Tour News

Mickelson claws through his putting woes

Published

12 years ago

Sep 5, 2012

Zak Kozuchowski

By Zak Kozuchowski

GolfWRX Managing Editor

If at first you don’t succeed, try something different.

That seems to be the putting mantra of PGA Tour players these days, who are accommodating new putters and putting styles at a faster rate than ever.

But even with a record number of players using unconventional putting methods, it came as a surprise when four-time major champion Phil Mickelson was seen putting with an modified claw grip on the greens at the Barclays Championship two weeks ago. Maybe even more surprising was how well Mickelson putted using the grip.

Mickelson used a belly putter for the first time during the 2011 PGA Tour Race for the FedExCup, but his results left much to be desired. This time around in 2012, however, Mickelson’s new putting style has yielded spectacular results. Using the grip last week at the Deutsche Bank Championship, he finished fourth in the Tour’s Strokes Gained-Putting statistic, moving him from 12th to sixth for the year.

“[With the new grip] His touch has been so phenomenal,” Jim “Bones” Mackay, Mickelson’s longtime caddie, said. “Not only from 15 feet and in, but his touch from 40 feet has been so good.”

With Mickelson’s new grip, his right hand is in a traditional position, but the index finger and thumb of his left hand are the only part of his left hand on the putter grip. Not surprisingly, Mickelson, who has struggled with missed short putts in the past, said he plans to continue to use the grip going forward. Time will tell if the grip is just another one of Mickelson’s experiments, or if the change will stick.

Take a look of the pictures of Mickelson’s grip below, and click here for more discussion in the “Tour Talk” forum.

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Tour Photo Galleries

Photos from the 2024 Zurich Classic of New Orleans

Published

3 days ago

Apr 23, 2024

GolfWRX Staff

GolfWRX is live on site this week at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans for the PGA Tour’s one-and-only two-man team event.

As usual, general galleries, WITBs, and pullout albums — including some pretty spicy custom putters and headcovers — await your viewing.

Be sure to check back for more photos from the Big Easy, as we’ll continue to update this page with additional galleries throughout the week.

General Albums

WITB Albums

Pullout Albums

See what GolfWRXers are saying about our photos from the Zurich Classic of New Orleans in the forums.

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Tour Photo Galleries

Photos from the 2024 RBC Heritage

Published

1 week ago

Apr 16, 2024

GolfWRX Staff

GolfWRX is on site this week at Harbour Town Golf Links on Hilton Head Island for the RBC Heritage. Plenty of golfers who competed in the Masters last week will be making the quick turnaround in the Lowcountry of South Carolina as the Heritage is again one of the Tour’s Signature Events.

We have general albums for you to check out, as well as plenty of WITBs — including Justin Thomas and Justin Rose.

We’ll continue to update as more photos flow in from SC.

Check out links to all our photos, below.

General Albums

WITB Albums

Pullout Albums

See what GolfWRXers are saying and join the discussion in the forums.

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Tour Photo Galleries

Photos from the 2024 Valero Texas Open

Published

4 weeks ago

Apr 1, 2024

GolfWRX Staff

GolfWRX is on site this week at the Valero Texas Open.

The event has been around since 1922, making it one of the oldest on the PGA Tour calendar. Over the years, it’s been held at a variety of courses across the Lone Star State, but it’s found its home at TPC San Antonio in recent years. Some of the biggest names in golf have taken home the title here, including Arnold Palmer, Ben Hogan, Lee Trevino, and Ben Crenshaw.

GolfWRX has its usual assortment of general galleries, WITBs and special pull-out albums. As always, we’ll continue to update the links below as more photos come in from TPC San Antonio.