Tuesday, June 13, 2017

Stymie Cards

From My Stymie Card Collection 
Part 1

Up through 1951 when The USGA and Royal & Ancient Golf Club drafted uniform rules, golf was played a bit differently once everyone was on the putting green.

The rules were strict. You could not pick up your ball before holing out* as you may do now. If it was your turn to putt and a competitor's ball was in the line of your putt, you had to go around that ball or over that ball. Your opponent could not be made to mark his ball.  When you were thus prevented from reaching the hole directly, you were said to be "stymied".

There was no specific rule intended to introduce stymie play into golf. Stymies resulted from the general principle in golf that you do not pick up your ball until you have holed out. So stymie situations accidentally occurred in the beginning.  Some golfers realized the competitive advantage that could be gained by intentionally stymying your opponent's ball.  And just as in billiards, one opponent could confound another repeatedly.

In 1951, when the USGA and Royal & Ancient agreed to consolidate the rules on both sides of "the pond", the Brits insisted upon maintaining the rule preventing the picking up of a ball on the green. The Americans lobbied for adoption of a rule permitting the marking and picking up of a ball on the green because stymie's slowed play and American golf course operators wanted to squish as many foursomes onto the course as possible. Well, you know the outcome. And when the rules became effective in 1952, the stymie was dead.

Today among golf scorecard collectors any stymie cards they have in their collection are considered to be the equivalent of diamond rings.

 Harrison CC, Arkansas Side 1

 Harrison CC, Arkansas Side 2

 Highland GC, Connecticut Side 1

Highland GC, Connecticut Side 2

 Florida Historic Golf Trail Side 1


 Florida Historic Golf Trail Side 2

 Florida Historic Golf Trail Side 3

 Florida Historic Golf Trail Side 4

Florida Historic Golf Trail Side 5

 Florida Historic Golf Trail Side 6

 Hillcrest CC, California Side 1

 Hillcrest CC, California Side 2

 Los Angeles CC (North), California Side 1

 Los Angeles CC (North), California Side 2

 Meadowbrook CC, Connecticut Side 1

Meadowbrook CC, Connecticut Side 2

 Palos Verdes GC, California Side 1

 Palos Verdes GC, California Side 2

 Long Beach Recreation Park Municipal GC, California Side 1

  Long Beach Recreation Park Municipal GC, California Side 2

 Willimantic CC, Connecticut Side 1

 Willimantic CC, Connecticut Side 2

 Woodway CC, Connecticut Side 1

 Woodway CC, Connecticut Side 2


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The total number of golf scorecard images on this site now equals 18,272
The total number of golf photographs on this site now equals 5,107
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Coming Soon:
A Visit to Antigua - Shirley Heights
Scorecards From Qater, Reunion, Russia, Rwanda, and Saudi Arabia
British Columbia, Canada Scorecards
Nevada Scorecards

My golf scorecard collection statistics as of today:
Total USA = 94,271
Total Foreign = 45,138
Total Collection = 139,406

Come back soon and often.

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