- Image by Getty Images via Daylife
Phil Mickelson Won’T Be Using The Ping Eye2 Wedge
Author: Clubgolf
Phil Mickelson won’t be using the Ping Eye2 wedge that led a fellow player to accuse him of “cheating,” even though he hopes others will use the controversial club to keep attention on what he calls a ridiculous rule.
“I won’t be playing that wedge. My point has been made,” Mickelson said on Wednesday on the eve of his two-time title defense at Riviera. “But if these governing bodies cannot get together to fix this loophole, if players stop using this wedge—which would stop the pressure of the issue—then I will relook at it and put the wedge back in play.”
The Ping wedge has grooves that no longer conform under a new U.S. Golf Association regulation, adopted by the U.S. PGA Tour. However, any Ping wedge made before April 1, 1990, is approved for play under a legal settlement from two decades ago.
Mickelson is among five players who have used the Ping wedge in competition this year.
Several players believe using the club goes against the spirit of the new grooves regulation, although Scott McCarron fueled the debate when he said of Mickelson and others, “It’s cheating.”
Mickelson hinted at legal action after saying he was “publicly slandered.” He said McCarron offered him a sincere apology late Tuesday, which he accepted.
 | Hippo Air Golf Wedge |
|---|---|
| Price: $38.49 | |
 | |
| More Info | |
| |
 | Nextt Golf RH Exit Super Wedge |
| Price: $27.69 | |
| |
| More Info | |
| |
“We all make mistakes, and we all say things we wish we could take back,” Mickelson said. “I’ve done it a bunch in my career. And the fact that it’s also not easy to come up and face that person, look them in the eye and apologize … I appreciate him being a big enough man to do that.”
Instead, Mickelson vented his anger at the USGA and its lack of transparency in developing the new rules for grooves. He has complained that he’s submitted wedges that fit the guidelines, only for the USGA to reject the club for violating the intent of the new rule.
“I’m very upset with the way the rule came about, the way one man essentially can approve or not approve a golf club based on his own personal decision, regardless of what the rule says,” Mickelson said. “This has got to change.”
The next step remains murky.
Tour commissioner Tim Finchem met with players on Tuesday and conceded that tour officials did not realize a Ping wedge from 20 years ago would become such a big issue.
Finchem said the Ping Eye2 wedge produces spin at about 60 percent of the rate from last year’s wedges, but about 10 percent more than wedges approved for competition this year.
“The assumption was made last year that very few, if any, players would use that club because they’re 20 years old,” Finchem said. “I think we underestimated that a little bit.”
He said the tour could either do nothing and monitor how many players used wedges, an option that seemed unlikely because Finchem said it still raised issues over fairness in competition. Some players are going to eBay to find the clubs, as Ping stopped making them and now only can confirm through serial numbers when the wedges were made.
The other option is to work out an agreement with Ping chairman and CEO John Solheim. He said Solheim was to meet with the USGA over the next few weeks, and “I can only hope progress is made in that regard.”
Ping plays the biggest role in any solution because of its lawsuits against the USGA and U.S. PGA Tour over square grooves.
Finchem said the third option involved a complicated process in which the tour’s independent committee on equipment tries to establish a local rule. He called that a “cumbersome process.”
Any solution could be weeks, if not months, away.
In the meantime, Mickelson said he would not use the wedge at the Northern Trust Open, even though he’s hopeful others will.
“If there’s no pressure among these organizations to make changes, I will immediately put the club back in play,” Mickelson said.
