Adam Scott and his broomstick drain a clutch putt on Sunday at the Masters
Damn you, Adam Scott. You and your broom just had to drain every 20-footer on the back nine at Augusta to nearly win the Masters. Which means you almost became the first player to capture a major wielding a long putter. Now look what you’ve done — just about every player who has a twitchy wrist thinks a long putter may solve his putting woes. But to be fair, it’s not only Adam’s fault. Martin Laird and Brendan Steele deserve some of the blame, too — they recently won the Bay Hill Invitational and Texas Valero Open, respectively, playing with belly putters.
(To clarify, Scott uses a long, broomstick putter that he anchors just below his chin against his sternum, which is different from a belly putter, but both are considered “long putters.” A belly putter is wedged into the stomach for support, helping stabilize the hands through the stroke.)
This week at The Heritage, there were more guys than usual tinkering with belly putters. I mean, it was impossible not to notice the increase. When I walked out to the practice green on Tuesday afternoon, I almost thought I was at the Champions Tour event just 30 miles down the road. I was blown away by the number of players toying with belly putters or showing them to their peers who were inspecting them with acute curiosity.
#
Adam Scott, #
Belly Putter, #
Bill Haas, #
Brendan Steele, #
Camilo Villegas, #
DJ Trahan, #
Ernie Els, #
Harbour Town Golf Links, #
Kevin Na, #
Long Putter, #
Martin Laird, #
Nathan Green, #
The Heritage
