[PHOTO: David Cannon]
Something was amiss earlier this year with Scottie Scheffler’s driver, and TaylorMade tour rep Adrian Rietveld could tell additional discussions were required to get to the bottom of the problem.
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The pyramid of influence generally starts with distance, forgiveness and appearance for most golfers – but Scheffler isn’t most golfers. The grip is an extension of Scheffler’s body, and if something feels off, there’s a good chance the club won’t make the cut. This is where it all starts for the now four-time major winner after claiming the Open Championship title when he’s vetting a new club.
“I’d give him a club and I can hear him saying, ‘This grip is already something I wanna change immediately,'” Rietveld told our American counterparts at Golf Digest. “We’re then sitting at lunch, and I walk over to him with the same club and ask him to explain to me why he didn’t like the grip. He’ll break it down, and he’ll go, ‘This is what I feel in my thumb.'”
In Scheffler’s eyes, not all grips feel the same. For starters, Scheffler’s grip build might be one of the most complex on tour, with six double-sided tape wraps crammed underneath a standard ribbed Golf Pride Tour Velvet grip.
It’s not just the driver in which Scheffler gets particular about his grips. As Rietveld revealed, it takes the “better part of three months” to get a set of irons dialled in to Scheffler’s specifications. It could be debated that the grip is the most difficult part to get just right.
“He puts in the work to be ready to put something in the bag,” he said. “People don’t know that. When I send him irons, I’m sending them with 30 grips. I’m sending the built set of iron and a box of 30 grips. Now he might use three of those, right? He might use 10 of those. What’s happening under the hood is a guy who is very much making sure he has a perfect set of tools.”
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But nailing the tape wraps is just one part of the grip equation. Once the grip is installed and receives the green light from Scheffler, it remains on the club for the duration, giving it the feel of a well-worn pair of jeans. Replacing the handle every six weeks to two months – something his peers do with regularity – isn’t on the table.
“He’s never approached me or the tour truck and asked us to change his grips,” Rietveld said. “Adam Scott would get his grips changed, right? Every couple of weeks. He’d just go, ‘Can you do my grips?’ Yeah, and you stick new grips on the golf club.
“[Scottie’s] never had his grips changed. The driver he used at the PGA had a grip that was absolutely worn down. His hands melt into that club, man. Like a glove.”
Proper hand placement is paramount for Scheffler, to the point that he’d rather have a grip that places his hands exactly where they’re supposed to go than reap the benefits of more tack from a fresh grip.
In some ways, sticking with the same set of grips keeps the mojo alive when Scheffler’s on a run of hot form. And he’s been on plenty of them recently. If the grip works, don’t fix it.
