Change in Hand Position

[Tedfroop]

I used to putt really well. Inside 10 feet I could get it in the hole very consistently. After a long layoff for back problems I couldn't get the ball in the hole at all. We are talking 40 putts a round last year.

Changing putters, practice, nothing seemed to help. My Golftec coach said my stroke looked good and I thought it was but I had trouble adjusting to different green speeds and was leaving putts every where, short, long, left, right.

My first practice session this year I thought I might as well mess with my grip. It was a good move. I went from interlocking right hand low to baseball grip and right hand low and it worked like magic.

Suddenly I was hitting it in the middle of the club face, distance was good - two putts were tap ins, three putts are rare and I am down to about 30 putts a round.

Has anyone else seen a change like this lead to far better putting?

 

[tbui1178]

I have not been putting consistently lately - mainly speed is killing me. Some rounds descent and some round horrible. I have a reverse grip, but am thinking about going back to the old regular grip. I'll be checking this thread to see if there is anything new I can try.

 

[drp3434]

Can definitely make a difference. My putting felt off this year, just wasn't right. I used to extend my index finger on my right hand down the shaft. Changed that to curling it around the bottom of the grip, and now my stroke feels better. Very minor change, but made a difference.

 

[thedue]

Great topic. My putting has really struggled this year and most seems to be grip related. Just yesterday it dawned on me how far in to the palm I was gripping, rather than more out towards the fingers. Early results are pretty solid, but time will tell.

 

[GregDan]

I switched to left hand low, I'm a righty, about 10 years ago. Never went back to traditional. It has worked for me and I am still a pretty consistent putter.

 

[sparksjr]

I switched to left hand low, I'm a righty, about 10 years ago. Never went back to traditional. It has worked for me and I am still a pretty consistent putter.

Same here. Been putting wrong handed for years but it works for me. For the most part I feel like I putt the ball exactly how I read it. Problem is I don't always read it correctly!

I feel like my putting stroke is more consistent this way.

 

[Tadashi70]

I switched from traditional to cross handed in the early 2000s and never looked back.

In regards to your switch. do you feel one hand is more dominate than the other?

 

[Oil_Fan]

I just changed up my grip and went to left hand low. I've only done one round so far so the jury is still out on it. But it's feeling good and it seems my putting is a bit better. But I'll see how it goes as I'm hoping to get 2 rounds in this weekend.

 

[Bullitt5339]

Going through SPi and then through the PGA Tour Academy putting lessons changed my putting setup a lot.

Putting with the grip in the lifelines of both hands and using a standard reverse overlap grip has really improved my putting. Keeping the shaft in line with my forearms was a big change, but was really effective. I made all of these changes at once, so it took about 2 weeks to really get comfortable with it, but my last 2 rounds were both under 30 putts.

I couldn't hit the broad side of a barn using left hand low...........

 

[sparksjr]

I switched from traditional to cross handed in the early 2000s and never looked back.

In regards to your switch. do you feel one hand is more dominate than the other?

I have thought about this question all day. Came home and made some putting strokes and I can honestly say I don't think either hand works more than the other with this stroke. Just grip it and let my shoulders do the work.

 

[JLit]

I've tried them all and have found each to have their merits. I always seem to come back to a conventional grip though. Distance control is excellent with left hand low, starting the putt on line, especially inside 10', not so much. With the claw/pistol hybrid grip I'm always on line, but anything over 25', pace becomes a challenge.

I've tried using them both, but that just gets me all out of sorts. So, back to conventional I always go.

 

[Sox_Fan]

Have tried many different putting grips over the years (cross handed, baseball, versions of claws, etc.) but always go back to the standard overlap grip. Have brief success with each variation I have tried but it eventually turns into inconsistency so I go back to my comfort level. Switching brands to SeeMore a few months ago was far and away the best putting adjustment I have ever made!

 

[drp3434]

I've tried them all and have found each to have their merits. I always seem to come back to a conventional grip though. Distance control is excellent with left hand low, starting the putt on line, especially inside 10', not so much. With the claw/pistol hybrid grip I'm always on line, but anything over 25', pace becomes a challenge.

I've tried using them both, but that just gets me all out of sorts. So, back to conventional I always go.

so what if you were to use left hand low for long putts, and conventional for short to mid range? Don't see why you couldn't use two grips.

 

[Tedfroop]

Great topic. My putting has really struggled this year and most seems to be grip related. Just yesterday it dawned on me how far in to the palm I was gripping, rather than more out towards the fingers. Early results are pretty solid, but time will tell.

I think that's a big part of my change too, is the change in hand position as well as which also gets my right shoulder down lower. Having the club more in my fingers and having less wrist action is the result.

Kind of strange too but I have a new Spider Blade as well. It is quite heavy and I notice that there are lots of muscles that must not get a lot of work normally in a putting position that I can sure feel after practicing with it for a while. I wonder if that muscle strength has any affect on putting as well? It seems to me that I am hitting the ball in the middle of the face better and my stroke feels smoother since I began practicing with it.