Jason Palmer achieved worldwide notoriety upon securing a rookie season on The European Tour, owing to his unique one-handed chipping style, but the Englishman wants to prove he is not just a novelty act and is ready to take his opportunity among the golfing elite with two hands.
As a late starter to the game, with an unorthodox swing and an inimitable short game technique, the 30 year old certainly breaks the mould in the highest echelons of the professional game.
Far from being uncomfortable in his skin as he joins a world of metronomic swings and technique gurus, however, Palmer is relishing the opportunity to prove that he belongs among the biggest names in world golf.
Armed with the mantra that the score is the only thing that matters in golf, the affable Leicester native is sure to prove a popular character in the environs of the top tier, even if his game may well divide opinions.
“I’m not planning on making massive changes,” said the Challenge Tour graduate, who earned his maiden title on the second tier at The Foshan Open in October. “My swing is very different and my style is very unique. I don’t think I can ever be robotic or orthodox, as it were.
“The way I play, I’m used to it now and I’ve been doing it ever since I picked up a golf club at 14, so to change that would be stupid and would have a detrimental effect on my game.
“I am planning on seeing a coach and working on a few things, just to make little improvements, because I’m at a stage now where if I can make small improvements it can make a massive difference
“On the whole though, I’m just trying to stick to what I’m doing because it’s obviously working and hopefully it will carry on.
“It’s going to be different surroundings on The European Tour, but I’ve got to try not to be star-struck and focus on my own game. At the end of the day it’s all about shooting the right numbers and if you can average around 69 or 70 in a given week you’ll probably pick up some good results.”
As he begins his maiden sojourn on The European Tour at the age of 30, Palmer is fully aware that he has taken a very different path to the top than many of his peers.
It was only at the age of 14, when many young golfers are already battling it out in some of the biggest junior amateur events in the world, when he first picked up a golf club before taking membership at a local municipal course, where membership cost £75 a year.
As his handicap tumbled, Palmer began to consider a career in the game and when he did, it was a long and tough battle through the satellite circuits and then the Challenge Tour until he finally earned the right to play among the best players in the world.
All of those things, however, are likely to be forgotten once the cameras get their first look at his chipping technique, which involves using only his right hand from 40 yards and in, as well as from tight greenside bunkers.
He is aware that the novelty of his unique style is likely to draw some crowds, with many likely to be waiting for him to miss greens and utilise his one-handed routine, but he is not worried about the attention one bit and insists he will enjoy it and feed off it.
“I guess I’m ready for the attention,” he said. “It’s funny because when I have good weeks, I tend to hit a lot of greens and maybe only chip once or twice in a round, so when I’m playing good golf you won’t see a lot of that, but when I’m playing badly you’ll see quite a lot of it.
“I still enjoy missing greens and trying to get up and down with one hand. I enjoy that aspect of the game, whereas if I was doing it with two hands I’d be a nervous wreck.
“I’m not sure if other professionals have had similar problems to me and then worried about looking foolish if they went one-handed. I do hit the odd bad chip, but so does everybody. I just know that method is way more effective than the two-handed method, so it’s still an absolute no-brainer for me
“My life’s been turned upside down since getting my card. It’s amazing how everything changes and suddenly there’s interest in what I’m doing. Essentially though, I haven’t changed at all. I’m still just going about my business in the way that I normally do, but it’s nice that people are interested now in what I do, it’s refreshing.
“Hopefully I can feed off it. I’d love it if the fans enjoy what I’m doing and like the way I play. I think it’s nice when you see someone with a peculiar golf swing and an unorthodox method but ultimately it’s still just about getting the job done
“I’m just thrilled at having the chance to get out there. It’s much more of an arena on The European Tour and I hope that will just focus my mind a bit more and motivate me
“I’ve never really had massive galleries watching. You can feed off them, it’s great when you hit good shots and you hear applause, but on the flipside it’s hard to hear the groans when you miss a short putt. It’s very much going to be about feeding off the good stuff, but also block out the negative stuff
“It’s very easy to coach one method and stick with that, but there is so much to golf and there are so many ways to go about playing golf that I don’t think you can criticise one method. There have been so many unique swings down the years that have proved very effective and hopefully I can prove to be another one of those.”
