ROME — If you’ve watched any Ryder Cup action over the course of the week, you’ve probably seen Justin Rose making putts.
He’s dropped a variety to crucial ones over the course of the two four ball sessions, including two match winning birdie putts, the latter of which helped him and Robert MacIntyre deliver Justin Thomas and Jordan Spieth their first fourballs loss.
The moment @JustinRose99 clinched another point for Europe! ☝️#TeamEurope | #RyderCup pic.twitter.com/Als2JpuPVY
— Ryder Cup Europe (@RyderCupEurope) September 30, 2023
You may have noticed that before each of those putts—and every putt Rose hits on the green—that he tucks the sleeve on his left arm into his left armpit.
It’s entirely legal (you wouldn’t be allowed to tuck an outside object into your armpit, but your own shirt is fine), and Rose does it for a good reason.
As he explains:
“I’m trying to make everything as simple as I can…strip away as many excess movements as possible, so I can just focus on moving the putter very cleanly, and simply,” Rose says.
Rose says his claw putter grip is an essential ingredient to this, because it allows him to hold the putter lightly in place and let the unique balance point of his Axis 1 putter swing as it’s designed.
The shirt sleeve is the third part, because that effectively helps organize his stroke.
“I want my arms and body to move as a unit,” he says. “The shirt sleeve is a little reminder to keep that connection between my arms and chest, so everything moves as one.”
Clearly, it’s working.
This article was originally published on golfdigest.com
