Golfers will complain occasionally about putts that skid, skip or bounce as they come off the head of the putter. Can that problem ever be completely eliminated? At least one company thinks so: GEL Golf (Groove Equipment Limited). It has unveiled a line of six putters which the company says has gotten the ball rolling forward faster and reducing skid. The putters feature a unique teeth-like horizontal groove pattern on their faces. In tests featuring leaders in putters including Titleist, Ping, and TaylorMade, GEL putters finished first in imparting forward roll on a ball, outperforming the competition by an average of 20 percent. For more information about GEL putters and groove technology, check out the website: www.gelgolf.com .

What's the rule It's absolutely a personal thing. Some golfers will absolutely not hole out a putt if another ball is in the cup. For others, it's a non-issue. The real question: Is it a breach of a rule for a ball to be holed while another ball is at rest in the hole? The real answer: No. Both balls are holed (see Definition of "Holed" in the rule book) and there are no penalties incurred by either player. It is, however, a breach of etiquette for the first player to leave his ball in the hole if the second player has asked him to remove it.

Golf tip Bob Salera sees golfers of all skill levels and ages as the head golf professional at Cool Springs Golf Center in the South Hills. He's become one of the best teachers in the Tri-State Section and was honored as the teacher of the year by the Tri-State last year. Salera will provide weekly tips for Tribune-Review pages, hopefully helping to shave some strokes off your score. This week: bunker play. "There aren't too many areas where you can be as good as a PGA Tour pro. They get up and down from a bunker about 60 percent of the time, but, with practice, you can be good from the bunker, too. This is probably the most difficult of the short game shots. Make sure you have a sand wedge, 9-iron or pitching wedge when playing this shot. You need to have lots of loft -- 55 or 56 degrees -- to keep the "bounce" of the club active. Line up in the middle of your stance and try to miss the ball and hit the sand. You have to be more aggressive on this shot and follow through. Hit about 2-3 inches behind the ball. The first job here is to get it out, don't be concerned so much about hitting a specific spot on the green." - Mike Dudurich

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