Jump to content
TESTERS WANTED! ×

Arm-Lock Putter Grip and Technique: Unofficial Review


YourLocalJimmy

Recommended Posts

      Here recently I have been watching a lot more golf than normal, probably because I am so interested in improving my game and want to see what the pro's do. One thing that struck me odd, was the technique Bryson DeChambeau uses to putt. It is obviously not the typical pendulum style putt with that massively long putter. This intrigued me as I naturally wanted to know more about the technique and the equipment he used so that I could try it and see if it improved my game any. In this review I will be going over that very method of putting as well as the equipment I used to give it a try and what kind of results I found.

The Equipment

      After doing research about what it takes to try the arm-lock putting method I found exactly what Bryson has in his bag. As you can imagine he has a custom length, loft, and lie angled putter that probably cost an arm and a leg to get, so I resorted to altering an extra putter I had to conform to the specs required of an arm-lock.

1.jpg.c16a4e9d510e9e5960cf061f7a36d637.jpg

      The putter I altered is a Ray Cook Silver Ray SR400, which is about $50 brand new at Academy. OEM length is 35" and it has a regular flex steel shaft with an aluminum head (Not really a fan of the putter but that another conversation). This is a very basic mallet style putter that has nice sight lines but a very lightweight head.

[Insert Picture of Shaft Length Comparison with Callaway Here]

      The first alteration I had to do to the Ray Cook putter was to extend it up to almost my elbow joint which is 40" for me. This required me to put on a 5" shaft extension probably isn't the ideal way to get a longer shaft but considering it is just a putter I thought the structural integrity should hold up just fine. Unfortunately, my garage does not have as many tools as I want so I had to take the putter over to Dick's Sporting Goods to get all the work done.

4.jpg.fb5a2fde50894a6c13658745fe2aec64.jpg

      The most important part of using the arm-lock method is getting a grip that is made specifically for this style of putting. I went with the Arm-Lock AL-2 Converter Grip because it seemed to be the best grip at the time of purchase. If any of you reading this know about this technique, then you probably noticed that the grip is actually installed incorrectly. I take 100% blame for this as I did not tell the fitter that this style of putting requires the flat side of the grip to be on the same plane as the putter face. I suppose next time I will remember to leave better notes with the fitter of what I want!🤣

The Method

      I am by no means a pro at the proper technique for using an arm-lock putter so I will keep this section rather short and just give the basics of how I understand it.

[Insert Picture of Putter Address Here]

      From what I understand, the reason behind the arm-lock is that it isolates the movement of your leading wrist so that you can have a more consistent putt. When addressing the ball, your leading arm must be straight at the elbow with the top of the grip pushing into your leading forearm. By locking it in your leading forearm it naturally causes your head to be behind the ball (which in my opinion helps line the ball up with the target). When swinging, you rotate your chest and shoulders in unison, so that no joint moves independently causing a bad putt.

My Results

      Coming into this trial I had high expectations for how this was going to perform. Prior to using this style of putter I was probably hitting my lines 20% of the time and I had terrible form. Once I started training with this style of putter probably 90% of my putts are on my lines. Given I do not have any statistics on shots made or shots missed because I had no idea about MGS' existence. 

      This putting style, even as a training aid, has helped me to hit straighter lines more consistently. The other day I broke out my old blade style putter that has a small sight mark on the head and I was able to hit straight, pure putts from the center of the head. I give credit to the rotational muscle memory I gained from the arm-lock putter. 

      To wrap up this unofficial review, I want to say that this putting style is not for everyone but is a very unique experience to try and do something that not many other people are doing! Let me know what y'all think and if you have any questions!👍 

 

*More pictures coming soon!

 

 

3.jpg

2.jpg

Irons: :mizuno-small: MP-33, Stiff, 3-pw

Hybrid: :taylormade-small: Sim2 Max Rescue, Regular Flex

Driver: :taylormade-small: Sim2 Max D, Regular Flex, 10.5 loft

Righty

Murfreesboro, Tennessee

30 handicap🦽

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Yes, this method is good especially if you have a tremor or

Shaky hands. I had been using a standard Bettenardi with a 395g head

And a 35 inch shaft. My pro measured my arm length to my elbow from

the top of the grip, and put an extender in the shaft. 

The idea is to rest the grip on the inside of your left arm (right handed),

holding the putter in your left near bottom of grip. You then put right hand 

On top of left either extending the fingers to grasp your left wrist or grip it over top of the left pushing the grip in a straight line up your left wrist.

It takes some practice but you will develop as straightback and through 

stroke by rocking your shoulders.  Still have to keep head and body still,

but it makes shorties easier. 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thank you for taking the time to do this review!  I had a few questions:

How did you feel this putting method affected your speed/distance control?   

 

I have heard the Arm-Lock AL-2 Converter grip claims to "add 2-3 degrees of loft" negating any loft loss from the arm lock method.  Did you find this to be true?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I've been considering trying something new for about a year and a half now.  I am a fairly good putter in terms of speed control, green reading and start line, but have developed a tremor that comes into account from time to time and screws those things up.  When this happens during a round, I tend to try different grips to offset it.  I can hit the practice green for an hour and it won't happen, but then it might pop up again out of no where.  

This could be the solution for me to have some more confidence on the greens.

