MESA, Ariz. — The game matches the person. Truly incredible.
"I’m out to win a trophy,” Valley golfer Anthony Griggs said. "If you don’t watch it, I’m going to win it."
Griggs takes that motto to heart, mind, bag and golf club.
"I play wherever you want to play from, and I will shoot phenomenal scores," Griggs said.
One club. One putter. That's right, he only uses a putter.
"A lot of golfers today are divided," Griggs said. "They're looking at the club, looking at themselves, they don't know exactly what to look at. Me, I believe in the power one. I got to look at myself, and when I grabbed this putter, it's got to be one with me."
We first introduced you to Anthony and his caddie and sometimes manager Larry Vinson in the summer of 2020. Anthony had just made national golf headlines for winning a tournament using only a putter. He posted a round of 84 to capture his first tournament win on the Golfweek Amateur Tour at Whirlwind Golf Club at Wild Horse Pass in Chandler.
When he first started playing with just a putter, Griggs played with a Scotty Cameron putter, but he snapped it while preparing for a tournament. He then went to a nearby Goodwill and the only putter in the bin was an old Wilson Staff putter. He bought it for $2.99. He then used the long club to win his first tournament.
It’s been nearly eight years since that Goodwill purchase, and that putter can still make every shot and so can Anthony. His drives normally land between 200-250 yards away. He can hit a flop shot and get out of the bunker, all with only a putter.
"(It's) a little dented up, but it’s the same putter," Griggs said. "Wherever I want to go, I can put the ball there."
And the wins keep racking up – he now has nine total.
"The first one was the big one," Griggs said. "The second one everybody thought it was a fluke. The third one — they (people) were like, 'Oh, he can play.'"
Anthony still hears the rude comments from time to time. Some think he’s mocking the game. But that's only until they see him play.
"I get respect even if you don’t want to give it to me," Griggs said.
"(He's) just a magician with that one putter," Bryan Grenier, the Assistant Head Pro at Sunland Springs Golf Club, said.
Griggs learned to play golf while serving in the military. Switching to playing with a only putter was a way to challenge his mind after getting out.
"It’s inspiring really,” Grenier said. "You hit a bad shot and move on. I watch him do it."
"My goal is to shoot in the 60s,” Griggs said. "When you first met me, I was shooting 90s and 80s. Now I’m shooting consistently in the 70s. I’m 64-years-old and I’m turning 65 in May. My goal is to shoot my age."
There is still one thing that hasn’t changed since Griggs switched to using just a putter when he golfs. He still has a surprising area of his game that he needs to work on.
“I have to teach him how to putt,” Vinson said while laughing. “That's how he’s going to improve his game.”
Arizona sports
The city of Phoenix is home to five major professional sports league teams; The NFL's Arizona Cardinals, NBA's Phoenix Suns, WNBA’s Phoenix Mercury, MLB's Arizona Diamondbacks and NHL's Arizona Coyotes.
The Cardinals have made State Farm Stadium in Glendale their home turf and the Footprint Center in downtown Phoenix is home to both the Suns and the Mercury. The Indoor Football League’s Arizona Rattlers play at Desert Diamond Arena in Glendale. The Coyotes play at Mullett Arena on ASU's Tempe campus.
Phoenix also has a soccer team with the USL's Phoenix Rising FC, who play at Phoenix Rising FC Stadium in Phoenix.
The Valley hosts multiple major sporting events on a yearly basis, including college football's Fiesta Bowl and Guaranteed Rate Bowl; the PGA Tour’s highest-attended event, the WM Phoenix Open; NASCAR events each spring and fall, including Championship Weekend in November; and Cactus League Spring Training for 15 Major League Baseball franchises.
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