COLUMBUS, Ohio – Twenty-one years ago, Aaron Baddeley was impressed by Vijay Singh’s famed ‘toe putter’ eagle en route to a runner-up at THE PLAYERS Championship.

So much so, Baddeley has implemented the technique from time to time in competition. He angles the putter to where the toe is facing down, then produces a standard stroke. The idea is to produce loft from a dicey lie while maintaining speed control.

“I've used that a few times just with awkward lies when it's up against the long collar,” Baddeley said after Thursday’s opening round of the Nationwide Children’s Hospital Championship. “It gets the ball out and running a little bit. I was out watching Vijay make it that way on THE PLAYERS Championship at (No.) 16 years ago; I was like, ‘That's a good idea,’ so I've used it ever since. Thanks, Vijay.”

Baddeley utilized the technique in Thursday’s opening round at The Ohio State University GC (Scarlet) for an up-and-down birdie at the par-5 fourth hole, en route to a 6-under 65 and a share of the early lead alongside Jared Wolfe and Brandon Hagy.

The Australia native has long been known as one of the game’s premier putters; he led the TOUR in Strokes Gained: Putting in 2014-15, and he hung around the top 10 on TOUR for the 2004-2016 span.

In recent years, Baddeley admits struggling to find consistency around the greens. He still gains strokes compared to his fellow pros, but not at a level of dominance; he ranked No. 46 on TOUR in 2020-21 before playing a split schedule between the TOUR and Korn Ferry Tour this season.

“That’s what made it frustrating, because, like, ‘Wait, I’m a great putter. I know I’m a great putter,’” Baddeley said. “It’s like I lost it; it’s there somewhere. I’ve just got to find it. Today was a nice day. Overall I putted well. The putts that I missed, I feel like I hit good putts; they just didn’t go in. I feel like my putting is right there, ready to take off.”

Baddeley got a putting tip from renowned putting coach John Graham – whose students include Justin Thomas – at the TOUR’s Regular Season-ending Wyndham Championship earlier this month. Graham looked at some old footage of Baddeley on the greens and noticed that in his putting heyday, the head “didn’t move one bit.” Lately, Baddeley had been “peeking a little bit” on the greens.

With a focus on a quiet head, Baddeley recorded seven birdies Thursday in Ohio against a single bogey, as he aims to better his TOUR status into the coming season. The four-time TOUR winner made 13 starts on TOUR this season, finishing No. 196 on the FedExCup, in addition to nine Korn Ferry Tour starts. His best finish was a T13 at the Korn Ferry Tour’s NV5 Invitational presented by Old National Bank in May.

“If you play well, you’ll be fine,” said Baddeley of chasing a spot in The Finals 25. “You get rewarded for good play.”

The ‘toe putter’ will be in his tool box – although he provided a note of caution for amateurs who might consider the technique.

“If you're not very good at hitting in the middle,” Baddeley said, “that would be a really difficult one.”