Who putts with an upright lie putter?

[cccdad]

Hello,

I have been playing around with holding my hands higher when putting as it seems to put my right wrist at a good angle to support a hinge that allows me to swing the putter more straight back instead of on an arc. Has anyone done similar or have any thoughts?

Thanks

Brian

[North Butte]

Mine is 79 degrees, approximately. Just under the legal limit.

[cccdad]

Mine is 79 degrees, approximately. Just under the legal limit.

 

Are you tall or are you trying to be more pendulum with your stroke?

[North Butte]

I am about six feet tall. I just like to have my eyes over the ball (to line up correctly) and my arns hanging down (to prevent tension). The pendulem thing happens naturally, not really something I ever set out to do.

[dciccoritti]

Mine is 79 degrees, approximately. Just under the legal limit.

 

What's the length if you don't mind me asking? I experimented last year with 2 degrees more upright and I think it helped a bit.

[North Butte]

33” which is a bit too short. I end up holding it at the very end. Ideally I’d rather be 33-1/2” but that’s not worth extending it really.

[GolfWithdrawals]

33' putter with 75 lie. I'm 5'6

[Mcgeeno]

I’m at 69 degrees on my Slighter custom.

 

I like standing taller and more on top of it.

[((hoselrocket))]

Mine is a couple degrees up. It felt toe down. Adjusted it, & made more putts. Probably in my head more than anything. ;)

[bluedot]

I'm at 69 degrees on my Slighter custom.

 

I like standing taller and more on top of it.

 

That's not upright; that is actually a bit flatter than standard, which is 70 or 71 degrees.

[bluedot]

My Bobby Grace F22 putter is 80 degrees, and if the Rules allowed, I'd go even more toward vertical than that.

 

Of course, I putt with an EXTREMELY open stance, which some call "side saddle"... :)

[North Butte]

My Bobby Grace F22 putter is 80 degrees, and if the Rules allowed, I'd go even more toward vertical than that.

 

Of course, I putt with an EXTREMELY open stance, which some call "side saddle"... :)

 

Yippee ki yay!

[Mcgeeno]

That's not upright; that is actually a bit flatter than standard, which is 70 or 71 degrees.

 

Wow is it really?

 

I think I even picked two degrees upright from Tom Slighter when he was building it.

 

EDIT: I just checked you were correct.

 

My invoice says 71 2 degrees up from 69.

[North Butte]

That's not upright; that is actually a bit flatter than standard, which is 70 or 71 degrees.

 

Wow is it really?

 

I think I even picked two degrees upright from Tom Slighter when he was building it.

 

Sounds like he's from that supposedly Tour-influenced school that says you're supposed to stand away from the ball with your hands low and do a "swinging gate" stroke to let the putter release. Scotty Cameron says the same sort of thing although he doesn't take it to such an extreme.

 

Standard lie for most putters over the last couple decades has ranged from 70 to 72 degrees with 70 or 71 being most common at the moment. But the high priced custom Anser clones (from Cameron and many others) tend to come standard at more like 69 or 70.

 

IMHO that sort of putting is fine if, like a Tour pro, you have plenty of time to practice and you play on greased lightning greens. For a lot of amateur golfers (again IMHO) setting up to maximize the amount of "face closure" or "release" through impact doesn't work out as well.

 

The Cameron putter Tiger used for most of his career is an instructive example. It had a head weight somewhere in the 320-something gram range, a lie angle of 71 degrees and a super skinny Pingman grip.

 

Nowadays the equivalent putter model from Cameron comes in north of 350 grams with a lie angle of 69 degrees and a fatter grip. That's the new supposedly conventional wisdom for what the best players need. Tiger's career captures the trendiness of putter design, even when they visibly all looked like fancy version of a Ping head from the 60's...

[Shootdog]

35.5”, 68.5 degrees, 1 degree more loft ... a pro gave me the numbers three years ago. Putting went from the weakest to the strongest part of my game overnight. Just works for me.

[Mike_C]

Since the mid 1980s, I have putted very upright. About 1983 I picked up an old Bullseye out of a lost club bin that nobody came to get, it was probably 20+ years old, and it was made very upright and had a very big for the time paddle grip. Felt funny at first, but I adapted quickly and used that putter for over 15 years, and putted very good at times. Ever since every off the rack putter I have used I putt like Steve Stricker with the heel up except when I went to the belly putter for a few years. I finally got fed up with that and got me a Cleveland Huntington Beach 6C about 2 months ago, custom ordered +3 upright, which felt pretty good. Then I tried a Cure adjustable putter where I could set it to 80 degrees. I liked the feel of the upright shaft but I didn't like the heavy head, ended up sending it back.

