He Believes He Has Cured The Yips

Ronnie Pritchett well remembers the putt that served as his inspiration. It wasn’t a good putt--it wasn’t even his own.

Pritchett was watching television as Tom Watson stood over a six-foot putt on Sunday at the 1994 U.S. Open. Watson was in contention at Oakmont Country Club until the putt.

“He just took it back and decelerated,” Pritchett recalled. “And as he decelerated, his putter opened up on him. That’s when the commentator said, ‘Oh, he yipped the putt!’ ”

Pritchett remembers thinking there must be a way to make a putter that would cure the yips, those involuntary jerks that sometimes accompany pressure putts.

Two years later, Pritchett believes he has an answer. He calls it the Bermuda Triangle Putter (It “Makes Your Putts Disappear”), and he’ll sell you one for about $90.

Using his expertise as a golf professional, Pritchett invented a putter, he says, that is perfectly balanced and supremely forgiving. Because the shaft is mounted in the center of the putter head, gravity doesn’t cause the putter to twist during your stroke. The sweet spot is also larger than on most putters.

“Even if you miss-hit it,” Pritchett said, “you have a chance to make the putt--or at least get it close.”

Pritchett has been getting positive reactions to the putter he is currently assembling in the garage of his San Clemente home. He markets his product by word of mouth and showing it off at local putting greens.

“I had one guy come up to me and say, ‘I can’t make a three-footer,’ ” Pritchett said. “Then he made three in a row from three feet, moved back to six feet and made three more . . . “ He made 11 of 12 with the putter, then bought it on the spot, Pritchett said.

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Pritchett, who was a professional at Indian Hills Country Club on Long Island, N.Y., moved to San Clemente a year ago and, until recently, was the tournament director of San Juan Capistrano-based Tournament Golf Assn.

He left that position to devote all his time to marketing the Bermuda Triangle putter. In about six weeks, he has sold about 150 and hopes sales will take off after the public is exposed to an infomercial he expects to start airing next month.

Pritchett has joined forces with Bob Cisco, a Los Angeles teaching pro and author of “The Ultimate Game of Golf.” Cisco, who will co-host the infomercial, says the Bermuda Triangle is a good piece of equipment. “It makes the ball roll more truly,” he said. “It’s got real good balance, probably the best I’ve seen.”

Cisco works with a number of Senior PGA Tour players and says several have tried the putter. Pritchett says Watson’s office called to have one sent over.

There has been no word of any touring pros using it in competition, but Pritchett is confident it’s only a matter of time. “I don’t knock anybody’s putter,” he said. “Odysseys are good putters, Pings are good too. Cosmetics are important to some people. All I’m saying is performance-test the competition. You will never have to worry about yipping a putt with this putter.”

For a test run, call Pritchett at 800-4NO-YIPS (800-466-9477).

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Senior golf: The two Orange County golfers playing in the U.S. Senior Open at Canterbury Golf Club in Beechwood, Ohio, failed to make the cut. Fountain Valley’s Gary Dixon, a science teacher and former golf coach at Los Alamitos High, shot 79-78--157, and missed the cut by seven strokes.

Robert Carver, an amateur from Fullerton, shot 83-79--162.

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Junior golf: Nate Blauer, who will be a senior at Santa Margarita High, was the runner-up in the Oregon Golf Assn. Junior Championships Friday in Medford. Blauer, who moved to Orange County from Oregon before the last school year, lost to Jason Allred, 4 and 3, in the match-play final.

One of Blauer’s Santa Margarita teammates, Kelly Craig, had a strong showing at an American Junior Golf Assn. event in Las Vegas last week.

Craig, who was one stroke off the lead after shooting seven-under-par 65 in the first round, shot three-under 213 to finish in a tie for fifth, eight shots behind champion Boyd Summerhays of Farmington, Utah.

Perry Dickey of Huntington Beach shot 223; Greg Pittenger of Coto de Caza, a 1996 Santa Margarita graduate, shot 226, and Adam Ainbinder of Huntington Beach shot 227.

Notes

Opera Pacific is holding a charity tournament Aug. 19 at Newport Beach Country Club. The entry fee is $250 and includes lunch, tee prizes, a hole-in-one contest, cocktail reception, silent auction and dinner. Proceeds will benefit Opera for Everyone, a program that brings music workshops to developmentally challenged children in Orange County schools.

The Orange County Golf Notebook runs weekly. Call (714) 966-5904, fax 966-5663 or e-mail Martin.Beck@latimes.com with suggestions.