Putting Stroke Guidance

[CodyShootsHigh]

Hey guys,

 

I'm a year and a half in to playing more, and it has been an absolute joy/addiction.

 

I wanted to get your thoughts on developing my putting stroke. I'm not sure what that actually should be, but I feel like what I currently have is not it. When I pull the putter back, the putter is moving all over the place. There is no way to have a consistent strike or roll for sure,

 

For those that have conquered that, could you enlighten me on what you did? Was there certain grips, elbow placement, videos, lessons, etc that helped you. Or is this something that will come time time?

 

I hope this makes sense. Also, it may not be required to have a super stable stroke (Zalatoris lol) but it sure does feel like it would help.

 

I'm all ears.

Edited August 31, 2023 by CodyShootsHigh

[ShawLF]

This is what I use. The objective is to make a putting stroke without the shaft chattering between the PVC and the alignment rod. After a few strokes it gets too easy and I make the gap smaller ~ 3/8". I also use a construction laser to make sure my start line is on.

 

 

I use Trackman putting. Here's an example. After practicing I turn off the laser and remove the PVC contraption. Usually I can make >10 10' putts in a row after doing this warm up. In this case I was practicing 13' putts.

 

 

 

 

 

Edited August 31, 2023 by ShawLF
typo

[Ri_Redneck]

I had to change my left hand placement (right handed) on the grip to get my wrists to stay stable. It is considerably closed, but rock solid. No more wavering going back and through OR rolling open or closed through the ball. Experiment with different grips to find what is right for you. Just check the pro's grips every weekend. They're all different.

 

BT

[iutodd]

I also used to be all over the place with my stroke as well.  This is what I've done that has helped:

 

Gate drill.  The gate drill is awesome.  My problem was that I would start the putter backstroke and be "outside" the line of the putt.  So I set up the normal gate with two tees and then add a third tee inline with the outside tee about 4-6 inches back.  That helps me keep my putter from going outside.  Here's a video with 6 tees - I use just the red tees in the middle, and then the outside orange tee in the back.

 

 

I also messed around with grips.  If you follow golf at all you've probably seen coverage of the Jailbird putter used by Rickie Fowler and others - it has a large counterbalanced grip that helps keep the hands quiet.   And it clearly works.

 

However I've had bigger grips and I found that it took all the feel away from putting even if it did keep my hands quieter and my stroke more on line.  I wanted my putting to be a bit more...reactionary if that makes sense.  I wanted to think less about making the stroke and think more about making the putt.

 

So now I'm back in a smaller grip (a grippier version of the famous ping pp58 grip that Tiger uses) but I've added a "trigger" to my putting stroke to take out the tension in my forearms.  I now lift the putter before starting my backstroke - yes also like Rickie used to do.  It feels a bit awkward at first but it has really worked for me.

[CodyShootsHigh]

These suggestions have been great. Gonna try all of them. 

[ShawLF]

1 hour ago, iutodd said:

Gate drill.  The gate drill is awesome.

agreed. The PVC contraption I posted an image of is the exact same concept. Only difference is that it ensures a perfect path over the entire length of the stroke - both forward and back. I see people doing some funky things in transition, and in the follow through. The gate won't necessarily pick that up... but with the gate you don't have to haul a crazy looking PVC contraption to the practice green which is a positive 🙂

[sheppick.dan]

On 8/30/2023 at 8:04 PM, ShawLF said:

This is what I use. The objective is to make a putting stroke without the shaft chattering between the PVC and the alignment rod. After a few strokes it gets too easy and I make the gap smaller ~ 3/8". I also use a construction laser to make sure my start line is on.

 

 

I use Trackman putting. Here's an example. After practicing I turn off the laser and remove the PVC contraption. Usually I can make >10 10' putts in a row after doing this warm up. In this case I was practicing 13' putts.

 

 

 

 

 

Please share your putting green setup you have there!!!

[MelloYello]

On 8/30/2023 at 8:20 PM, CodyShootsHigh said:

Hey guys,

 

I'm a year and a half in to playing more, and it has been an absolute joy/addiction.

 

I wanted to get your thoughts on developing my putting stroke. I'm not sure what that actually should be, but I feel like what I currently have is not it. When I pull the putter back, the putter is moving all over the place. There is no way to have a consistent strike or roll for sure,

 

For those that have conquered that, could you enlighten me on what you did? Was there certain grips, elbow placement, videos, lessons, etc that helped you. Or is this something that will come time time?

 

I hope this makes sense. Also, it may not be required to have a super stable stroke (Zalatoris lol) but it sure does feel like it would help.

 

I'm all ears.

 

Early on I would develop the fundamentals. Practice will yield good distance control and there is plenty of time for that but the longer you go with a poor setup, stance, grip or stroke the worse off you'll be trying to correct those down the road and the more you'll fight bigger issues in putting and a lack of confidence. 

