When it comes to the full swing, we don’t see too much variety in how the best players grip the club. Yes, we see stronger and weaker grips, but the vast majority of great players have the trail hand low and either interlock or overlap a single finger. Putting is unique in the fact we see a whole variety of hand positions from the world’s leading players. We might see conventional, double overlap, lead hand low, claw, pencil, arm lock and more.
Another method becoming increasingly popular amongst players is the PRAYER GRIP. This is a method that sees the hands level and facing directly opposite each other. The advantages of this grip style… It automatically levels the shoulders in the set up, creating a more simple start position to pivot our upper body. Our hands are placed into a very neutral position (palms opposing) with neither hand wanting to dominate the motion. So how do we get our hands into this position? Well firstly, the prayer grip will often be far easier to adopt with a larger grip, as it requires greater surface area for the hands to sit. Two Thumb putter grips are specifically designed for the Prayer Grip, allowing space for the thumbs to sit side by side on the front of the grip and the entire palm to wrap around the grip.
Matt Wallace is perhaps the best-known proponent of the grip, and used it last week en-route to a T-4 finish at Muirfield.
So let’s try and adopt this grip. Start by taking your set up and placing the palm of your hands on either side of the grip, with your fingers pointing towards the putter head. You will notice they are in a praying position, hence the ‘prayer grip’ name.
From here, keep the grip sitting through the same part of the palm, place thumbs on the front of your grip, side by side, and wrap your fingers around the back You can arrange your fingers by either interlocking them all together, or wrapping one hand over the other, neither being incorrect.
Once you’ve got this grip, what should you notice? Firstly, your shoulders should want to naturally be more neutral at set up. Secondly, as the palms are completely opposing, you can almost squeeze the putter between your hands to add stability. Lastly, swinging the putter with your body might have just become a whole lot easier?
For more information on Two Thumb Grips, visit twothumbgrip.com and use discount code NEXTBUY to save money on your new grip.
