It’s easy to get mired in technical thoughts when you start missing putts. It comes from a good place: things aren’t happening the way you want to, so you start trying harder and working harder.
But that’s not always a good thing.
“When you’re not performing as well as you should at something, what is the solution always? Typically it’s to try harder at that thing,” the world No.1 said at the start of last week. “But I think it goes a little bit more in depth than that. At times last year I think I definitely tried too hard on my putting.”
Instead, Scheffler’s task in recent weeks has been freeing himself up. Taking the hard work he’s done with putting coach Phil Kenyon on the technical aspects of his stroke, and finding a way to apply them. That led to him ditching the line on his golf ball, brought about by a putter change that made it easier for him to aim without it.
Another important piece of putting equipment? Chapstick.
Scottie’s Chapstick Putting Game
Trophy-in-hand after his final round, Scheffler explained a simple practice drill that he’ll do:
He’ll take a Chapstick (he’d do it with a coin, but he usually forgets and does it with a Chapstick instead), throw it somewhere on his green, close his eyes and putt to it. Then, he’ll do it again. It’s that simple.
“It’s just a good way to just kind of get more engaged in my feel, be more outward with things, not focus so much on what’s going on down there,” he explains. “It’s just me doing some speed control… it’s kind of entertaining.”
A simple way of Scheffler cultivating some feel and freedom on the greens. And clearly, it’s working.
