KEY POINTS:
It's 54 years since the stymie was eliminated from golf and it's about time it was brought back, if only as an opportunity for hackers to cause grief to opponents in friendly matches.
The stymie dates from the dim and distant origins of the game, and can be compared to a snooker in that it prevents your opponent from getting a clear view of the target.
If you were both on the green and your ball was between his ball and the hole, there was no question of your marking it. He was stymied, and the ball stayed where it was. He had to aim his putt either side or chip over it.
Stymie is an old Scottish word for a partially blind person, which indeed is what a stymied player was, and the word has passed into general use to describe someone who is thwarted. Off-hand, I can't think of any other golfing terms that have entered everyday usage.
Some think the expression "below par" comes from golf, but it describes someone who isn't feeling well.
If you are below par in golf you feel bloody marvellous.
But back to the stymie, which could easily occur accidentally but, since most golfers are blackguards when it comes to taking full advantage of the rules, would frequently be deliberate.
Even the great Bobby Jones, epitome of all that is wholesome about the game, was not averse to stymieing rivals when the occasion called for it. A Golf Illustrated report in 1926 reads: "Bobby squared the match by laying Von Elm a stymie for the second time. This was no partial one, and George had to try and jump it and failed."
Authorities decided in 1952 that the game could do without this particular type of skulduggery, and declared it no longer lawful. The modern game would certainly have been more interesting had it stayed.
But there's no reason why hackers at their local club can't reinstate the rule.
- INDEPENDENT
