HELP! How to trust your read from BEHIND the ball?

[Pauly567]

I've spent the last 2 hours reading about Visual Parallax, watching youtube videos and reading forum posts. ....now I'm just more confused. I'll try and keep this simple. Lets assume I have straight putt and I'm using the line on the golf ball. I align the ball with the hole FROM BEHIND and I'm 100% confident the line is pointing straight at the middle of the hole. I then step in and match the line on my putter to the line on the ball. Instantly my brain tells me that if I roll this putt right now, it's going to miss LEFT. And trust me, it will. Can you someone explain why that is ? 

 

Said differently. Assume I don't use the line on the golf ball. I find a flat part of the green in which I know the putt is straight. I line it up (Not using the line on the golf ball) and have my playing partner stand behind me and tell me where the line on my putter is aimed, they would tell me RIGHT of the hole every time. I might very well make the putt because I've figured out how to make compensations, but what's going on here?  with either my eyes or stroke? It's driving me nuts. Thanks for any help. 

[KMeloney]

Not sure how anyone can really nail this down for you based on this info. We have to take your word for it that 1) you've truly found a straight putt, 2) that when you like up the ball from behind it, you've lined it up dead at the hole, 3) and that you then put a good stroke on it. It sounds like one or more of those things isn't happening.

 

It would be interesting to have someone else reliably line up the ball, and then have you stroke it. If others agree that the ball is lined up directly at the hole, and it doesn't look right to you once you're over it, then you probably need help getting the ball lined up correctly to start with. If it looks correct to you over it, but then you routinely miss the putt, then you've got a stroke problem. (And if it looks correct to you, but you set your putter behind the ball in a way that is consistently "off," then maybe you could stand to try another putter that fits your eye better.)

[getitdaily]

48 minutes ago, Pauly567 said:

I've spent the last 2 hours reading about Visual Parallax, watching youtube videos and reading forum posts. ....now I'm just more confused. I'll try and keep this simple. Lets assume I have straight putt and I'm using the line on the golf ball. I align the ball with the hole FROM BEHIND and I'm 100% confident the line is pointing straight at the middle of the hole. I then step in and match the line on my putter to the line on the ball. Instantly my brain tells me that if I roll this putt right now, it's going to miss LEFT. And trust me, it will. Can you someone explain why that is ? 

 

Said differently. Assume I don't use the line on the golf ball. I find a flat part of the green in which I know the putt is straight. I line it up (Not using the line on the golf ball) and have my playing partner stand behind me and tell me where the line on my putter is aimed, they would tell me RIGHT of the hole every time. I might very well make the putt because I've figured out how to make compensations, but what's going on here?  with either my eyes or stroke? It's driving me nuts. Thanks for any help. 

Pretty simple really

 

You aim right and then pull across the ball. You likely always had a right aim bias. So with thousands of practice and play reps, you've reinforced to your brain that right is straight. Your brain then says to make a stroke that goes out to in so you can make putts. 

 

The line causes your brain to see things as left because you've always lined up right. With an accurate aim and an old stroke...left always.

 

If you want to use the line then you have to change your stroke. When your stroke changes so the line aim rolls end over end, into the hole then you'll start to retrain your brain...

[nsxguy]

1 hour ago, Pauly567 said:

I've spent the last 2 hours reading about Visual Parallax, watching youtube videos and reading forum posts. ....now I'm just more confused. I'll try and keep this simple. Lets assume I have straight putt and I'm using the line on the golf ball. I align the ball with the hole FROM BEHIND and I'm 100% confident the line is pointing straight at the middle of the hole. I then step in and match the line on my putter to the line on the ball. Instantly my brain tells me that if I roll this putt right now, it's going to miss LEFT. And trust me, it will. Can you someone explain why that is ? 

 

Said differently. Assume I don't use the line on the golf ball. I find a flat part of the green in which I know the putt is straight. I line it up (Not using the line on the golf ball) and have my playing partner stand behind me and tell me where the line on my putter is aimed, they would tell me RIGHT of the hole every time. I might very well make the putt because I've figured out how to make compensations, but what's going on here?  with either my eyes or stroke? It's driving me nuts. Thanks for any help. 

 

A thread here on WRX (Putter Shape) you might find interesting.

[KD1]

Quote

How to trust your read from BEHIND the ball?

 

Forget about it. After you've made your read and set up to it just focus on speed, put the line out of your mind at that point.

[Anthony Stevens]

Per Mike Malaska, try moving your head/eyes around until it looks like the line intersects the hole. If the line is accurate, you need to get your eyes in a position that your brain "agrees" with the line.

[mgoblue83]

Likely too far from the ball and your eyes are inside the line. From that angle it will look like it’s tilted left.

 

It’s also very easy to pull putts when standing too far away from the ball because the toe gets up in the air and the face rotates closed faster.

[Sp4zRX]

I suffered from this. Go to the hardware store and pick up a chalk line and practice a lot of 6 footers with a chalk line. Practice lining your putter head up to the chalk line, then align your stance to putter head. Once you’re in your stance, forget about the line and hit the ball square. Accept your line once you take your stance. Trying to save it because you think it’s a wrong line will never give your brain the correct feedback. If you miss, then you miss but at least your brain will get the correct feedback. 
 

Also, a putter fitting for correct lie angle can make a big difference if your putter is not already at a good lie angle for you. 

Edited May 1 by Sp4zRX

[Valtiel]

Some good advice above, i'm inclined to agree with @mgoblue83 and @getitdaily. You can answer this very easily for yourself though, just lineup your cell phone camera behind you and execute exactly as you described. If the ball goes left like you say it will then you'll see what element of your stroke is causing that. We have the technology, no need to try to read tea leaves on this one. 

Edited May 1 by Valtiel

[Roejye]

I'm someone who sometimes uses a line, sometimes not. When I first started using the line, it definitely looked like it was going left of my intended line when I set up over it. I actually stepped back, double checked, then addressed it again. It still looked left, but I knew it wasn't so I trusted it and went. As long as I feel myself put a good stroke on it, I trust that the line works. 

[Haroputt]

Trust the line and  roll the ball on its intended line.   Don’t even look at the cup again from side except for distance  measurement.  
Trust your aim  from behind the ball 

why complicate things more by aiming again from sideways look 

Edited May 1 by Haroputt

[Ghostwedge]

19 hours ago, KD1 said:

 

Forget about it. After you've made your read and set up to it just focus on speed, put the line out of your mind at that point.

This^^°

 

Speed not reads is what eliminates 3-putts.