Golf fans react to shock Scottie Scheffler update during first round of Tiger Woods event

Scottie Scheffler might have sorted out his putting woes with seven official titles on the PGA Tour this season but the runaway World No.1 was seen using a new claw grip during the first round of Tiger Woods' Hero World Challenge. 

Scheffler, 28, debuted his new putting style but only on a mix of short and mid-range putts during Thursday's first round at Albany in The Bahamas.

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He maintained his standard putting stroke on both mid and long-range putts. 

Scheffler went on to post a 5-under 67 to lie three shots off the early pace set by Cameron Young.

While it was a solid opening round for Scheffler, he did rank 10th in the 20-man field on day one for Strokes-Gained Putting (-0.018). 

Whether the claw grip - or saw grip as it's also called - on short putts is something Scheffler will continue to adopt this week and during the 2025 PGA Tour season remains to be seen.

But either way the update is a shock to a number of PGA Tour fans given Scheffler had appeared to have sorted out his putting woes this season.

The decision to experiment with a saw grip was certainly a shock to NBC host Dan Hicks in the commentary booth during the first round.

After Scheffler missed a 10-footer for birdie on the 10th, Hicks said: "Why in the world would you change putting grip after the season he's had?'

Former PGA Tour pro and NBC analyst Smylie Kaufman replied: "It's definitely debatable, we'll have to see if he has it for four straight days."

Scroll below to see Scheffler using the claw grip during the first round of the 2024 Hero World Challenge...

Given this week's 20-man Hero World Challenge is not an official PGA Tour event, it's probably not the worst time for Scheffler to play around with a new putter grip ahead of the 2025 season. 

"I would say I'm always looking for ways to improve and I felt like this was something that we had looked at last year when Phil [Kenyon] and I first started working together, but it was really our first time working together and it's something that's different than what I've done in the past," said Scheffler on using a claw grip for the first time at the Hero World Challenge.

"You know, this year I had thought about it from time to time and it was something that we had just said let's table that for the end of the season, take a look at it. 

"I took a look at it this off-season and figured this is a good week to try stuff just because you can practice and practice and do all the stuff at home, but there's just something different about being in competition. I really enjoyed the way it felt, I felt like I'm seeing some improvements in my stroke."

Scheffler also discussed when he is most likely to still use a conventional grip at the moment. 

"Typically the further I am away from the hole I'd say the more likely I am to use the conventional grip because, like I said, I feel like my speed has always been extremely good, especially from long range," said Scheffler.

"I think I've always been a really, really good lag putter. That's an area where I don't think I would see much improvement with the grip. The closer I get to the hole, kind of that inside 15-foot range, I think that's where I'm seeing a lot of the benefits of it."

Scheffler teamed up with putting guru Phil Kenyon towards the end of the 2023 season and it appeared to pay dividends.

The American ranked a lowly 162nd (-0.301) for Strokes-Gained Putting on the PGA Tour in 2023.

But he dramatically improved on that statistic on the PGA Tour this season by progressing to 77th (0.095).

Scheffler also led the PGA Tour's Putting Average statistic for 2024 on 1.680.

One interesting stat on the greens this season, however, was that Scheffler ranked 139th in putts made from inside of 10 feet.

That likely explains why Scheffler still isn't particularly impressed with his putting as he enters 2025. 

What is a claw / saw putting grip?

The Claw putting grip helps to align the upper wrist with the putter to ensure there is minimal wrist motion.

The goal behind the claw grip is to distribute the pressure much more evenly in the hands.

It's a perfect putting stroke if players typically experience - dare we say it - the dreaded yips on short putts. 

Larger putting grips such as SuperStroke typically work best for a claw or saw putting grip. 

It was actually at Tiger Woods' Hero World Challenge in 2023 where Scheffler changed his Scotty Cameron putter to a custom Logan Olson putter.

He went on to win the tournament that week and then kept the Logan Olson in his bag for the first few tournaments of the 2024 PGA Tour season. 

But Scheffler soon replaced it for a mallet-style TaylorMade Spider Tour X L-Neck putter, and that appeared to be the difference maker.

His fellow TaylorMade staff player Rory McIlroy mentioned Scheffler should probably take a closer look at mallet putters such as his own Spider Tour X when he was going through a difficult spell with blade putters. 

Only McIlroy probably ended up wishing he had kept his mouth shut as Scheffler went on to win seven official titles on the PGA Tour in 2024, including a second Masters title in three years.

Scheffler deservedly went on to be crowned FedEx Cup champion for the first time in his career.

He also won an Olympic gold medal for the first time over the summer in Paris, albeit that victory does not count as an official PGA Tour title. 

Scheffler remains with his TaylorMade Spider Tour X putter in his bag at the moment. 

This week's Hero World Challenge is a 20-man limited field event, and so it does not count as an official PGA Tour title. 

Keep up to speed with live scores here. 

Woods, 48 was not able to participate this week as he continues to recover from a recent back surgery.

That was the sixth back surgery of Woods' injury-plagued career. 

Woods is on site though and he will present the trophy to the winner on Sunday. 

Learn more about Scottie's putter here: