Will Zalatoris needs to go see Bob Rotella immediately. It’s all in his head.

[Golfnutgalen]

Zalatoris might have putted well for a brief period, but his seasonal rankings are still pretty crappy. To be honest though with his stroke I'm surprised he's even ranked as high as he has been. 

 

2021: 122nd

2022: 103rd

2023: 137th

 

For comparison Vijay Singh won 9 times in 2004 with similar stats. 129th in SGP that season.

 

 

[ac6]

1 minute ago, Golfnutgalen said:

Zalatoris might have putted well for a brief period, but his seasonal rankings are still pretty crappy. To be honest though with his stroke I'm surprised he's even ranked as high as he has been. 

 

2021: 122nd

2022: 103rd

2023: 137th

 

For comparison Vijay Singh won 9 times in 2004 with similar stats. 129th in SGP that season.

 

 

 

Putting is read, speed, and starting line. Zalatoris seems to be OK at the first two but his stroke lets him down for sure on the third. I'm sure there are guys who are relatively crappy at all three out there.

 

Besides that, SG:Putting is based on performance from similar ranges but doesn't tell you anything about how many times you get in that range, right? A guy can be dead last in make percentage inside 10 feet and therefore worst in SG:Putting but if he's hitting it close twice as often as average, he's still making more birdies. 

[gunmetal]

17 hours ago, otto6457 said:

It's so hard to watch him putt anything inside of five feet.  My stomach starts to churn just knowing what's about to happen.  I can't imagine what it's like inside of his head'

 

I know exactly what it's like. Not on tour, but Club Championships, State Am's, etc still make us feel all nervy and stuff. I used to HATE hitting it inside 5' or lagging to 2-3'. I knew it had no chance of going in and if it did it was dumb luck. It's a terrible feeling when you legit wanted to be 8' from the hole rather than 3'. Broomstick (not anchored) solved it for me. It brought other challenges though (speed control was very difficult) but I gained a boatload of confidence inside 5'. Then I went back to conventional (with left hand low) and the claw inside 10' and haven't looked back since. Been about 2 years that way. 

 

On the one hand I'm surprised at how persistent some of the tour pros are and how unwilling to change or try new things they can be. Spieth comes to mind. On the other hand I get that they want to stick with something that has given them so much success at a former time. There are just so many different shapes, weights, colors, styles of putter heads and putter grips that when combined with the different types of putting methods gives you an almost infinite array of ways to try and get the stupid little ball into its stupid little hole. 

 

I get the feeling if Will putted with his wedge inside 5' he'd see better results right now.

[golferdude54]

Dude walks too fast when he has the lead in a big tournament.
 

Byron Nelson said one of the keys to him winning so much in 1945 is to walk at the same pace between every shot no matter what, that way his heart rate and rhythm wouldn’t change.

 

On the back 9 of last year’s US Open, when Zalatoris birdied to have a 2 shot lead, he got excited and was literally sprinting to pick up his ball from the hole and to the next tee and the very next tee shot he block-sliced it right in deep rough and bogeyed. This is actually very common and overlooked.

[b.mattay]

15 hours ago, straightshot7 said:

you get “loopies” like this??

 

https://www.reddit.com/r/golf/comments/10m7fmh/the_putting_stroke_of_world_no7_will_zalatoris/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=mweb3x

Yes, the heavier the putter gets the more it resembles that for sure. 

[subrew]

20 hours ago, otto6457 said:

It's so hard to watch him putt anything inside of five feet.  My stomach starts to churn just knowing what's about to happen.  I can't imagine what it's like inside of his head'

 

He was on the No Laying Up Podcast a few months back.  He actually was defending his putting (while joking about) kind of in a way of like "hey, my stats are pretty good."

 

I think that's when the stats and trying to Moneyball your way around a problem starts to creep in.  When a simple putting stroke is that bad, nobody should be reaching for stats to defend it.  

[m d g]

7 hours ago, JungleJimbo said:

 

 

 

Did Paige think about her comment before posting? I don't think so...

[Trippels]

39 minutes ago, m d g said:

Did Paige think about her comment before posting? I don't think so...

She knows very well what she's doing and how to get engagement

[larrybud]

20 hours ago, b.mattay said:

His putting stroke is not a big deal. I get the exact same loopies inside 4-5 feet when I use a heavy putter. Doesn't affect much. 

 

He's 137th in SG putting this year. Last year he was 103rd. It's not good. He'd be at dominant as Rahm otherwise.

[larrybud]

6 hours ago, ac6 said:

Besides that, SG:Putting is based on performance from similar ranges but doesn't tell you anything about how many times you get in that range, right? A guy can be dead last in make percentage inside 10 feet and therefore worst in SG:Putting but if he's hitting it close twice as often as average, he's still making more birdies. 

Exactly the point, it's an objective measure of hit putting ability vs the field.  Imagine how many birds he'd make if he were top 20 or even top 50 on tour. His putting his holding him back big time.

[PostandGhost]

2 hours ago, m d g said:

Did Paige think about her comment before posting? I don't think so...

Maybe it's that long shaft that made her gag?

Edited March 25, 2023 by PostandGhost

[straightshot7]

4 hours ago, b.mattay said:

Yes, the heavier the putter gets the more it resembles that for sure. 

His putter isn’t even especially heavy

 

i use a 460+ gram odyssey 7 and don’t have any “loopies” like that.

 

he’s sucking the putter directly toward his body for no apparent reason and I’m sure he doesn’t want to do that.

 

that’s called the yips

 

it would probably be even more pronounced if he had a blade putter 

[Fairways_and_Greens]

Very insightful. What's not in anyone's head?

[nikeblades00]

I had no idea about the Scott Fawcett drama. I follow his IG once in awhile, he has some good strategy content. I didn't realize he's such an a******.

Also I feel dirty after watching the 2 clips of Wil putting. I wonder if he has tried side saddle or putting 1 handed. I would have to imagine he has tried everything. 

[phizzy30]

On 3/23/2023 at 3:42 PM, kmbean said:

I still think it’s cool Beavis made it to the pro tour.

Who plays the part of Butthead?

[phizzy30]

On 3/24/2023 at 11:12 AM, gunmetal said:

 

I know exactly what it's like. Not on tour, but Club Championships, State Am's, etc still make us feel all nervy and stuff. I used to HATE hitting it inside 5' or lagging to 2-3'. I knew it had no chance of going in and if it did it was dumb luck. It's a terrible feeling when you legit wanted to be 8' from the hole rather than 3'. Broomstick (not anchored) solved it for me. It brought other challenges though (speed control was very difficult) but I gained a boatload of confidence inside 5'. Then I went back to conventional (with left hand low) and the claw inside 10' and haven't looked back since. Been about 2 years that way. 

 

On the one hand I'm surprised at how persistent some of the tour pros are and how unwilling to change or try new things they can be. Spieth comes to mind. On the other hand I get that they want to stick with something that has given them so much success at a former time. There are just so many different shapes, weights, colors, styles of putter heads and putter grips that when combined with the different types of putting methods gives you an almost infinite array of ways to try and get the stupid little ball into its stupid little hole. 

 

I get the feeling if Will putted with his wedge inside 5' he'd see better results right now.

I'm with you.  I played at a D2 college and a few club championships back in my hey day and nerves are very real.  The worst is standing over any putt where you know the outcome could determine the winner/winning team.  There's been a few times where my stomach would churn to the point where I almost threw up.  As for Willy Z, he's one of the best ball strikers on tour and hits the ball a mile and that alone will keep him relative for years to come baring any more serious injuries.  Herniated discs is no joke as I have three in my back.  If he ever gets that putting stroke cleaned up, watch out, he's going to start winning on the regular.  Another guy who's long and an excellent ball striker but is mediocre in putting is Luke List.  He only has one win but could've had many more.  Difference between these two is that List is on the back end of his prime while Willy Z has yet to hit his IMO. 

Edited March 26, 2023 by phizzy30

[kmbean]

1 hour ago, phizzy30 said:

Who plays the part of Butthead?

 

[iBanesto]

The putting stroke equivalent of the former Charles Barkley swing.

 

 

[Ferguson]

23 hours ago, phizzy30 said:

I'm with you.  I played at a D2 college and a few club championships back in my hey day and nerves are very real.  The worst is standing over any putt where you know the outcome could determine the winner/winning team.  There's been a few times where my stomach would churn to the point where I almost threw up.  As for Willy Z, he's one of the best ball strikers on tour and hits the ball a mile and that alone will keep him relative for years to come baring any more serious injuries.  Herniated discs is no joke as I have three in my back.  If he ever gets that putting stroke cleaned up, watch out, he's going to start winning on the regular.  Another guy who's long and an excellent ball striker but is mediocre in putting is Luke List.  He only has one win but could've had many more.  Difference between these two is that List is on the back end of his prime while Willy Z has yet to hit his IMO. 

 

 

Willy Z in 30 years.

 

[J_Tizzle]

He is the one that I'd love to just see get a side saddle putter.  While I don't have the stabbies with a short putter like he does, my stroke with a short putter was pretty bad, and like everyone else has said, it was literally just one of those hit and hope inside 5ft.  Side saddle putting and getting my hands apart and focusing on a straight back/straight through path made it so much easier than putting on an arc.

[TroyB123]

On 3/24/2023 at 1:02 AM, straightshot7 said:

you get “loopies” like this??

 

https://www.reddit.com/r/golf/comments/10m7fmh/the_putting_stroke_of_world_no7_will_zalatoris/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=mweb3x

He's lucky he made contact there.  He's going to have a swing and a miss on a short putt one day.

[physasst]

I find that for me, anything inside of 5 feet I just need to do it quickly. Take one look, trust my first read, one practice and hit. I make a much higher percentage of them doing that than taking a long time trying to overread it. Guys I play with just shake their heads because I make a lot of them...I'm like, f it, Just hit it. Outside of 5 feet, I take a little more time. He's too in his own head....I recognize it, because that's how I am on a tee box. I'm a pretty good putter......I can hit anything within 270 yards off the tee EXCEPT the fairway....LOL

 

M

[gunmetal]

One of the guys in our group was a classic yipper. He now putts one handed and is arguably the best putter in our group. Crazy. But it speaks to my point about being willing to try new things. 

[WorkItBothWays]

I was watching a lot of the footage where his short stroke gets really loopy and he hits it so far out of the toe of the putter it's scary. Love watching him play so I feel for him.

[KNOWMOREDOUBLES]

NO...ZALATORIS!!

[kasting333]

He’s got the yips and fighting them. 
 

just look at what Bernhard Langer’s stroke look like as a young player

 

 

[deathbymuffin]

On 3/26/2023 at 4:03 AM, phizzy30 said:

I'm with you.  I played at a D2 college and a few club championships back in my hey day and nerves are very real.  The worst is standing over any putt where you know the outcome could determine the winner/winning team.  There's been a few times where my stomach would churn to the point where I almost threw up.  As for Willy Z, he's one of the best ball strikers on tour and hits the ball a mile and that alone will keep him relative for years to come baring any more serious injuries.  Herniated discs is no joke as I have three in my back.  If he ever gets that putting stroke cleaned up, watch out, he's going to start winning on the regular.  Another guy who's long and an excellent ball striker but is mediocre in putting is Luke List.  He only has one win but could've had many more.  Difference between these two is that List is on the back end of his prime while Willy Z has yet to hit his IMO. 

Yep.  I feel for Will Z.  I was a pretty good ball striker in my younger years.  I remember playing in the NorCal high school individual championship as a senior.  I had 18 GIRs and ended up shooting 78.  I three putted the first 6 holes to play my way out of contention from the start, none of the birdie putts outside of 25' or so.  I wish I could say it has improved over the years, but I had men's club tournament rounds with 42 and 43 putts respectively within the past two years.  Lol.

[jmcm87]

On 3/23/2023 at 9:50 PM, CLEVELAND59 said:

No, he's using a armlock putter and claw grip.  

Nothing says 'I got this' like a guy frozen over a 4'er with a claw grip. 

[smashdn]

This Bob has been more help to more people than Bob Rotella.

[gunmetal]

On 3/29/2023 at 1:39 PM, kasting333 said:

He’s got the yips and fighting them. 
 

just look at what Bernhard Langer’s stroke look like as a young player

 

 

 

 

Yeah pretty impressive to be able to reroute that little bullseye and keep the sucker square.