Making A Lasting Impression

Stimpmeter's Importance Can't Be Overstated


January 18, 2006

By , USGA

Far Hills, N.J. - You hear the term uttered by golf announcers all the time during broadcasts. Reporters often mention it during major championships such as the U.S. Open when discussing the course setup. Golf professionals bring it up before the start of any competition.

The statement might be something like: The greens are 11 on the Stimpmeter.

What does that mean and exactly what is a Stimpmeter? To the average golf fan, the number is just another statistic. But to the competitors, golf course superintendent or officials in charge of the setup, the figure is extremely vital. Uniform green speeds are important in keeping the competition fair and equitable. Fast greens are also a component to championship golf at the highest level.

Inventor Edward Stimpson was a talented amateur player before developing his device, pictured above. (USGA Photo Archives)

And the measuring device that provides the necessary data is called the Stimpmeter. The name is derived from the man who invented it more than 70 years ago. was a highly skilled amateur from who was good enough to captain the Harvard men's golf team in the 1920s and win his state amateur championship in 1935. A year earlier, he advanced to the round of 16 at the U.S. Amateur at The Country Club.

But Stimpson also had an inquisitive, analytical mind. Although he went to work with his father at a , bank following his graduation from in 1929, and later moved to the trust department of a large Boston bank, Stimpson sometimes thought like a professor.

"He probably should have been a professor at MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) or something," said his oldest son, "He was a very curious, scientifically oriented person."

While watching the 1935 U.S. Open at Oakmont ( ) Country Club, Stimpson noticed how excessively quick greens prevented many of the game's best players from breaking 75. native won the championship that year, mainly from his local knowledge of the putting surfaces.

Stimpson's concern at the time was not necessarily the speed of the greens, but consistency. So he devised a way of measuring the green's quickness. He took a piece of cove molding one would find between the ceiling and walls and put a notch in it to hold the golf ball. To operate the device, Stimpson laid his piece of wood on flat portion of the green and then raised one end at a steady pace until the ball released down the board. He then measured in inches how far the ball rolled.

Realizing the USGA might have a use for his device, Stimpson spent $25 to have Charlton-Johnson Inc., a woodworking company in the area, make 25 of them. He sent some to the USGA's headquarters, but he received little interest. Meanwhile, Stimpson would travel out to various competitions in the area to measure greens.

"He collected statistics on how fast the greens were," said the younger Stimpson. "In some cases, the greens were really slow. So he began to communicate with some of the tournament officials."

By the early 1950s, Stimpson had been invited to join The Country Club, site of several USGA events, including the U.S. Open and U.S. Amateur. It was there he came in contact with several members of the USGA Executive Committee, namely and . Through the years, he got to know former and , who served as the USGA's senior technical director. Using Stimpson's device as a blueprint, Thomas developed the Speedstick, which measured greens in terms of feet, not inches.

Thomas' Speedstick became an integral tool for USGA officials at championships as well as agronomists who wanted to ensure uniformity of their green speeds. But as the USGA adopted this tool, the younger Stimpson said Rice stepped in and told officials it could not be called the Speedstick. After all, it was Stimpson's invention that Thomas used to develop the Speedstick. So the USGA agreed to call this green-measuring device the Stimpmeter.

Six years after the USGA adopted the Stimpmeter, Stimpson, who would have turned 102 this June, died on .

But his legacy lives on at golf competitions throughout the world.

"I know for a fact that [the Stimpmeter] prolonged his life and gave him great satisfaction," said , who still resides in the area. "He had his friends and associates who would read about the Stimpmeter all over the country communicating with him, and sending him articles from the local press. It made him very proud. I would say he was as proud with being involved with this invention as anything."

One thing Stimpson never wanted to happen with his device was to have clubs use it as a speedometer. He didn't want Club A bragging to Club B that its greens ran 10 feet on the Stimpmeter compared to 8.5. Green speeds often become a hot topic of conversation around the grill room because of what people see on television during major championships. Some see green speeds as a way of measuring a course's championship worth, and Stimpson never envisioned his tool to be used in that manner.

He wanted the Stimpmeter used so that players would find the speed of the first green the same as the 18th. That's exactly what USGA officials do.

"He was very much against using the Stimpmeter as a speedometer," said the younger Stimpson. "He was against individual golfers having one of these things."

, the USGA's National Director of the Green Section, said for the last 28 years, Stimpmeters have only been available to course officials.

This debate over speed has been an ongoing challenge for superintendents and agronomists. Some question whether faster greens are good for the game. Certainly at the U.S. Open, green speeds are important, but that is a competition for the world's best players, not recreational golfers who carry double-digit USGA Handicap Indexes. Creating faster putting surfaces places increased pressure on those who maintain golf courses. But club members and greens committee chairman often want faster greens because televised golf showcases them during tournament play.

Many use the Stimpmeter as the scapegoat in this dilemma for racier greens. But as USGA agronomist points out in the January-February 2006 issue of the Green Section Record , ".the Stimpmeter can be, has been and continues to be used to keep speeds reasonable. If the USGA had not introduced it to the game, someone else would have. Golfers and superintendents asked for a way to measure green speed and they got it, for better or worse."

After all, the Stimpmeter doesn't double-cut the greens nor maintain them. It is simply a measuring device. Televised golf along with improved agronomical technology has been the key component in raising speeds. As Nelson writes, "Speed has become ingrained in our collective golf psyche in a very short period of time."

Just like advances in technology has increased the distance the golf ball travels, these same scientific improvements have changed maintenance practices.

's invention has, however, remained the same since he first rolled a ball down a v-shaped piece of wood. Stimpson wasn't looking to revolutionize the game nor did he ever want to profit off the Stimpmeter. He simply saw the Stimpmeter as a way to give something back to the game.

"Golf doesn't owe me anything," the elder Stimpson said. "I owe golf . I've had a marvelous life playing golf."

is a staff writer for the USGA. E-mail him with questions or comments at dshefter@usga.org.