Natalie Gulbis using a HammY putter: here's some conversation about her putting techniques and results with a conventional putter and the HammY:
Unusual Putting Stroke
Gulbis began using a hammY brand putter in 2005. The club essentially has two grips. A right-handed player puts her left hand on the top grip and her right on the lower grip. She opens her stance wide, about 45 degrees to the left of the hole, and putts with her hands separated. Gulbis compared the putting technique to a hockey stance. “For me, it takes my hands out of my putting,” she said in 2005. Gulbis used the putting technique during her 2007 Evian Masters victory.
Conventional Technique
After several years of using the hammY, Gulbis returned to a standard putting stroke. In 2012, she told the Golf Channel that she employs a quick pre-shot routine, taking two practice swings and one look at the hole before putting. She’s careful to set the putter square to the target line before taking her stance. Gulbis plays the ball a bit forward in her stance, with her weight shifted slightly toward her front foot. She keeps her head down and uses a straight back-and-forth putting stroke. The only unusual aspect of her putting technique is her grip. Rather than overlapping her right pinkie on her left hand, she places her left index finger over her right hand and points the finger down the shaft. “It’s just something that’s helped me feel comfortable,” she says.
Putting Stats
In 2004, using a conventional putting technique, Gulbis was tied for 53rd on the LPGA Tour in putting, with 1.82 putts per green hit in regulation. In 2006, the first year after switching to the hammY, she lowered her average to 1.77, which was tied for 11th on the tour. In 2011, after she returned to a conventional grip and stance, she finished 33rd at 1.81.
