Rules Guy: I made my own USGA-conforming putter grip. Can I use it in competition?

The Rules of Golf are tricky! Thankfully, we’ve got the guru. Our Rules Guy knows the book front to back. Got a question? He’s got all the answers.

I have made three prototype grips and use one on my putter. I read the definition of a conforming grip, contacted the USGA, and it conforms. Is it legal to play in competition?
—Jim Thompson, via email

Readers of a certain age will remember the old ad: “When E.F. Hutton talks, people listen.”

Rules

Well, the same goes for the USGA. In conjunction with the R&A, it sets golf’s rules — equipment and otherwise. So, if your Super Duper Wowie Zowie grip conforms to its regulations, then it is legal to use in competition and more generally. Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise.

For another conforming-club conundrum, read on …

I have an old Odyssey 2-Ball putter. One of its plastic discs fell out, so I pulled out the other one, then cut golf balls in half and glued them in as replacements. Has my modification made the putter illegal? —Michael Karlins, Chesapeake, VA

Kudos, Michael, to your DIY skills — but your “hack” is indeed impermissible.

The clubhead must be “plain in shape” under the Equipment Rules Part 2/4a, and by adding the halved balls you’ve rendered the putter nonconforming. Make a stroke with it, and you’re disqualified.

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Got a question about the Rules? Ask the Rules Guy! Send your queries, confusions and comments to rulesguy@golf.com. We promise he won’t throw the book at you.