Matt Fitzpatrick used his cross-chip technology for the first time in the 2017 PGA Championship at Quail Hollow. He has since won the U.S. Open, prevailed in Port Town, added six more wins on the DP World Tour and played for the second (winning) Ryder Cup team.
We saw it again at last week's PGA Championship, with the British champion eighth place being his best title since winning the 2022 U.S. Open in Brookline.
That day, he expanded on why he turned to the crossing technique around the green at the Skechers Festival in Haram County and why it was great for the club’s golfers.
Basic knowledge
“I started using it for basic debris. I had problems when I broke my wrist too much, so I would take the club inside and the ball fell off my face and you wouldn't get the right flight or the right strike. So what I get is a short one without any rotations is too far. This is always the practice training I will use with Mike Walker and Pete Cowen.
They will use it to sync the body because, if you don't, you end up shaking it. So this makes me correctly chip the chip or it will get off the blow. The biggest thing I noticed is that it feels like there is a straight line all the way to the head of the club, so you always keep the radius the same. When I go with the normal grip force, the radius becomes very narrow, and the distance of the crosshand always remains the same and is an arc.
Ball position
“It obviously depends on the lens, and how you think about flying and how you manipulate it. Obviously the further you move it back the lower it will be, and the further you move forward the higher it will be. For me, I'm getting better and better at the left-hand low and I'm always happy with that, but I think it definitely feels like I've changed a lot now. I used it for the first time in the 2017 PGA competition. I practiced and practiced it, I missed the first place, I looked at my caddie and he was like, you've been practicing it, you can try it too.
Initially, I just started doing this with rough conditions because again, when you are in rough conditions you need speed and you need the right technique. If you bring the club inside, you will catch it more and there will be huge contradictions. So it forces me to stay in line with my shoulders effectively so that it can have better contact, which will be the square of the whole time and you will get better results.
Different flights
“I won't hit that many chips and run, but if I do, I will still cross over. I'm so used to crossing my hands that I feel a little awkward in the other way. If I really want to play, I know I can open it in large quantities while literally the same action.
I'm trying to actually build it to about 50 yards because I know it's really consistent and the flight and rotation are so consistent. Normal grip is much harder, and the good thing is that I use my body instead of just my wrist to control the distance. Time and again, it might have been easier traditionally if the ball was on my feet.
bunker
“This will be regular because you can't reach speed, so it's hard to turn the angle into sand. I will have a little wrist suit, but need more in the sand.
Rotating
“At first, these are trickier, but the more I do, I almost have some natural touch on it, where I can manipulate more things. First, it obviously feels very stiff, and now I mix things together will definitely feel more. Technically wise, I don't need to deal with it because it just happens due to grip. What to improve is getting used to different clubs and lies.
In full swing
“I used to use this technique in practice for pitching and half-shooting. It helps shorten my swing and keep everything in touch. ”
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