Golf decisions
Putting Grip Styles: Conventional, Cross-Handed and Claw
A putting grip changes how your hands hold the handle. Compare the arrangement clearly, then observe comfort, starting direction and pace separately rather than choosing from one holed putt.
Competitive Play · Updated October 24, 2026
Three holds, one fair comparison
Original teaching comparison
Three holds, one fair comparisonConventional / reverse overlap
Lead hand above trail hand; the common reverse-overlap arrangement extends the lead index finger across the fingers of the trail hand.
Mirror lead and trail for a left-handed golfer. Record the actual variation used.
Lead-hand-low / cross-handed
The lead hand sits below the trail hand on the handle.
This changes hand order. It does not require changing putter, target and practice distance at the same time.
Claw
The lead hand holds the upper handle while the trail hand supports it with a thumb-and-finger arrangement rather than the conventional wrap.
Claw variants differ; describe where the trail fingers sit instead of treating every version as identical.
Trial card
Grip: __. Distance: __. Comfort: __. Start left/on line/right: __. Finish short/past: __.
Use the same putter and comparable putts. Leave the observations blank until a real trial takes place.
Original comparison and blank trial record based on published hand-placement descriptions. No hands-on grip test, player trial, cure claim or measured ranking was performed.
The short version
- Conventional puts the trail hand below the lead; lead-hand-low reverses that order.
- Claw describes a different trail-hand hold, with several variations.
- A grip style is not a promised cure or a substitute for observing the stroke.
Know what the name changes
Lead means the hand on the target side in your playing stance. Conventional and lead-hand-low reverse the vertical hand order. Claw changes how the trail hand contacts the handle. Those are useful descriptions, but each can have variations in finger placement and pressure.
The rubber putter-grip's shape or diameter is a separate equipment characteristic. A photograph of an unusual putter head does not establish the player's hand method, and an anchoring-rule question requires more than the name of the hold. Keep those different decisions separate.
Observe start line and pace separately
Use a safe practice green and a repeatable target. Choose comparable distances and enough room to observe where the ball finishes. Note whether the ball starts on the intended line before judging whether the read was correct. A putt can start off line and still fall, or start correctly and miss because the pace or read differed.
Keep the putter, target and basic conditions consistent during a comparison. Rotate which grip you try first on a later session to reduce the influence of simply becoming familiar with that putt. This is a practical observation method, not a controlled study or a statistical claim that a fixed number of putts proves superiority.
Choose a change you can repeat comfortably
Record comfort alongside the two ball outcomes. A grip that feels manageable on a short putt may need more practice at longer distances; one successful attempt is not evidence that pace control improved generally. Keep actual outcomes instead of filling the record with expected benefits.
SuperStroke's article provides the hand-placement descriptions used here. Its commercial context does not supply independent evidence that a style cures a movement problem. If a hold is painful or a persistent difficulty needs investigation, stop forcing it and discuss the problem with an appropriate instructor or clinician. The next step is an observed trial, not a guaranteed best grip.
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Written primary-source material checked October 24, 2026. Examples and diagrams are original educational illustrations.
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- What it covers
- Source-based educational guide; fictional cases and conceptual diagrams are labeled. No hands-on player study, professional review or measured fitting is claimed. Written source text checked 2026-10-24.
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What this page cannot tell you
- The illustrations are hypothetical. No individual swing or fitting assessment, physical test or measured improvement is reported.