Patrick Cantlay's putter adjustments led to record-setting week

Patrick Cantlay made every important putt on the final holes of the BMW Championship. It’s impressive to note the Californian had the highest Strokes Gained: Putting (+14.6 in regulation) than anyone in the statistic’s history (since 2004). It’s even more impressive to point out he poured in 33 feet, 6 inches of putts during his six-hole playoff with Bryson DeChambeau.

And what of the magician’s wand, the one he used to pour in the BMW Championship-winning 20-footer — the putter Cantley himself called “the magic one.” Well, Cantlay made a few notable adjustments to the flatstick in recent works.

Historically a blade putter user, Cantlay has been in a Scotty Cameron Phantom X 5 tour prototype since April’s Zurich Classic of New Orleans. The five-time PGA TOUR winner was seeking a putter more conducive to a straight back-straight through stroke. In June, Cantlay won the Memorial Tournament presented by Workday with the mid-mallet X 5 pictured below. It featured a double-bend shaft and no sight-line.

However, Cantlay switched to a Phantom X5 with a sight line following the second round of last week’s THE NORTHERN TRUST. He also began drawing a line on his Titleist Pro V1x golf ball to help his alignment on short putts.

“I have been working with the guys over at Scotty Cameron all year since I got into this new putter,” Cantlay said following his round. “(I) finally have one that feels absolutely perfect, and I can’t thank those guys over at Scotty Cameron – Paul Vizanko and Jose [Hernandez] – enough. They just sent me a ton of putters, and I got the magic one now.”

Cantlay also began drawing a line on the side of his ball to help with alignment on some short putts.

“That’s new, and I use it on shorter putts if they don't have very much break,” Cantlay said Sunday. “I thought it just maybe got me a little more specific on the really straight short putts, and I don’t use it on very many putts, but I think it’s helping a little bit on three-to-five footers.”

Additionally, Cantlay had his SuperStroke Traxion Flatso 1.0 putter grip readjusted by independent TOUR rep Scott Garrison. Garrison said Cantlay came to his truck early in the week saying he wasn’t comfortable with how the flatstick felt in his hands.

He’s certainly comfortable now.