as a single, longer, site line tends to be what I line up the best. A thicker topline is slightly rolled for a softer and thinner look that blends in well with the profile of this putter head. If you like the larger mallets that have been trending lately then I think you will enjoy looking down at the BB1 Wide.

On the course and the putting green, the Bettinardi BB1 Wide offers a great soft feel at impact, softer to me than last year’s BB8 Wide. Bettinardi’s Perpetual Fly Mill face has deeper grooves that provide this softer feel while still putting a nice roll on the ball. The greens up here in the north are still long and bumpy, but the BB1 Wide provided as smooth of a roll as it could under the conditions. Some playing partners were dealing with big hops and jumps in the first foot of their putts, but I never had that problem with the BB1 Wide. The initial roll limited the hop and skip more than I expected, and I felt like it started the ball on line very well. Aiming the putter was simple and easy as I had the same single site line on my previous putter.

The sole of the BB1 Wide is a little unique as it has a sound slot that runs the length of the cavity from heel to toe. We don’t see a lot of sound slots on retail putters but they are used to fine-tune the sound of a putter at impact. The use of the sound slot on the BB1 Wide definitely increases the audible sound at impact and gives it a slightly more metallic sound. I was a little worried that the sound would have too much “ting” to it or be offensively loud, but I was impressed that it was much more dialed down. Feel off the face was soft, definitely softer than the previous BB line. Now while that softer face is great, it does reduce a little of the feedback on where you struck the shot. You can tell the misses are there but they are a little softer than you would expect from a fully milled putter.

Forgivness with this putter is pretty good, and it will allow you to get away with less-than-perfect strokes. The amount of mass out on the toe and heel make the putter much more stable than a lot of blades. While it isn’t high mallet MOI stable the putter will show you that shots off the toe or heel will stay online well and come to rest right next to the hole. Distance control is precise and you won’t be stunned by a ball that jumps off the face with too much speed or the opposite. Putts on the putting green from the same spot just consistently toll to the same finish line, if they don’t drop into the cup.

Ultimately, a new finish, face milling, and design keep things fresh and high-performance but in a very classic package. Bettinardi did a great job mixing those things to keep the traditionalist and the gear junkies both happy. While the lineup doesn’t feature a massive amount of head shapes, it nails some core designs and should be a big hit for Bettinardi.