The Art of Putting. Rolling the rock....Are you playing the right putter for your stroke?
Most of you out there probably do not put a ton of consideration into what you are putting with. Well let me tell you it might be the most important club in the bag to have fit just for you. Sure most of you think that it is always the indian and not the arrow. With ole Mr. ThreeWiggle it can make a huge different if you are playing the "right" putter. So how do you go about find "the one."
Lets keep it simple:
Important things to consider when trying to find a flat stick that will work best for your game.
- Loft
- Lie
- Length
- Type of Stroke
- Look and Feel
- Speed of Greens
1. LOFT: consider your setup to the ball when determining what loft putter you want to go with. Optimal loft is about what is standard (3-4*) yet most of us do not set up with the putter shaft perfectly vertical. Therefore consider if you forward press or lean the putter back at address. If you lean the putter back, have the loft on your putter bent a degree or two stronger (2-3*) to make it play like a 3-4* when you set up to the ball. If you forward press your hands have loft added to your putter i.e. a degree or two to make sure that it plays 3-4* when you set up. **Consider the types of greens you do most of your putting on. If they are faster you want a little stronger loft (i.e. closer to 3 degrees), if they are slower you want a little weaker loft (i.e. closer to 4 degrees). Both of these measurements are at impact not address. A certified fitter can help you with these numbers.
2. LIE: very important to your putter and successful putting. You cannot afford to make assumptions here as the putter may require a different lie than the rest of your set. This will allow the putter to be soled correctly so that the heel and toe are evenly off the ground on a putter which such a shape as to cause this. A putter that is too flat or too upright can adversely effect your putting stroke as well as the spin imparted upon the ball.**Be careful when adjusting the lie on a putter without consulting your fitter or teaching professional. A lot of times the lie angle does not seem right due to an improper setup. It can be a bandaid on a real problem at address.
3. LENGTH: You want your arms to hang naturally so that the stance and posture feel like second nature. Find a length that allows your arms to hang and feel comfortable for you. Length is for the most part a personal preference, so try out some lengths and chose your best feel.**Most important part about length is that it allows you to get into the proper posture to make a good stroke with the upper body as the only moving part. Too tall or too hunched over can make a huge difference is the consistency of your stroke. This goes hand and hand with allowing your eyes to be over top of the ball and not too far over or behind the ball at address. Your eyes must be looking down the target line. Length plays a major part in this.
4. TYPE OF STROKE:
Below you will see a breakdown of each of the paths you see above starting from the top and working toward the bottom of the picture.
- Gated Stroke: to find a putter best suited to you, find something that is NOT face-balanced. You will want to try putters that have toe hang so that when balanced on your fingers, the toe hangs lower than the heel. These types of putters are things like the anser/newport and other blades of the like as well as the truly blade putters 8802/napa and the jat/del mar 3.5. These type of putters allow the face to open and close with the gated putting stroke, and therefore are not fighting your stroke style. Attempting to putt with a face balanced putter can certainly work, I will not say that it can't happen, but it certainly can at times fight your stroke. However, I will caution you on this, sometimes face balancing is due to shaft position (i.e. the futura by cameron) and not the actual weighting, these putters can still work quite well with a gated putting stroke.
- Square to Square: Face-balanced putters are great for square to square putting strokes. These putters facilitate the ability to keep the putter face square to the target line and prevent it from wanting to open and close. Consider things such as the odyssey 2 and 3 ball, monza corza, and a few of the face balanced blades. Most not all putters that are face balanced tend to be mallet style or modified blades. These putters can greatly help the consistancy of your stroke. Again I will not claim that is impossible to putt well with a heel/toe weighted putter; however, it will want to open and close thus fighting your natural stroke path.
- Inside and Down the Line: Heel-toe weighted putters suit this stroke type the best. It is very similar to the gated stroke with the exception of the face going left after impact. The putter still releases completely and the toe passes over the heel but the putter does not track left as much as the gated stroke. This is modeled after Tiger's stroke.
6. SPEED OF GREENS: This can play a factor when selecting the weight and the insert of your putter. If you play on fast greens a little heavier is better with a firmer insert, if you play on slow greens a little lighter with a softer insert is better. This is just my opinion and not a fact. So do what works for you and the greens that you consistently play. I hope this helps you in the quest for your new putter and saving those 1 or 2 shots in your upcoming rounds. Please feel free to leave comments, questions, or feedback if I can be of any assistance.