Count how many times you bend over during a round. Tee it up, pull it out of the cup, mark it, pick it up, pull it out of the cup again. Add a couple of trips into the hazard and it’s a lot of reps for a back that already had opinions on the first tee. Nobody’s skipping the walk to the ball, but pulling it out of the hole is the easiest of those reps to hand off.
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What it actually is
The IZZO Golf Ball Grabber is a golf ball pick up tool that lives on the butt end of your putter. It’s a small plastic cup with three claw-shaped prongs and a metal screw sticking out the bottom. You twist that screw into the hole at the top of your putter grip (most grips have one, it’s left over from how they’re made), and that’s the entire install. No tape, no glue, no drilling.
Using it is just as simple. Hole your putt, flip the putter upside down, press the claw down over the ball, and lift. The prongs flex just enough to let the ball snap in and grip it tightly enough that it won’t drop back out on the way up. It works on a ball sitting on the green, and it works on a ball in the cup, as long as you don’t jam it into the liner.
It’s low-profile enough that you stop noticing it after a hole or two. It doesn’t change how the putter feels in your hands, because your hands are nowhere near that end of the grip.
Who actually needs one
Golfers with cranky backs or knees. This is the obvious crowd, and they’re the reason the thing exists. If bending over hurts, cutting out 18+ of those reps a round is a real quality-of-life upgrade for basically nothing.
Walkers and anyone playing 36 in a day. Even if your back is fine on the first nine, it might not be on the 27th hole.
The gift-shopping problem. If you need something for the golfer who already has everything, this is cheap, useful, and they probably don’t own one.
Who can skip it: If you’re young and limber and bending over doesn’t register, it’s a solution looking for a problem. And a heads-up on grips: it relies on that small hole in the butt end of the grip. Most standard putter grips have one, but some oversized or specialty grips use their own cap system (SuperStroke, for example, sells its own pick-up that fits its Tech Port). Take a look at the top of your grip before you order.
One etiquette note: be careful pulling the ball out of the cup. Shoving any claw down into the hole and twisting it around can rough up the edge, and the greenkeeper will notice before you do. Set it on the ball, press, lift.
The verdict
This is about as low-risk as golf gear gets. It costs less than a sleeve of premium balls, takes about ten seconds to install, and does exactly one job without any drama. It won’t lower your scores, but it’ll make the walk off the 18th green feel a little less like a chiropractor appointment. If your back has ever complained after a round, it’s an easy yes.
Shop the IZZO Golf Ball Grabber on Amazon →
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