Anchor ban forces Aussie golfer Nick O’Hern to drive left handed, putt right handed

AUSTRALIAN golf’s most famous leftie Nick O’Hern is now putting right handed, with a short club. And he wishes he’d done it years ago as he prepares for the Australian Open.

Australia's Nick O'Hern plays both right and left-handed

GOLF can be a game of extremes: extreme doubt, extreme frustration and extreme curse words.

So in that context it makes sense that when Nick O’Hern couldn’t use a long left-handed putter anymore, he switched to the extreme opposite.

Australian golf’s most famous leftie is now putting right handed, with a short club. And he wishes he’d done it years ago.

Australia's Nick O'Hern plays both right and left-handed. Picture: Brett Costello

“I am getting a few strange looks,” O’Hern says.

“People are going: “wasn’t he using a long left? Now he’s got a short right? What’s going on?”.”

O’Hern will still play left-handed when he tees off in the Australian Open at Royal Sydney on Thursday, but turn around when he makes the green.

The switch-putting is the result of the ban on anchored putting, which came into effect in January this year. Effectively players are no longer allowed to rest a putter against their belly, chest, chin or anything else.

O’Hern had used a broomstick putter for his whole career, and with distinction. He won over $10 million and the 45-year-old was the first player to beat Tiger Woods in the World Golf Championship matchplay twice, in 2005 and 2007.

“I have been experimenting the last eight months or so,” O’Hern said.

“When they brought the ban in I never really liked unanchoring. I remembered my coach years ago said you should be putting right handed anyway, because you are right handed.

“I write with my right hand, throw with my right. But everything I do with two hands I do with my left. I bat left but bowl right.

O'Hern putts right-handed in preparation for the Australian Open. Picture: Brett Costello

“So I had Ping make me up a double sided putter and until about two weeks I was doing the longer putts left handed and the shorter ones right handed. It was getting a bit confusing so I thought: “screw it, I will go fully right handed”.”

O’Hern, who retired last year from full-time pro golf, putted right handed for the first time in a tournament, in the NSW Open.

“I wish I’d have done this a few years ago,” he said.

“This week I felt like I putted really nice. The shorter putts that I’d been struggling with in the last few years of my career, they felt good this week.”

There have been some weird and wonderful styles but not many professionals have switch-putted. Notah Begay won tournaments putting both left and right, switching hands depending on which way the ball would break. Blaine McAllister also played right and putted left.

Sam Snead even used a front-on side-saddle stance when putting; a tactic rising star Bryson DeChambeau is reportedly also considering.

O'Hern did putt left-handed before the anchor ban came in to play

Interestingly, though, O’Hern may have started a trend in Australia.

Fellow Aussie veteran Peter O’Malley - a rightie - is searching for a left-handed putter and plans to also switch.

“I have been having trouble with my short putts and last week in a pro-am I just started putting with the back of my putter and the stroke actually feels quite comfortable,” O’Malley said.

“I don’t have a putter that I feel comfortable with just yet. I don’t know what it is. Sometimes you can get over a short putt right handed and not feel very comfortable. Then I turn around and hit it left handed and not have any anxiety.

“It is working for Nick. I am sure some sports psychologist would critique the ears off me but yeah, mate, in this game you do whatever works.”

Originally published as Anchor ban forces Aussie golfer Nick O’Hern to drive left handed, putt right handed