 

I have been struggling over the past two years or so with consistency putting upright, part of how/why I do it is my grip, I hold the putter very much in my palms and not with the fingers. This has made me want to go even more upright, but I think other mechanical problems were creeping into the stoke as I did this, especially a tendency to "pop" at the ball with my right hand. The funny thing is the assistant pro came by when I was on the putting green the other day and suggested I start trying to hold the putter more with the fingers and lock down my left wrist that way. It felt very strange at first, but after a couple of days, it seems to be working. The side effect of this grip change for me is the putter will sit a bit flatter. It feels very good with my 6C, and I have also been tinkering with an O-Works Tank #7 and trying to see if I can learn left-hand-low putting.

[Gava]

I just had a fitting at the Scotty Cameron Gallery. Really interesting and positive experience. I know there are plenty of SC haters out there but I’m more of a fan - just not of those Gallery prices...lol.

 

I had Nick Geyer who is a bit newer there & had coached college golf among other things. I swear at a fitting they try not to pidgeon hole everyone and are very accommodating to what it is you want to try/play. They do make subtle suggestions and get you to try things based on their observations from the plethora of cameras, which apparently is a replica of the pro studio back closer to Carlsbad (near Legoland he told me - that’s where I dropped off the family).

 

I love the aesthetics of an anser/newport blade (the blondes of putters) but seem to perform better with a mid mallet. Of course I’m on vacation & hadn’t picked up a putter for 3 weeks but putted pretty well. Like getting a toothache & going to the dentist.

 

To my results, I’m 6’ 3” and have long arms. I’ve usually gone for 35” & 350g. In the last 3 years I’ve had a fastback heavy & more recently was using a Newport 3 heavy with 69 degrees lie.

 

My fitting suggested more length at 36” and to make it not too heavy swing weight, I was doing well with only 5g weights in the head. Of course that was a 2018 tour fastback (TFB) at $2500 new. Did notice the wider flange on the 2018 model compare to my 2015 (took my gamers along) and definitely 71 degrees and 3.5 or 4 degrees seemed to improve impact on camera. Once I knew what I was looking for I could see it.

 

Oh and had a great time towards the end putting with all the bling bling $10K putters he brought out. Would recommend it.

 

Edit - might as well give this post its own thread. Stay tuned

[tleader]

I’m 6’ and use a 35” putter with a 73 degree lie.

 

I stand a little closer to the ball, and for me this produces a repeatable arc stroke.

[Scotty1140]

I’m 6’2” and use a 35” at 72*

[tagermo]

I am 6'3" and have always used putters at 35 inches and 70 degree lie angle. Recently went to a putter fitting using SAM lab and now using 35inch with 72 degree lie angle. It seems easier to line up with the more upright lie angle.

[Symphonize]

Just got fitted for a Bettinardi and now rocking a 32" putter with 66* lie and 1* loft. I'm 5'8 and the putter looks very short, but it feels immensely better. Didn't have a 3 putt the other day in my round. I felt an overall improvement everywhere, but especially with my long 20-30 foot puts, I am putting them very close.

[tmoney47]

5'9" with a 34" length and 75 degrees lie angle.

 

How my hands sit naturally my old putter's heel was off the ground. It is so much better to have it sit flat and appear normal.

[Dree3210]

I used a cut off white hot XG two ball, I’m about 6’3 but I also love an upright heavy putter. I think the headweight is 450 and the lie is about 78 or 79. It’s so easy to take straight back and straight through.

[Guest]

Quick question on this, I putt with the heel way off the ground. Measuring at home I need the lie to be 75-77 for it to sit flat (70 currently). Can they be bent that much? It's an Odyssey 9 White Hot Pro 2.0

[jeff1727]

I am 5’11, play 34” putter with 66* lie and 1* loft. Came from standard specs (34/70/3) and have never putted better. Distance control has vastly improved.

[gioguy21]

im' 6'3"; mine is 73* lie, 3* loft and 35.5" long

[kenstl]

I play 37" at 77* lie. I enables me to keep my wrists extended fully forward with my elbows resting on my sides. It has really given my stroke some consistency that I was missing.

[PixlPutterman]

Man, Im the opposite.

 

Im 5'11'' and put with a 33 inch putter at 65* of lie lol

[BabyCarrot]

Just took a picture of my putter against the wall and used a protractor website to measure. 74 degrees.

im 6'3" and putter is 36 inches. I bent it myself using a vice and mallet. Was concerned about changing face angle and loft but quickly forgot after how natural it felt.

[sshadow2]

Just under 6’. I play 33” length at 71* upright generally.