Learning to Putt
365 Hints to improve your Putting.
About 5 years ago, I offered a tweet a day about my interpretation of putting theory and strategy. Now that some time has passed, I thought it would be fun to go back and revisit these posts. Certainly older and hopefully wiser, I wondered how these theories held up over time. Do I use still use these strategies? Have I found better ways to express them? What new information do I have to support the old? The last question is the inspiration for this series of columns. We do have tons of new information and Substack looks like a great way to share it.
Lesson 1
“Let your eyes tell you where to stand. Recommended postures only work if they allow accurate perception of the target line.”
This continues to be the bedrock of my instruction. The relationship of your eyes to the golf ball is critical to your success. It explains problems you might have with breaking putts. It explains why your stroke path doesn’t match your visual tendencies and personal biomechanics. In short, finding the correct relationship of eyes to golf ball solves a lot.
This picture is from the reference guide I use with my online clients. It shows the relationship of 9 potential ball positions relative to your head where position 2 is directly under the left eye. Notice at this stage we are not using the feet as a reference. We have found them a variable to be determined last. This is one stage of a more detailed vision test that helps us determine which of the 9 zones allows you the most accurate perception of target and task. It is also a precursor, to the shape of the path you see as you swing the putter.