The USGA has just passed a new local rule that will allegedly only affect those playing in high level professional and amateur tournaments: no more using green reading books to teach you the break. Go figure it out yourself.
From the USGA press release:
“Golf’s governing bodies have made available a Model Local Rule (MLR) to further limit the use of Green-Reading Materials.
MLR G-11 enables a committee to limit players to using only the yardage book that it has approved for use in the competition.
This local rule is intended only for the highest levels of competitive golf and, even then, only for competitions where it is realistic for the committee to undertake an approval process for yardage books. It will be available starting January 1, 2022.
The local rule gives a committee the ability to establish an officially approved yardage book for a competition so that the diagrams of putting greens show only minimal detail (such as significant slopes, tiers or false edges that indicate sections of greens). In addition, the local rule limits the handwritten notes that players and caddies are allowed to add to the approved yardage book.
The purpose behind the local rule is to ensure that players and caddies use only their eyes and feel to help them read the line of play on the putting green.
The USGA and The R&A developed MLR G-11 in response to feedback from several professional tours.”
