... was designed in 1935 by golfer Edward S. Stimpson, Sr. (1904–85). Stimpson was Massachusetts state amateur champion, and a former captain of the Harvard golf team. He was watching the 1935 US Open tournament at Oakmont, near Pittsburgh, where the winning score was 299 (+11). After witnessing a putt by two–time champion Gene Sarazen roll off a green, Stimpson was convinced that the greens were unreasonably fast; but he had no way of proving it. He developed a device, made of wood, which is an angled track that releases a ball at a known velocity and measures the distance it rolls on a green's surface.
The stimpmeter was redesigned in 1976, to be made from aluminum and painted green. It was first used by the USGA during the 1976 US Open at Atlanta, and made available to golf course superintendents in 1978.
In January 2013, the USGA announced a third–generation device, which gives the option of a shorter run–out. This version is painted blue, and is manufactured to a higher engineering tolerance to improve accuracy and precision.
Official USGA stimpmeters are not sold to the public.
© Haydn Thompson 2020