Excellent stuff. Alignment is my big problem with putting. Quite often after a miss I might lay my putter down across my feet and find I am pointing way off line, usually to the right ( I’m a lefty).
Without stating the obvious, presumably after you determine the line and put your putter down, your feet
and shoulders are then parallel to that line.
As a senior still hanging at 9 handicap, this is by far the most frustrating part of the game for me. I will definitely concentrate on this tip.
Dear Mr Donaldson,
Work with two mirrors :one shows if your eyes are over the ball ,the second one ,nearer to you ,will show you if your shoulders are or not parallel to your eyes and to your line
So many people are mis-aligned. Most of the best putters are slightly open with their stance. This is the stance though not the shoulders so be focused on the shoulders. If you are little open with the feet it’s no big deal. To feel what it feels like lay a club or stick on the ground then match the shoulders to the stick. Remember this feeling or practice regularly until it becomes natural. This should really help your putting.
when you take your practice strokes behind the hole, why don’t you go back and forth with the putter in the direction of the hole or line you’re facing and aiming at, instead of left and right? thanks
Pretty sure I said why. When you do the strokes near the ball you will lose the spot you were looking at. The whole point of piking out a spot is so you line your putter to the spot. If you lose the spot it’s not going to work.
Fine advice ,Paul.As you say drawing a line around the ball serves no purpose .What you have to do is to find a line along which you must start the ball rolling .Picking a spot several inches in front of the ball as you suggest will do the job But you have to find the line before .The best way I know is to do like MICKEY WRIGHT did :go low behind the ball and see it rolling from where it lies to the hole ,inch by inch until the (imaginary )ball drops in the hole .To find the slope ,if you have the time to do so ,walk in a circle around the hole ,a few feet away from it :your feet will tell you where the slope is ,where it goes up ,where it goes down
Love this tip Paul. Not sure if you are aware but this is exactly the method Dave Stockton advises. Face the hole from behind the ball and pick out your spot/line, make your practice swings perpendicular to (not in alignment with) the hole to gauge the swing needed for distance, walk to the ball looking at your spot & take your stance, look up 1 time and then roll the ball using the swing effort from your practice swing. His theory is that hovering over a putt for a long time locks you up. I think your observation about not bending/standing (times 3?or 4?) is just another bonus, especially for old timers like me lol. This also definitely ties in with your tip about practicing long putts to leave yourself short putts. Good stuff.
Yes ,practicing lag puts is useful
But the real clinch comes from never or nearly never missing the short ones ,from 6 feet in
So favor practicing the short ones ;
See how many you roll in in succession without missing ,whatever the break!
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8 Responses to “Putting – 2 Alignment Routines”
September 25, 2019
daviddonaldsonExcellent stuff. Alignment is my big problem with putting. Quite often after a miss I might lay my putter down across my feet and find I am pointing way off line, usually to the right ( I’m a lefty).
Without stating the obvious, presumably after you determine the line and put your putter down, your feet
and shoulders are then parallel to that line.
As a senior still hanging at 9 handicap, this is by far the most frustrating part of the game for me. I will definitely concentrate on this tip.
September 25, 2019
RaymondCHASTELDear Mr Donaldson,
Work with two mirrors :one shows if your eyes are over the ball ,the second one ,nearer to you ,will show you if your shoulders are or not parallel to your eyes and to your line
September 29, 2019
Paul WilsonDavid,
So many people are mis-aligned. Most of the best putters are slightly open with their stance. This is the stance though not the shoulders so be focused on the shoulders. If you are little open with the feet it’s no big deal. To feel what it feels like lay a club or stick on the ground then match the shoulders to the stick. Remember this feeling or practice regularly until it becomes natural. This should really help your putting.
September 25, 2019
georgegrossiwhen you take your practice strokes behind the hole, why don’t you go back and forth with the putter in the direction of the hole or line you’re facing and aiming at, instead of left and right? thanks
September 29, 2019
Paul WilsonGeorge,
Pretty sure I said why. When you do the strokes near the ball you will lose the spot you were looking at. The whole point of piking out a spot is so you line your putter to the spot. If you lose the spot it’s not going to work.
September 25, 2019
RaymondCHASTELFine advice ,Paul.As you say drawing a line around the ball serves no purpose .What you have to do is to find a line along which you must start the ball rolling .Picking a spot several inches in front of the ball as you suggest will do the job But you have to find the line before .The best way I know is to do like MICKEY WRIGHT did :go low behind the ball and see it rolling from where it lies to the hole ,inch by inch until the (imaginary )ball drops in the hole .To find the slope ,if you have the time to do so ,walk in a circle around the hole ,a few feet away from it :your feet will tell you where the slope is ,where it goes up ,where it goes down
February 29, 2020
ALAN D.Love this tip Paul. Not sure if you are aware but this is exactly the method Dave Stockton advises. Face the hole from behind the ball and pick out your spot/line, make your practice swings perpendicular to (not in alignment with) the hole to gauge the swing needed for distance, walk to the ball looking at your spot & take your stance, look up 1 time and then roll the ball using the swing effort from your practice swing. His theory is that hovering over a putt for a long time locks you up. I think your observation about not bending/standing (times 3?or 4?) is just another bonus, especially for old timers like me lol. This also definitely ties in with your tip about practicing long putts to leave yourself short putts. Good stuff.
February 29, 2020
RaymondCHASTELYes ,practicing lag puts is useful
But the real clinch comes from never or nearly never missing the short ones ,from 6 feet in
So favor practicing the short ones ;
See how many you roll in in succession without missing ,whatever the break!