Gripping the putter

[ZAP]

What are everyone's thoughts on the proper way to grip the putter?

I have tried a few options and it seems my hands are misshapen or something because no way I can grip it how Utley does for example. No fair making fun of me.

 

[Richie3Jack]

I don't think there is a 'proper way.' But from what I've learned over the past year is that golfers in general grip the putter way too lightly. I'm guessing it's due to them seeing 'smooth' putting strokes on TV and thinking that the yips are do to a death grip. But I find I'm just as likely to leave the blade open and miss badly when my grip pressure is too light. I do believe one can grip it too tightly, but I just think of 'firm grip...not a light grip...and not a death grip....firm grip.'

I also like to 'scrunch' my hands close together instead of having them more 'split' apart. But that's just a personal preference.






3JACK

 

[johnnymarlboro]

I also like to have my hands pretty close together. I feel like having them too far apart for me they can tend to work against each other. I also like to grip it much lighter with my left hand, then with my right. I like to feel a little firmness in the fingertips of my right hand, especially on long putts. Not too much though, because then I lose the feel of the putterhead. This way I can get the feel of rolling the ball with just my right hand. My long putting has dramatically improved since I've taken my left hand out of powering it.

I think anything can work, but alot of these claw and saw grips just look so damn uncomfortable and unnatural. It's definitely saved more then a few golfers careers though. I was watching a recent Champions tour event and one of the leaders, I forget his name, was using different putting grips within the same round. Conventional on long putts, and claw on shorter ones. Then he just went straight conventional after a certain point.

 

[hp12c]

What are everyone's thoughts on the proper way to grip the putter?

I have tried a few options and it seems my hands are misshapen or something because no way I can grip it how Utley does for example. No fair making fun of me.

Eyeoffish,
I use a ten finger grip, similar to my swing. I also use a flat left wrist and a bent right wrist at adress and then I just take it back as far as I think I need to for the given putt at hand. Like a micro swing. I have tried quite a few different styles and didnt like any of them. For me I need consistancy in grip stance and feel and when I stated setting this way, impact was more consistant as well as the roll of the ball. As far as grip pressure all I can say is not too tight, what does that mean, to me the putter head feels in control, like lagging the club head on the takewaway again a micro swing, I can feel the putter head go a little farther after the ball is struck, which happened before but this way feels better and doesn't seem forced.

Art

 

[willgolfer]

I found a grip that felt relatively comfortable then used a dead hands/shoulders focused motion.

 

[BrendanC]

Left hand low, putter grip in lifeline of left hand.

Right hand there on top somewhere adding stability, but not that important.

 

[birly-shirly]

If you can get your hands comfortably on the club, I'm not sure what else matters. It might depend on what kind of stroke you make - but I don't know that you "need" to make your hands look like Utley, or anyone else. You're not creating massive amounts of speed or rotation in putting, so I'd argue that there are very few constraints on how you grip it.

I know I can't get comfortable with both thumbs straight down the top of the grip - and I feel ham-fisted trying to run the grip in the lifelines of both hands.