Brian Harman is your Open Championship winner.
As we all let that sink in, it’s okay to ponder how we got here — and what the 36-year-old Georgian did better than anyone else during the past four days at Royal Liverpool.
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While Harman did plenty of good things all week, the most obvious reason that he’s holding the Claret Jug? His putting.
Just look at the tweet below, which shows how dominant Harman was during this year’s Open Championship — which includes finishing +2.85 Strokes Gained: Putting.
Harman’s the only one that touched -9, -10, -11, -12, and -13.
— No Laying Up (@NoLayingUp) July 23, 2023
Straka was the only one who touched -8, and he held that number for 2 holes.
Just a truly legendary performance, and one of the biggest shockers (domination wise) in recent memory in a majors.
Oh, and then there’s this little nugget: Harman made a mind-blowing 58 of 59 putts from within 10 feet. That’s absurd, and almost makes you wonder what kind of magic he has in that putter of his, because that’s far from standard precision.
For the season, Harman ranks 39th in Strokes Gained: Putting, but that stat is a bit skewed, in my opinion. That’s because he ranks 1st in putts from within six feet, which is where he clearly earned his keep at Royal Liverpool.
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While Harman has been steady with the putter, he still sought more consistency. He even admitted earlier this week that he nearly ditched his putter for a new one.
“There was a time middle of this year to where we were seriously thinking about going to the bullpen and pulling out something different,” Harman said on Friday. “It’s been a good putter, but she’s been misbehaving a lot this year.”
After sticking with his trusty steed and claiming his first major title, Harman was now more than happy to share the secret to his major champion-level putting touch.
Brian Harman’s putting secret
Before the final round on Sunday at Royal Liverpool, Harman was asked about his putting secret. He was hesitant to reveal much, but on Sunday evening he was more than happy to share the training aid that helped him run away from the competition — and it’s something that every amateur can benefit from as well.
“Yeah, I found this — it’s a silly looking mirror where it’s got like a little better release pattern,” Harman said.
Why the need for an aid?
“I was just kind of cutting my putts too much,” he said. “I spent a lot of time just feeling the ball, almost hitting like a baby draw with my putter, and it’s been really, really good the last month or so.”
As for where Harman got the putting aid (which is available online), he said it’s something he’s had for a while, but wasn’t something he was regularly using.
Putting Alignment Mirror
“I picked it up on the putting green at some tournament over the years,” he said. “There’s all sorts of trinkets and different things up until Wednesday, so I saw it, liked it. Hadn’t been putting very good this year until last month or so, but I found that in my barn at my house and it made sense, and I started putting well with it.”
If you also need help on the greens (like pretty much every golfer), it might be worth taking Harman’s recommendation and see if a mirror can help you groove your stroke and knock in more putts.
Hey, if it worked for the Champion Golfer of the Year…