Scottie Scheffler showed off a brand new saw/claw putting grip at the Hero World Challenge following a three-month break from the sport.
The World No. 1 has not competed since the Tour Championship at East Lake, taking some well-earned downtime after a season that included victories at the Masters, Arnold Palmer Invitational and The Players Championship. Scheffler’s known to tinker with his putting – an area he is constantly seeking to improve.
On putting strokes gained last season, Scheffler ranked 77th on the tour. That is compared to ranking first on strokes gained from tee to green and approach to green.
As a result, at the Hero World Challenge on Thursday, Scheffler would flip between his standard grip for long putts before switching to the saw/claw for shorter ones (inside 10 feet). The change paid dividends. Scheffler carded a 5-under round to leave himself three behind leader Cameron Young.
Scheffler hired putting coach Phil Kenyon in 2023 and the 28-year-old revealed they considered making the grip change then. He said: “I’m always looking for ways to improve and I felt like this was something that we had looked at last year when Phil and I first started working together, but it was really our first time working together and it’s something that’s different than what I’ve done in the past.
“Took a look at it this offseason and figured this is a good week to try stuff just because you can practice and practice and do all the stuff at home, but there’s just something different about being in competition. I really enjoyed the way it felt, I felt like I’m seeing some improvements in my stroke.”
Scheffler was also still using his mallet putter, one of the changes implemented under Kenyon last season and also something recommended by Rory McIlroy ahead of the American’s win at the Arnold Palmer Invitational.
“For me, going to a mallet was a big change,” said McIlroy. “I really persisted with the blade putter for a long time, but I just feel like your stroke has to be so perfect to start the ball on line, where the mallet just gives you a little bit more margin for error. So, I’d love to see Scottie try a mallet. But selfishly for me, Scottie does everything else so well that he’s given the rest of us a chance.”
Scheffler appeared to take that advice on board by deploying a mallet putter at the tournament and winning by five clear shots.
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