It's been a few years since Golf Pride has made any waves in the putter grip world. Its last launch was the impressive Pro Only line but the brand is back in 2024 with the Reverse Taper range. This aptly-named trio of grips is designed with a slimmer upper half and wider lower section to help anchor the top hand for stability and reduce tension in the lower hand for smooth acceleration through the stroke. Additionally, the Reverse Taper prevents micro-levers in the stroke, helping golfers to not flip their wrists at impact. We tested them in sunny Spain over a couple of rounds to really put them through their paces.
Our first impressions of this grip were of comfort and quality. Clearly much thought has gone into not only the specific shape of the grips, but the weight and texture too. The Reverse Taper grips are constructed using polyurethane to deliver the right softness, texture and weight (that doesn’t exceed 70g in any model) that enables more consistency and confidence in golfers’ hands. The feel is soft, yet responsive with unique circular-shaped traction elements to help each hand control speed.
The grips are eye catching and have visual cues in the form of red markings and textures to help with consistent finger placement regardless of how a player likes to grip their putter. Despite there being multiple sizes, the weight of each model maintains a balanced ‘sweet spot’ so golfers can sense the putter head throughout the stroke.
Reverse Taper is available in two sizes (medium and large) in three unique shapes. The Round will be universally popular for all hand gripping techniques and this was the one we gravitated towards. It features a traditionally round upper section that tapers into a wider lower section. The Pistol shape will help golfers lock in their upper hand - this could really help golfers that use the left-below-right grip gain a more comfortable hold. Then there’s the Flat shape which is slightly more oval in the upper section aimed at golfers that employ a palm-to-palm style of putting stroke.
In testing, it really didn’t take long to get used to holing putts with the Reverse Taper grip. In fact, its effect was immediate and in a positive way. Even though we enjoyed the feel of our original putter grip, over time we leaned toward favoring the Reverse Taper.
Like the best putter grips, it felt super comfortable in the hands, and really seemed to soften our grip and particularly our bottom hand. It felt tacky but not excessively so and actually did calm our hands during the stroke, which is particularly important from short range. Reduced tension in the hands and elbows also leads to a more consistent stroke.
For us, this meant that more putts were rolling up to that ‘bin lid’ target around the hole from mid and long range. We only tested the Reverse Taper in a medium size but for those of you with large hands or that really want to take all wrists out of the stroke, there is a larger option worth considering.
