Maybe I misunderstand your question, but what do you mean with "no ground in the back"? Patch antennas always have a patch with ground. Metal strip without ground would be more like a monopole.
as you said that "Metal strip without ground would be more like a monopole."
what exactly we can say antenna is monopole
a cpw feed antenna has its ground plane in front
but a microstrip line fed has ground plane in back
what will be difference in radiation pattern