See more at Golf Clubs Sale
Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/golf-articles/phil-mickelson-wont-be-using-the-ping-eye2-wedge-1819273.html
About the Author
Discount golf clubs on sale at http://www.clubgolfsale.com
Related articles by Zemanta
- Mickelson Accepts Apology, Won't Use Wedge (nytimes.com)
- Mickelson Ready to Get Back to Golf (abcnews.go.com)
- Scott McCarron apologises for accusing Phil Mickelson of cheating (guardian.co.uk)
 PING ZING 2 L LW LOB WEDGE RED DOT JZ STEEL SHAFT NEW PING GRIP RARE FIND $119.99 Time Remaining: 6d 17h 56m Buy It Now for only: $119.99 |  GLENN PAYNE PING 54 M B RIGHT HAND RED DOT WEDGE LAMKIN PERMA WRAP $29.99 Time Remaining: 6d 17h 48m Buy It Now for only: $49.99 |  Ping Golf Tour 5808 Lob Wedge Black Dot Steel Shaft $24.99 Time Remaining: 4d 2h 23m Buy It Now for only: $29.99 |
 UV Golf Groove sharpener Tool use w Ping ISI K Wedge $22.95 Time Remaining: 10d 19h 24m Buy It Now for only: $22.95 |  Ping i15 U Wedge AWT stiff $50.00 Time Remaining: 5d 2h 9m Buy It Now for only: $75.00 |  Mens Ping Eye 2 Sand Wedge Sw Orange Dot BeCu Beryllium Copper right Handed $99.99 Time Remaining: 6d 21h 46m Buy It Now for only: $99.99 |
 Nice Ping I Wedge 56 degree Sand Wedge SW Black Dot Stiff $44.99 Time Remaining: 6d 5h 28m Buy It Now for only: $54.99 |  PING ZING 2 LS LOB SAND WEDGE ORANGE DOT JZ STEEL SHAFT RARE FIND $119.99 Time Remaining: 6d 17h 56m Buy It Now for only: $119.99 |  Ping 54 RH Tour Wedge Black Dot S steel shaft $24.99 Time Remaining: 4d 3h 47m Buy It Now for only: $29.99 |
 PING ZING 2 LS LOB SAND WEDGE GREEN DOT PING STEEL SHAFT RARE FIND $119.99 Time Remaining: 6d 17h 56m Buy It Now for only: $119.99 |  PING RAPTURE V2 U UTILTY GAP WEDGE BLACK DOT TFC 939 I REGULAR FLEX PING GRIP $129.99 Time Remaining: 6d 17h 56m Buy It Now for only: $149.99 |  PING ISI BERYLLIUM COPPER BLACK DOT S2 WEDGE 495 ZZ LITE STIFF NEW PING GRIP $69.99 Time Remaining: 29d 19h 46m Buy It Now for only: $69.99 |
Dustin Johnson takes lead at Riviera - KansasCity.com
” Couples said the Ping wedge is the best one he has, though he suggested he would look at others as he played more tournaments. Mahan said he never considered anything wrong with a club that was approved under the rules. ...
0Tour considering local rule on Ping wedge – Golf Channel
0Tour considering local rule on Ping wedgeGolf Channel… would ban the use of the Ping Eye 2 wedges, which were grandfathered into use by a 1992 settlement involving Ping, the US Golf Association and PGA Tour. …As club rules confusion ...
McCarron Attempts Apology For Criticizing Mickelson's Use of Ping ...
Los Angeles, CA, United States (AHN) – PGA Tour veteran Scott McCarron stopped just short of issuing an apology Monday after criticizing the continued use of the controversial Ping wedge in golf. McCarron reportedly attributed unfair ...
Mickelson calls rule 'ridiculous,' puts away Ping wedge for now ...
Phil Mickelson is putting away the pre-1990 Ping Eye2 wedge he used last week but may bring it back. By Helen Ross, PGATOUR.COM Chief of Correspondents PACIFIC PALISADES, Calif. -- Phil Mickelson plied his trademark Callaway clubs with ...
![Reblog this post [with Zemanta]](http://img.zemanta.com/reblog_e.png?x-id=6d11cccf-6d29-43b2-9c31-13f08d3e1d5d)
Related Blogs
- Domain Name Wire » News » Lawyer: SnapNames Class Action Headed to State Court - The Domain Industry's News Source
- Ping! Zine Article Published: Generating Leads With White Papers | Young Copy Blog
- $550.00 COMPLET SET PING VINTAGE GOLF CLUBS, CLUBS, BAG ,BALLS
- VG247 » Blog Archive » English FFXIII shots bring a taster to tonight’s reviews buster
Terrific work! This is the type of information that should be shared around the web. Shame on the search engines for not positioning this post higher!
Thanks for great information.
I must say you have a cool post. This hit the spot and then some! Thanks for posting this and sharing it with the world. I’ve just bookmarked your site. And I will check back soon to read your other articles. Keep up your awesome work.
This subject is very interesting . Have you got more like that ?