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I became so frustrated with the yips using a traditional grip that I decided to completely reevaluate my relationship with the putter. I tried the claw, the belly putter and the long putter to cure the yips, and each one seemed to be an improvement for awhile, but none of them solved my key problem of involuntary hand and wrist movement. So I started anew with the question of how best to roll the ball to the hole in the most consistent manner. I wanted stability of the hands and wrists, especially when I am nervous over a putt and involuntarily clamp down on the club. I tried to practice the dead hands technique that the top pros teach, but my hands arent dead – they are alive and well and each has a little mind of its own when Im trying to make a 3-foot putt. I eventually realized that the only tool I have to control involuntary movement in the left hand is not the putter shaft – but the right hand, and vise versa. When I press my palms together, with both arms pressing directly toward each other, it is difficult for either hand or wrist to move on its own. In this position I can lock up and stabilize the hands and wrists, and even involuntary movement in the arms, and have a putting motion that is strictly a shoulder or spinal rotation. I call this new approach the Wishbone Method. The initial problem with using the Wishbone Method was the fact that there is simply not enough room on a traditional putter grip to have the hands in my preferred position. This led me to develop the Wishbone Grip. I started with molding material on the putter shaft and continued to shape it until I found the perfect fit for my hands using the Wishbone Method. I developed the Wishbone Grip prototype, practiced with it and began using it on the course. I putted my way through a few panic attacks and the ball went in the hole. My confidence began to return. Gradually the panic attacks became infrequent, and now they are gone entirely. A teaching pro recently analyzed my putting stroke and said it was textbook. His laser measuring device showed that my stroke is now nearly equivalent to that of a European tour professional. With the limited time I have to practice, I dont believe I could not have made this progress without the Wishbone Grip. I still tense up over the short putts, and my grip invariably gets tighter. But with the Wishbone Method, the tightness does not come in the small muscles of the hands and fingers but in the pectoral muscles. This tightening is now stabilizing rather than destabilizing, because it firms up the static position of the arms and shoulders. I believe this grip can help anyone develop an excellent putting stroke, and this in itself will reduce anxiety. At least it did for me. An added benefit of the Wishbone Method is the natural alignment of the shoulders. With a traditional putting stance it is difficult to determine if the shoulders are lined up properly (which is the reason for a lot of missed putts). Using the Wishbone Method, if the arms are extended equally and the hands are placed in the middle of the stance, the shoulders must be aligned along the aim line – it is literally impossible for them not to be. After having prototypes of the grip made, I presented my grip and theories to researchers in the Sports Medicine Department at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota. This team of doctors has studied the yips for several years and was impressed with my theory and the resulting improvement experienced with the Wishbone Grip as a cure for the yips. See the quote from Dr. Aynsley Smith in the June, 2005 issue of Esquire under News Articles. The Wishbone Grip has dramatically decreased my anxiety over short putts. It has given me the ability make a smooth, steady, and consistent stroke and to inhibit involuntary movement of the hands and wrists, resulting in improved control of the putter–head. My speed on all length putts has improved because of my consistency in hitting the ball with the sweet spot of the blade. I now approach putts with the confidence that they will go in the hole, rather than with dread and horror. My putting problems have been solved. I believe the Wishbone Grip will do the same for you.

 

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