KEEPING THOSE PUTTING BASICS IN MIND
Rolling the ball at the right speed will create a consistent, repeatable style.


Putting is an area that produces a variety of styles and techniques.

Look at the players on the putting green some day and you'll see toes pointed every which way, elbows in, elbows out, arms bent, arms straight. There are a bunch of different ways that people place their hands on the club. Cross-handed putting is becoming increasingly popular. And now with the advent of the extra-long putter, there are thousands of types of putters on the market to further confuse you.

Great putters do not all do the same things to get the ball in the hole, but there are a few things that are common among them. Here are a few things you might consider while you putt.

The eyes should be over the target line and running parallel to it. Some good putters have their eyes directly over the ball, some slightly behind (or to the right), but none have them ahead.

If the shaft had an extension coming out of grip, it would find itself between the forearms, not above or below. In other words, the grip is held more through the lifelines of the hands than through the fingers.

There is no consensus on how hard grip pressure should be. Wristy putters are a bit soften, while arm-and-shoulder putters have been known to squeeze a bit harder to freeze the wrists. Whatever pressure they do use, however, is constant. Changing your hand pressure during the course of the stroke makes the face turn subtly in your hands.

Some of the great putters have used a little wrist motion, some a lot. Wristy putters have to be very rhythmic and accelerate at about the speed of gravity. No jerky motion with these players. Arm-and-shoulder putters try to eliminate wrist motion. Most will swing back and through with the even acceleration of a pendulum.

Researchers have discovered that the better tour players have instinctively learned to lower their heart rate just before the stroke. That serves to steady them at just the right time, similar to the biathlon, when the skier must stop and shoot a rifle. These athletes have learned to control the level of their heartbeat, as well.

Perhaps the most important thing that great putters have in common is great speed control. You can't pick an accurate line without first determining the proper speed. The best speed is the one that would roll the ball about 1½ feet beyond the cup if it were covered with plastic wrap. The last thing a good putter thinks about before the motion begins is how hard he or she has to hit it. So, if you do nothing else to change your putting technique, teach yourself to roll the ball at the right speed.