Shockingly, I went from a 2-handicap to an 8 within two years despite feeling like I was hitting the ball better than ever. Thankfully, I am somewhat on the way back and I credit that all to moving to a claw-style putting grip.
I still remember how my experience with the putting yips started. I’d always been a confident putter, but I had a 4-footer on the 3rd hole at my club with a tiny bit of left-to-right in it and completely yanked the putt left as I was worried about pushing it. That took me aback and before I knew it I had started doing it again and again. And I couldn’t stop.
I was fairly scared of the short putts, as I’d always been to be honest, but really began noticing the yips affect my game on my birdie chances from 8-15ft. I knew what the putt would do, but for some unbeknown reason just could not start the ball on my intended line. I could literally feel myself yipping these putts, and it led to my scores going from around 75-78 up to 85 and beyond.
It leaked into my short game, too, as I felt pressure to hit my chips to gimme range as deep down I knew that getting up and down was becoming harder and harder.
I started toying with technique and my stroke, drawing a line on my ball and changing my grip almost on a hole-to-hole basis to try and find something that worked. One competition round, I didn’t even bother bringing my putter with me onto the 16th green and opted for a bladed wedge as I had no confidence in holing my putt with my flat-stick.
A standard look at my dire putting performances earlier this year
(Image credit: Future)
Time for a change
I missed a four-footer to lose an important match late last year that I was desperately hoping to hole, but deep down knew that I had no idea if I could actually hit my start line.
I’ve traditionally been a left-hand-low putter for most of my golfing life, but I was switching between that and orthodox reverse overlap in most of my rounds before I had to accept that nothing was going to work.
It was time to do something I always said I wasn’t going to do and go to the claw grip.
For years I’ve seen pros use the claw, or pencil, grip, but it isn’t seen very often at club level. I thought it was somewhat of an embarrassment and a sign to all your fellow golfers that you’ve reached last resort. In…
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