One of the US Open’s premier groups grinded to a halt during round one due to a bizarre scene, described as a “legitimate clown convention”.
Max Homa, Viktor Hovland and Bryson DeChambeau formed one of the most box office groupings at Pinehurst No.2 on Thursday (local time) — but it wasn’t all exciting viewing.
The group went viral for all the wrong reasons when Homa and Hovland simultaneously attempted to read their putts in comical fashion with DeChambeau watching on.
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Both Homa and Hovland are students of the controversial ‘Aimpoint’ method of reading greens.
In a nut shell, Aimpoint involves feeling the slope of the green by standing behind your ball, closing one eye, and holding one, or multiple fingers, just on the outside of the hole.
The more slope that is felt, the more fingers are held up. The outermost finger then gives the player the ‘aim point’ in which to hit their putt.
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While the method is, in theory, meant to be quicker, Homa and Hovland made it anything but.
The viral video shows Homa turning his back to the hole and squatting twice to try and feel what way his putt is sloping.
At the same time, Hovland stands on either side of his put, then steps forward to a second position and shuffles his feet.
The reaction from experts who witnessed the scene was unkind.
Golf Digest’s Christopher Powers wrote: “Sorry to the aimpoint nerds but this is a legitimate clown convention.
“I firmly believe half the guys that do this would putt better by going with their very first read and hitting the damn thing.”
Another golf writer, Gabby Herzig of The Athletic, also didn’t hold back.
“I’ve been anti-AimPoint since my junior golf days when girls would stomp all over my line to read their 4-foot putts.
“We’ve reached a new level of disgrace. Literally what is happening here.”
Meanwhile, sports writer Mark Harris added: “Imagine the shit you’d get if you did anything remotely similar to Homa’s air dump move in your weekend game.
“If you can’t do it in front of the boys, you shouldn’t do it on (Tour).”