 

I've played for about 15 years now and for most of that I struggled with putting. A big step forward for me was switching to Left-Hand-Low (or Lead-Hand-Low). That makes it SO easy to put a good a stroke on the ball from short- and intermediate-range it's undeniable. It instantly gets rid of the "flip" that we're so used to doing with the full swing. The breakdown of the lead wrist causes a ton of issues for developing golfers. Not only does it add inconsistency to their stroke but it makes judging distance all but impossible. 

[ShawLF]

11 hours ago, sheppick.dan said:

Please share your putting green setup you have there!!!

 

The turf is https://synthetic-turf.com/products/putting-greens/np55/ the same stuff that TXG, PXG, Trackman, etc use. Size is a single piece approx. 15' x 25' and is crazy heavy.

 

I use a construction laser (that I bought when I built my sim space) to show a perfectly straight line. I find this really good for dialing in aim. For example, I'll set up over the ball with the laser on, then turn the laser off and see if it still looks straight. Or I do the opposite, start with it off, turn it on and see if my aim was correct. In these photos I'm using a Putting Board (developed by the NW coaches with Luke Donald) that I borrowed from a friend.

 

 

 

 

Here is an example of putts that I was making in October '22. Notice my path was all over the place, but generally out to the right. Path is blue, face is red, white is target, orange is what the ball did. 

 

After a month of practice using that PVC thing and a putter change, my start line was nearly within the PGA average (+/- 0.5*). This was from Dec '22. Numbers to the left are start line (doesn't show path like the prior image), but path and face were pretty much down the target line, and the roll was perfect.

 

 

 

With that set up I would pretty much make every 10'-12' putt, so it was too easy. Then I made this "putting deck" that I could tilt with different slopes. It is 6' x 12'. I also use the laser to get a sense of start line on breaking putts. I found that I was manipulating path and face on breaking putts, and still making putts, but I wasn't even close to my intended start line.

 

 

 

This putting deck has been a complete game changer for me. Some of the practice I do involves being above and below the hole on a breaking putt. The laser line represents constant elevation with the hole on the bottom right. From where the golf balls are, this is a downhill left breaking putt. However, this putt is completely different if you're on the left or right side of that laser line. If you're on the left side, the ball will travel downhill the entire time. If you're on the right side you first putt uphill, and as the ball slows down it travels down hill. Obviously this impacts start line and how much the ball will break as it gets close to the hole. 

 

 

 

[sheppick.dan]

2 hours ago, ShawLF said:

 

The turf is https://synthetic-turf.com/products/putting-greens/np55/ the same stuff that TXG, PXG, Trackman, etc use. Size is a single piece approx. 15' x 25' and is crazy heavy.

 

I use a construction laser (that I bought when I built my sim space) to show a perfectly straight line. I find this really good for dialing in aim. For example, I'll set up over the ball with the laser on, then turn the laser off and see if it still looks straight. Or I do the opposite, start with it off, turn it on and see if my aim was correct. In these photos I'm using a Putting Board (developed by the NW coaches with Luke Donald) that I borrowed from a friend.

 

 

 

 

Here is an example of putts that I was making in October '22. Notice my path was all over the place, but generally out to the right. Path is blue, face is red, white is target, orange is what the ball did. 

 

After a month of practice using that PVC thing and a putter change, my start line was nearly within the PGA average (+/- 0.5*). This was from Dec '22. Numbers to the left are start line (doesn't show path like the prior image), but path and face were pretty much down the target line, and the roll was perfect.

 

 

 

With that set up I would pretty much make every 10'-12' putt, so it was too easy. Then I made this "putting deck" that I could tilt with different slopes. It is 6' x 12'. I also use the laser to get a sense of start line on breaking putts. I found that I was manipulating path and face on breaking putts, and still making putts, but I wasn't even close to my intended start line.

 

 

 

This putting deck has been a complete game changer for me. Some of the practice I do involves being above and below the hole on a breaking putt. The laser line represents constant elevation with the hole on the bottom right. From where the golf balls are, this is a downhill left breaking putt. However, this putt is completely different if you're on the left or right side of that laser line. If you're on the left side, the ball will travel downhill the entire time. If you're on the right side you first putt uphill, and as the ball slows down it travels down hill. Obviously this impacts start line and how much the ball will break as it gets close to the hole. 

 

 

 

Did you find the putting deck plans online? Would love to hear more about that and how you built. 
 

sim room looks great. I just got a mevo+ so will be setting something up at home. 

[ShawLF]

2 hours ago, sheppick.dan said:

Did you find the putting deck plans online?

 

I just came up with it. It was around $300 in materials. Basic parts are the putting surface which is framed like a wall, but with 2"x0.75" (vs. 2x4) and 1/8" hard board on either side. The putting surface itself is actually very flimsy and it twists, but it rests on two "beams" made from 2x6s which add a ton of structural integrity. These beams have bases that articulates around a 2" dowel. That way I can lift up either end with the $20 toe jacks, and slide spacers under the bases to get the slope (since it can swivel both 2x6s in the beam make contact with the putting surface as the side slope is changed). It would be easier to just build something with a fixed slope, but I wanted something easy to move (this has three parts that can be independently lifted by one person).