Improve Your Putting Alignment to Sink Putts

There are many things you can do to improve your putting alignment, but the best way is to have a putter that fits you properly. Too many people are going to stores or shopping online for putters that "look" good, instead of a putter that will help with individual performance.

Well, we play this game for fun and I don't know about you but I'd rather be making more putts and having fun rather than missing putts due to a putter that looks pretty.

Yes, those Scotty Cameron's sure are dandy but if you're not making putts because it doesn't fit you then maybe you should leave it at home on the trophy shelf.

Why Should Putter Aim Matter

To further investigate into why your putter's should be fit let's look at some of these eye popping numbers from David Orr's recent studies on putter aim.

With 626 people in the database including Tour Players, only 20% were able to aim straight with their putter from 6 feet. That means over 80% struggled with aim inside of 6 feet which should be jaw dropping.

If you can improve your putting alignment with a putter that fits you then you will improve many of your key parameters that affect your ball's starting direction.

Checking Your Aim

On checking the aim of your current putter you will need a laser, something to place the laser on about 8-10cm from ground level, a tiny mirror for the face of the putter and a person to help.

• Start out by placing a laser on top of an object 8-10cm high, ideally you'd want this object in the shape of an actual cup on a putting green

• Place a tiny mirror on the face of your putter

• Place a ball 6 feet away from where your laser is pointing

• Then setup to the ball and be sure to target several times looking back and forth from ball to target

• Once comfortable, pull the ball away and see where the laser reflects off of the mirror on the putter
  

• If it reflects back over your object within a hole's length your aim is pretty good but odds are it doesn't and you're using a putter that isn't fit

In this picture, the person aimed left of the target and is not an ideal aim.

Finding A Putter That Fits

As far as improving the putter that you currently own, you can do 3 things that Orr says can improve your putting by 30%; adjust putter loft, lie angle, and the length of the putter.

To do this, you will have to see your local club professional or a certified club fitter.

If you're wanting a fix all solution to putting alignment then custom fitting is the way to go for improving your putting alignment. One of the best custom fitting systems out there would be David Edel custom fit putters.

Once you have a putter that can aim now it's time to move on to how you should aim.

How To Aim

When aligning your putter to the target you should do it in a way that is instinctive. Think about it, if you were a quarterback and you just hiked the ball to throw to a receiver you're focusing on a spot out in front of the receiver so you can hit the receiver in full stride.

Pretty simple huh?

Well, most golfers these days like to treat aiming their putters like this: When the quarterback hikes the ball, he checks to see if his fingers are placed properly, Then he makes sure his hand is in the correct spot, and finally thinks about how he will release the ball when the play begins.

That wouldn't be so smart right, especially not when he doesn't have unlimited time in the pocket to get rid of the ball.

One of the biggest things you should avoid when aiming your putter is using a line on your putter to match a line on your ball.

In David's study on lines with a ball and putter, he found it only helped 20% of the people in his database to aim better. The reason why lining up a line on a ball with a line on the putter isn't a good idea is because golfers shift their focus from aiming at the target to making sure their lines match.

If you instead use a perpendicular line you will improve your aim by more than 80% according to Orr.

Improving Your Aim

Here are some healthy habits you should adapt to consistently aim better:

• Setup with eyes either over the ball or just inside but never outside of ball

• When rotating your head to look at your target do it in a way that your head rotates "like an apple on a stick" Geoff Mangum would say

• Get in a habit of staring at your target and less at your putter's aim, you will improve dramatically doing this

To sum things up you have to stop worrying about having perfect putting alignment. Instead, trust your aim and move on to the next step of picking a line and figuring out the speed required to hole the putt. When you do this, more putts will fall, guaranteed!

Return From Putting Alignment to Putting Tips

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