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19th Hole

Why JoAnne Carner’s 30-year-old wedge was deemed non-conforming at the U.S. Senior Women’s Open

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Per Beth Ann Nichols’ of Golfweek, seven of the 20 clubs USGA officials tested on site at the U.S. Senior Women’s Open were deemed to be nonconforming.

“It’s not often that the USGA places someone from its conforming department at registration, but with so many players in the field who are competing in a USGA event for the first time in a long time, it seemed like a good idea,” she wrote.

Indeed. And while we don’t have any information on six of the violations, Nichols related the story of (the legendary) JoAnne Carner, who was told the 55-degree Wilson R-90 wedge she’s had in the bag for nearly 30 years didn’t conform.

This seemed odd. Certainly a three-decade old club wouldn’t feature any of the aggressive, early 2000s grooves that led to the enactment of the groove rule. It’s unclear what year Carner’s wedge was from, but R-90 production (of the style hers is presumed to be) ended in 1992.

When reached for comment Julia Pine, Manager, Championship Communications, told us: “We introduced a new groove condition of competition in 2010 for Open championships. We offer assistance and testing prior to and on site at our championships, and when tested her club was deemed not to comply.”

Asked for more information, Pine indicated the organization didn’t have additional details  on the specific problem with Carner’s grooves.

A quick groove rule refresher.

Rules of Golf, Appendix II: 5c(i)

  • Grooves must be straight and parallel.
  • Grooves must have a symmetrical cross-section and have sides which do not converge (see Fig. XI).
  • *For clubs that have a loft angle greater than or equal to 25 degrees, grooves must have a plain cross-section.
  • The width, spacing and cross-section of the grooves must be consistent throughout the impact area (some exceptions may be made for woods).
  • The width (W) of each groove must not exceed 0.035 inches (0.9 mm), using the 30 degree method of measurement on file with the USGA.
  • The distance between edges of adjacent grooves (S) must not be less than three times the width of the grooves, and not less than 0.075 inches (1.905 mm).
  • The depth of each groove must not exceed 0.020 inches (0.508 mm).
  • *For clubs other than driving clubs, the cross-sectional area (A) of a groove divided by the groove pitch (W+S) must not exceed 0.0030 square inches per inch (0.0762 mm2/mm) (see Fig. XII).
  • Grooves must not have sharp edges or raised lips.
  • For clubs that have a loft angle greater than or equal to 25 degrees, groove edges must be substantially in the form of a round having an effective radius which is not less than 0.010 inches (0.254 mm) when measured as shown in Fig. XIII, and not greater than 0.020 inches (0.508 mm). Deviations in effective radius within 0.001 inches (0.0254 mm) are permissible.

What do you think the issue could be? Grooves worn too deep after 30 years of use? A sweet-spot sized indentation? Surely the R-90 isn’t a non-conforming club, right?

GolfWRX members: What do you think?

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19th Hole

Brooks Koepka was asked if a 59 was possible at this year’s Masters. His answer did not disappoint

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During Brooks Koepka’s pre-tournament press conference for this week’s Masters Tournament, the five-time major champion was asked a bit of a silly question and gave a brilliant response.

Q. It sounds like the course is already pretty dialed this week, but under softer or optimal scoring conditions do you think 59 is obtainable on this golf course?

BROOKS KOEPKA: Have you played here?

Q. Not yet.

BROOKS KOEPKA: I can tell by the question.

Q. What number is attainable in your mind? 63’s the low.

BROOKS KOEPKA: I mean, now, anything’s attainable. But, yeah, if you want to go play the members tees and maybe play like 15 holes, yeah, I could do that.

With the course record being 63, it’s somewhat unclear why the reporter thought a soft golf course would be enough to result in a score four shots better than the record.

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19th Hole

Viktor Hovland reveals surprise swing coach changeup ahead of 2024 Masters

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In what’s already been a dysfunctional season, Viktor Hovland is making another swing coach change.

While speaking at his pre-tournament press conference, for The Masters, the reigning Tour champion spoke openly about the struggles he’s been having with his swing.

Earlier this year, Hovland parted ways with his short game coach, Joe Mayo, after Mayo had help him make significant strides around the greens. He then announced his new swing coach would be Grant Waite.

However, at the press conference, a new swing coach, Dana Dahlquist, was alongside the Norwegian.

“I’m still kind of looking for some opinions out there, but I feel like I’m on a good track right now and we’ll see where that takes us. It’s one of those things. I was playing great golf last year, but it’s not like I’m trying to change my golf swing.”

Hovland then spoke about the change to Dahlquist.

“I liked what he thought was the best strategy to get back to a lot of that movement from that time. I thought it made a lot of sense, and so we’ve been working together a bit now. Then we’ll see how it goes.”

The 26-year-old added that he didn’t feel his game was sustainable after his magnificent run during the FedEx Cup playoffs.

“I had to find my way back to where I think I’m going to play my best golf. Even at the end of the last year, I still felt like, yeah, I was playing great, but I got a lot out of my game, and it didn’t necessarily feel sustainable. But it’s not like I consciously went in and said, hey, we’re going to change everything up.”

“There has been a bit too much back-and-forth. It has been difficult to see the way forward, what exactly is the answer, and what exactly I need to do. I feel that now I’ve decided that ‘this is right, this works.’ I have to get on with it. Then we’ll see how it goes. I feel things are going in the right direction, but it has been more difficult than we would have liked.”

Coming into the season, Hovland was one of the favorites to win The Masters. As the tournament approaches, it feels as if the young star has more questions than answers.

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19th Hole

‘Everybody’s exchanging information all day long’ – Brooks Koepka addresses rules controversy from the 2023 Masters

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One of the biggest stories of the 2023 Masters was when Brooks Koepka and his caddie, Ricky Elliot, were accused of letting Koepka’s playing partner, Gary Woodland, know which club he was hitting on the Par-5 15th.

The rules committee eventually decided that night that no rules were broken.

Koepka was asked about the situation once again on Tuesday during his pre-tournament press conference for the 2024 Masters.

“I mean, everybody’s exchanging information all day long,” he said. “Looking in guys’ bags, caddies are signaling all day long.”

“But who knew? I think I was just foreshadowing what was going to happen.”

Koepka went on to win the PGA Championship the following month, so his foreshadowing was alluding to his capturing the 5th major.

The five-time major champion went on to talk about why he performs so well in the biggest events.

“If you can’t get up for the biggest events, I think there’s something wrong with you.”

“It’s what I always dreamed of when I was a kid. When I was practicing at my dad’s course when I was younger it was always to win a major championship.”

“Even today, that’s what I first see, that’s what I think you’re judged by, your legacy, what you’re defined by. I can tell you exactly how many Jack, Tiger, Arnold, Tom, all these guys, how many majors they won. It’s tough to tell how many events they won, but I know that there’s one sure-fire way to figure out who is who is by major championships.”

If Koepka manages to win a green jacket, he will be a claret jug away from the career grand slam.

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