I can’t really see this idea catching on to be honest. There will be too much damage to the edge of the hole from careless users.
That is for sure the biggest concern. Like anything people can be careless. When we were able to touch the flag stick people would use the putter to flip the ball out of the cup and would cause damage from time to time. You also seen the marks from the flag stick itself catching the edge of the cup when replaced. One comment stated that since the new rule of leaving the flag stick in, hands going into the cups had been doing some noticeable damage while grabbing the ball with the stick in or yanking the stick up with the ball in the cup.
Time will tell on how much people catch the edge of the turf. I noticed on one weekend of play (A Saturday and Sunday) where the course did not make new hole placements. I played that Sunday in the late afternoon starting at 5 pm and our group noticed no added wear than normal. It was a busy two days of tee times.
When used correctly you actually place the grip end in the cup below surface level and lightly tap down. Will everyone do it this way? There are always careless golfers. I also have the fat putter grip and it fits no problem but it's not the fattest they make.
I do thank you all for comments as this is what I need to hear.
The bonus that may outweigh the negatives is that this may be the only device that does not risk altering the ball in play with attachments to the flag stick and be the only device where Handicaps can be recorded accurately with no question.
