During a recent trip to The Masters this year, I noticed something that Scottie Scheffler was using during his warm-up sessions — and it was a little surprising, to be honest.
Despite being the world's best golfers and top-ranked player, Scheffler regularly uses a grip trainer (like PureOne's The PureGrip) before each round. This isn't just a quirky pre-round ritual either, but actually a fundamental practice that separates great players from good ones.
Understanding Scottie Scheffler's Grip Obsession
At this year's Arnold Palmer Invitational, Scheffler was asked about his obsession with monitoring his grip. His answer was revealing.
"The reason I monitor my grip so closely is because, as my body starts to feel different over the ball, my grip is usually the first thing to change to kind of adjust to what my body's doing that day," Scheffler said.
Let that sink in for a moment.
The best player in the world, a 2-time Masters champion and one of the most consistent ball-strikers we've seen in years, is constantly checking his grip. Not his swing plane. Not his weight shift. His grip!
Why? Because he understands something every amateur player should know: The grip is where everything begins.
Why is the Golf Grip so Important?
The grip is golf's version of a house foundation. You can build the most beautiful structure in the world, but if the foundation is crooked, the whole thing eventually collapses.
What's fascinating about Scheffler's approach is how he views grip work as preparation rather than repair.
"When I show up to the tournament, what I have starting on Tuesday, Wednesday is what I'm going to have coming into the tournament and Sunday," he explained. "It will be pretty rare for the light bulb to just go off on Wednesday afternoon."
This is exactly what every amateur golfer needs to understand in order to see improvements. You can't just wait until you're playing poorly to check your fundamentals, so make grip checks a part of your regular practice routine.
For the average golfer, grip issues are even more critical than for pros. Why? When Scheffler makes a minor grip adjustment, his incredible body awareness and thousands of practice hours help him compensate. When a mid-handicapper makes the same small grip change, it can send the ball two fairways over.
How to effectively use a golf grip trainer
Before every practice session, take five minutes to place your hands on PureOne's PureGrip. This will help you feel the correct pressure points — like where the club should sit in your fingers rather than your palms, and how the "V's" between your thumbs and forefingers should point.
Then make 10-15 slow-motion swings, and just focus on maintaining that exact grip pressure and position. Don't worry about hitting balls yet.
Finally, hit a few balls while concentrating solely on keeping that grip sensation. Don't worry about distance or even direction at first. Just get the feel.
My favorite thing about this routine is how quickly it can help improve your golf game — even for the most average player. I've even seen 20-handicappers drop 3-4 strokes in a month just by stabilizing their grip.
Remember what Scheffler said about his body feeling different from day to day? That happens to all of us. Sometimes you feel tight, sometimes loose. Sometimes your hands are cold, sometimes they're sweaty. But using a grip trainer reprograms your hands and mind before ever taking a golf swing, helping you better control those variables.
If the best player in the world is checking his grip constantly, shouldn't you be doing the same? Absolutely! In my experience, it's the fastest path to better golf — and is the one fundamental that never goes out of style.
Brendon Elliott is an award-winning PGA Professional and golf coach, having earned 25+ Prestigious Industry Awards in his career. As a freelance writer, his golf instruction articles have also been published by PGA.com, PGA Magazine, Golf.com, and GolfWRX. You can discover more about Elliott on his website.
