TULSA, Okla. — Will Zalatoris is one of those golfers with a clear strength, and a clear weakness.
The strength of his game is his ball striking. He leads the tour in SG: Approach and ranks second from tee-to-green. His weakness is what happens when he’s actually on those greens. He ranks 185th in SG: Putting, and under pressure, his stroke will tend to break down on short putts. But it’s getting better, at least this week. He’s top five in the field putting this week, and with a chance of winning the 2022 PGA Championship.
You have to look closely, but if you do, you’ll notice something rather interesting that seems to be helping him. Before each putt Zalatoris will tuck the left side of his shirt under his left armpit, then step into the ball and take his setup.
Before you ask: Yes, it’s legal. You’re allowed to use your shirt like this, as long as your shirt isn’t a training aid designed for this. And as for what it helps with, Zalatoris says it helps keep his left arm connected to his torso as he makes his stroke. He compliments this with an arm lock putter and a hold where his trail hand is barely touching the grip. It all helps him — like Webb Simpson — create a stroke that’s very driven by his left side.
It’s not a catch-all solution. Sadly, those don’t exist in golf. But it does give Zalatoris something he can work with. Once he gets his setup locked in, he can stop thinking about it and transition to the thought for his putting.
“Don’t get out of my posture until the ball goes in the hole,” he says.