{{ubiquityData.prevArticle.description}}
{{ubiquityData.nextArticle.description}}
NEWS FROM THE TOUR VANS
BROUGHT TO YOU BY GOLF PRIDE, THE #1 GRIP ON TOUR
We know Collin Morikawa has leaned on his generational iron play to win two major championships before turning 25 years old, but his dynamic performance on the greens at Royal St. George’s two weeks ago had as much to do with his Open Championship victory as anything else.
Morikawa has been scrutinized for struggling with the putter early in his career, and that criticism is justified given his No. 170 ranking in strokes gained putting this season. However, a simple adjustment before the year’s final major led to some clutch holed putts down the stretch and had Morikawa looking like one of the best putters in the field.
By replacing two 2.5-gram weights with 7.5-gram weights in his TaylorMade TP Juno putter, Morikawa added bulk with the thought that it could help him on the relatively slow greens he faced in England. Players have long used lead tape on putter heads to attain this added beef, but the trendy development of adjustable head weights has taken much of the guessing out of the process.
In addition to the added weight – we’ll have to wait to see if that is a long-term adjustment or just used on slower greens – Morikawa used two different putting grips at the Open. For shorter putts, he went with the “saw” grip that he employed just before winning the WGC event at the Concession, while switching to a conventional style on longer putts that required more pace.
“I think the saw grip is amazing for me,” Morikawa said during the Open. “It’s going to continue to be in my bag as I continue to putt. But from outside 25, 30 feet I just couldn’t get that hit. I couldn’t get that tempo that you see like a Brandt Snedeker put on his putts.”
Morikawa said his putting performance was “definitely one of the best, especially inside 10 feet.” He made significant par saves on Nos. 10 and 15 during the final round, while his long birdie effort at the par-5 14th slammed the door on any pursuers.
While Morikawa tweaked his putter setup, others have been employing some larger changes. Adam Scott went back to a Titleist TSi4 driver after using a TSi2, and he also reverted to a Graphite Design Tour AD DI-8X shaft that he used to win the 2013 Masters. The shaft change was aimed at achieving a lower, right-to-left shot shape.
However, it wasn’t Scott’s most curious move. He also put two T-100 3-irons in play at the Open, one built at 2-iron loft and length. Scott found that the unique setup allowed him two clubs that went through the firm turf with ease while creating two different carry yardages.
A lot of players opted for long irons or utility clubs instead of fairway woods at Royal St. George’s, including Jon Rahm, who took away his Callaway Epic Speed Sub Zero Triple Diamond T 5-wood in favor of a 22-degree X Forged UT with a Project X 6.5 shaft.
Sean Fairholm