How do you grip your putter?

[Mulligan Jeff]

That's what I started doing was using the same grip ad all of my clubs. I really haven't had much trouble with speed it's hitting my line I have been struggling with. I don't 3 putt a lot I just feel like I should be making more 5+ footers.

I remember Billy Horshell saying his swing coach had him weaken his left hand (right handers) on putter grip, he said after that putts were dropping more and more.

[Jakester23]

I remember Billy Horshell saying his swing coach had him weaken his left hand (right handers) on putter grip, he said after that putts were dropping more and more.

Yeah my grip is definitely weaker than my full swing grip but it's the same type of grip. I want to get an edel before next spring and I want to make this change as well.

[joekelly]

@saevel25 I thought 'wristy putting' long ago went out of style.

I occasionally practice with more wrist action, can get nice clean stroke but distance control would take time to master.  Now i am very conscious of how far, precisely, i take the putter head back. Prior to putt, I visually measure the distance, slope, etc and figure 'take back 4 inches'. So i take it back only 4 inches and focus on moving putter head along needed line, do my best to eliminate mental activity unrelated to 4 inches.  For backswing i  keep hands, arms out of play and move shoulders mostly, with head very steady. I aim to strike the ball right in the middle, imagining a thumb tack exactly there. As putter moves thru ball my lower body very slightly moves along line of stroke.

Have found good improvement lately with this technique.  Probably the subtle moving of lower body along line is most important for line control as putter head is not torqued off line by too rigid hips.

[saevel25]

@saevel25  I thought 'wristy putting' long ago went out of style.

I use to have a putting stroke that was very much "no wrist" action. This made it very hard for me to have any sort of distance control. If you don't have a bit of soft wrist and arms you are taking out feel.

Switching things up, softening the set up and getting my hands in a more passive roll, and allowing the wrist to have some softness to them in the stroke, I am able to control my distance much better. Basically I returned feel to my swing. I am not talking Arnold Palmer type putting stroke.

So to me it felt more wristy, when on video it probably doesn't look like it at all.

[natureboy]

Vardon overlap. Weak L & R (v's align with shaft). Thumbs down top of grip.

[billchao]

Reverse double overlap.

Count me in, as well.

I was putting earlier this year with my right hand on the end of the grip and my left hand wrapped completely around my right. Worked better than the reverse single overlap I used to use, but I've made a few set up adjustments and I started pushing the ball too much. Switched and I have the same control over the stroke, but much more control over the putter head.

[Roblar]

Baseball.

...and I'm *not* a good putter.

[tristanhilton85]

Reverse double overlap.

Same here... although I did experiment with the claw grip for a while. In high school I putted left-hand-low.

[RayG]

Same grip, essentially, as all the other clubs. Standard interlock- Only difference is the right finger down the shaft. It's comfortable, reliable and repeatable. Keeps the feel the same for all the clubs. IT's the same grip I've used for 40+ years.

[dave s]

Unlike the thread starter, I like to keep my hands as close together and compact as possible when gripping the putter.

I use what I think would be called a double-overlapping grip.  The pinky and ring finger of my right hand overlap the left hand and rest between ring and middle finger and middle and index fingers of my left hand.  The compact, double overlapping grip helps me to swing the putter like a pendulum and straight back and straight through.

Putting is probably the most subjective part of our game.  Seems very few golfers approach putting grip exactly the same way.

When my wife started playing, she asked about the putting grip.  I showed her the three grips I've used over the years and that I'd settled (years ago) on the double overlapping one and explained why I thought it worked for me.  Then, like a good husband, let her choose what she felt worked best for her.

She uses the interlock (like Tiger) grip for every other club.  If it's good enough for a driver and 7-iron, apparently it's good enough for her putter as well.

dave .

[ChrisPietersen]

I usually use an ordinary interlock grip, but I have been experimenting with the claw grip when I practice and I believe it have made my short putts much more consistent, but having a hard time with distance control on long putts, which I was usually good at. Anybody have advice on this?

[Patch]

I recently switched to a "very old school" grip. Best explanation I can give is that I still use my very normal, conventional  grip, but have turned my left hand counter clockwise, and my right hand clockwise. This grip tends to keep the putter face from opening too much on my back stroke, while not allowing it to close too fast on my forward stroke. This allowed for the putter face to stay square to my aim line a little longer than normal. Not much longer, but enough.

I know that this violates most, if not all, current putting grip teachings, and of course I am substituting mechanics for feel.

I think what I have done is forced my hands out of their natural positions, which also means they are working against each other. During my putting stroke, my left hand won't turn any more to the left, an my right hand won't turn anymore to the right. My left hand won't turn to the right because my right hand is opposing it. My right hand won't turn to the right because my left hand is opposing it. In essence both my wrists are locked in.

I had a tendency to pull putts, and this seems to have corrected the issue. Time will tell. I know I finally broke 80 in my second go around with this game using this method.

As a side note, I found out about this type of grip after reading a book by Bobby Jones. He said in this book the best putter he ever saw was Jug McSpaden who used a "funny" grip. that's why I wrote "very old school".

[PirateJim]

I use a reverse overlap.  After reading Stan Utley's putting book I began assuring that I grip my putter along the life lines which does seem to get the shaft aligned nicely with the arms.  Then I worked my up to a Super Stroke 3.0 grip that really lets me get my hands in great contact.

[megs8888]

Trying to find somewhere that really explains the grip Stan talks about I have his book TAOP but he doesn't explain it very well, and I cant find a video that shos it up close or descent photos in Stages would be awesome.

[trickyputt]

Michael Breed teaches that lifeline grip.

[treebound]

For me, my index fingers point down parallel to the shaft. Gripping the putter like a normal club didn't work for me in the past. And trying other grip configurations sort of blew up for me in the past. So, for now, for me, index fingers pointed and parallel, everything else hangs on for control. I do okay with putting in my own opinion. Putting is the least of my concerns with my golf game.

[dchoye]

Been going back to the thinner diameter pistol type grip instead of the thicker superstroke and now feel more confident when I hold the putter pressure points are my middle finger at the mid knuckle or my thumb pads depending if Im above or below the hole.

[vangator]

Reverse overlap. I pulled out an old Teardrop putter today. 28 inches. Gripped the putter so lightly that it just hung down. Lined it up. Rocked my shoulders and I was making 10 footers like they were gimmies. Playing tomorrow. Can't wait!