Driver:  image.png.3c6db1120d888f669e07d4a8f890b3f1.pngMavrik Sub Zero 9* (Set to 10) Ventus Blue 6X

2 Hybrid: :titelist-small: TSI3 Hybrid Tensei Blue 80 X (17.25*)

3 Hybrid :titelist-small: 818 H2 Hybrid Hzrdus RDX Black 6.5 (20.5*)

4 Iron -  :titelist-small: T200 4 Iron Graphite Design Tour AD IZ X Hybrid Shaft

Irons 5-PW:  :titelist-small: T100-S 5 - GW KBS Tour 130 X

Gap/Sand Wedge:  :titelist-small: Vokey SM6 49*  SM8 54* 

Lob Wedge:  image.png.3c6db1120d888f669e07d4a8f890b3f1.pngJaws 5 Wedge 58* DG Tour Issue Stiff

Putter:   :scotty-small: Phantom 5.5 34"      Pro Platinum Newport 2 35"      Taylormade Tour Black Spider 34"

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 4/11/2021 at 7:29 AM, Bfriedman121 said:

Thank you for taking the time to do this review!  I had a few questions:

How did you feel this putting method affected your speed/distance control?   

 

I have heard the Arm-Lock AL-2 Converter grip claims to "add 2-3 degrees of loft" negating any loft loss from the arm lock method.  Did you find this to be true?

This putting method helped with my speed control quite a bit actually, I feel like it made me more consistent as far as speed is concerned.

I cannot confirm or deny on if it actually added more loft, but what I can say is that when you putt with the ball lined up with your front foot you are making contact with the ball at the start of you upswing. That could be the reason for their claims.

Irons: :mizuno-small: MP-33, Stiff, 3-pw

Hybrid: :taylormade-small: Sim2 Max Rescue, Regular Flex

Driver: :taylormade-small: Sim2 Max D, Regular Flex, 10.5 loft

Righty

Murfreesboro, Tennessee

30 handicap🦽

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 4/11/2021 at 8:04 AM, juspoole said:

I've been considering trying something new for about a year and a half now.  I am a fairly good putter in terms of speed control, green reading and start line, but have developed a tremor that comes into account from time to time and screws those things up.  When this happens during a round, I tend to try different grips to offset it.  I can hit the practice green for an hour and it won't happen, but then it might pop up again out of no where.  

This could be the solution for me to have some more confidence on the greens.

This could be a very good thing to try out if you have tremors from time to time, especially if the tremors are in your right hand (lefty). I believe that the more movements you can limit in your putting stroke makes for a more consistent and repeatable stroke.

Irons: :mizuno-small: MP-33, Stiff, 3-pw

Hybrid: :taylormade-small: Sim2 Max Rescue, Regular Flex

Driver: :taylormade-small: Sim2 Max D, Regular Flex, 10.5 loft

Righty

Murfreesboro, Tennessee

30 handicap🦽

Link to comment
Share on other sites

7 hours ago, Golfinggal said:

I don't think this putting style should be legal for competitive golf. The club is once again being anchored to part of your body other than your hands. I feel strongly that clubs are meant to be controlled by the players hands and that's it. 

I disagree.

The armlock method of putting is not "bracing" or "anchoring" to any part of the body. All that is changing is an internal rotation of the lead arm wrist to stabilize club movement. I firmly believe that this method is 100% "controlled by the players hands".

If you would like to explain more on why you think it should be illegal, I'm all ears.

Irons: :mizuno-small: MP-33, Stiff, 3-pw

Hybrid: :taylormade-small: Sim2 Max Rescue, Regular Flex

Driver: :taylormade-small: Sim2 Max D, Regular Flex, 10.5 loft

Righty

Murfreesboro, Tennessee

30 handicap🦽

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I don't think this putting style should be legal for competitive golf. The club is once again being anchored to part of your body other than your hands. I feel strongly that clubs are meant to be controlled by the players hands and that's it. 

The definition of anchored used by the ruling body’s is about anchoring the club to a pivot point like the belly or chest. The pivot point for armlock is the shoulder.

Even using a conventional Putters the hands don’t have to control the stroke;
Many players control the putter with their shoulders.

Driver:  :ping-small: G400 Max 9* w/ KBS Tour Driven
Fairway: :titelist-small: TS3 15*  w/Project X Hzardous Smoke
Hybrids:  :titelist-small: 915H 21* w/KBS Tour Graphite Hybrid Prototype
                :titelist-small: 915H  24*  w/KBS Tour Graphite Hybrid Prototype        
Irons:      :honma:TR20V 6-11 w/Vizard TR20-85 Graphite
Wedge:  :titleist-small: 54/12D, 60/8M w/:Accra iWedge 90 Graphite
Putter:   :taylormade-small:TM-180

Testing:   SPGC_logo.jpg

Backups:  :odyssey-small: Milled Collection RSX 2, :seemore-small: mFGP2, :cameron-small: Futura 5W

Member:  MGS Hitsquad since 2017697979773_DSCN2368(Custom).JPG.a1a25f5e430d9eebae93c5d652cbd4b9.JPG

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

51 minutes ago, cnosil said:


The definition of anchored used by the ruling body’s is about anchoring the club to a pivot point like the belly or chest. The pivot point for armlock is the shoulder.

Even using a conventional Putters the hands don’t have to control the stroke;
Many players control the putter with their shoulders.

That is what I was trying to say, but that sounds much better.🤣

Irons: :mizuno-small: MP-33, Stiff, 3-pw

Hybrid: :taylormade-small: Sim2 Max Rescue, Regular Flex

Driver: :taylormade-small: Sim2 Max D, Regular Flex, 10.5 loft

Righty

Murfreesboro, Tennessee

30 handicap🦽

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Restore formatting

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

  • Recently Browsing

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...