Let me offer something that has just come to light for me regarding golf:
Once your fundamentals are sound; you need to stop thinking about where the club is and focus on where and how you want the ball to go.
In other words, it's never too early to learn about the mental side of the game. Don't be a LowPost and decide that you'll get into 'mental stuff' once you figure out how to swing the club. I've been told this year that I've got a honey of a swing - but I'm a 26 capper despite it (yes, my HC went UP this year...)
That's my best advice at this point.
Once you get along and decide it's time for new clubs, let me know. We'll hook you up with some fantastic gear.
direction
i can reed the green. the line is good but the ball is completly offline
when i hitthe ball
In other words, you pick a good line, but don't start the ball on it?
If that's the case, job one is to determine your dominant eye.
Make 'guns' with your hands (from fists, the forefinger and thumb come out). Touch your fingers together and your thumbs together, making a circular or diamond shape. Hold your arms at length, holding this shape with your hands. Look at a distant object through your hands. Close one eye. If the object 'jumps', you're now looking through your weak eye. If the object stays put, you're looking through your dominant eye.
Use this eye to ensure that you're lining up your putter to your line - in other words, close your non-dominant eye when lining up your putter. It's important to pick out an intermediary target (no more than 12" in front of your ball on your line) so that you can verify that you've got the putter squared to your line.
Now if you start offline, it's due to putter face manipulation - not your alignment.
direction
i can reed the green. the line is good but the ball is completly offline
when i hitthe ball
simple test:line up your putt, then bend down and put the putter across the front of your shoes.get another club and do the same across the ball to hole line.step back and look , do you see a parrallel lines , cos if you dont then your aligement is off. get this bit right and your putting will improve
simple test:line up your putt, then bend down and put the putter across the front of your shoes.get another club and do the same across the ball to hole line.step back and look , do you see a parrallel lines , cos if you dont then your aligement is off. get this bit right and your putting will improve
I disagree with this method for putting alignment. Ben Crenshaw stood open. Trevino was a bit closed.
The important thing in putting is getting (or keeping, depending on your stroke style) the face perpendicular to your line at impact. You could putt sidesaddle (toe line perpendicular to your line) as long as you get the face back to perpendicular.
Personally I stand open. Sometimes a lot, sometimes a little. But I don't yank putts and I don't push putts when I'm confident of my line - my stroke gets the face perpendicular. Sometimes I have a weight issue (a little wristy) and sometimes if I'm not confident my hands will shut down the face (sending the ball off line to the pull side), but this is rare, and a product of not fully trusting my line.
I disagree with this method for putting alignment. Ben Crenshaw stood open. Trevino was a bit closed.
The important thing in putting is getting (or keeping, depending on your stroke style) the face perpendicular to your line at impact. You could putt sidesaddle (toe line perpendicular to your line) as long as you get the face back to perpendicular.
Personally I stand open. Sometimes a lot, sometimes a little. But I don't yank putts and I don't push putts when I'm confident of my line - my stroke gets the face perpendicular. Sometimes I have a weight issue (a little wristy) and sometimes if I'm not confident my hands will shut down the face (sending the ball off line to the pull side), but this is rare, and a product of not fully trusting my line.
if everything is square to the target line a simple rocking of the shoulders will send the ball towards the hole , why make things complicated?
if everything is square to the target line a simple rocking of the shoulders will send the ball towards the hole , why make things complicated?
IMO being comfortable and free to make a stroke is more important than being square. While all ballstriking is about having the face square to target at impact, it's at it's most decisive in putting. Having the right line and good pace is absolutely useless unless you can get that face back to square.
Now, I'll agree with you that being setup square is fantastic if your setup allows you to consistently return the face to square at impact and makes you feel comfortable as well. My point is that comfort > square. It could be argued, I guess, that I setup square and hold my putter open. Either way, I'm 98% dead certain that my ball will start on my line. I'm much more comfortable with one facet open than setup dead square, is all.
IMO being comfortable and free to make a stroke is more important than being square. While all ballstriking is about having the face square to target at impact, it's at it's most decisive in putting. Having the right line and good pace is absolutely useless unless you can get that face back to square.
Now, I'll agree with you that being setup square is fantastic if your setup allows you to consistently return the face to square at impact and makes you feel comfortable as well. My point is that comfort > square. It could be argued, I guess, that I setup square and hold my putter open. Either way, I'm 98% dead certain that my ball will start on my line. I'm much more comfortable with one facet open than setup dead square, is all.
i only answered this thread because i was standing closed to the target line and when the pro pointed this out on a putting lesson and corrected it , i improved my putting, so i thought i would share my experiance.hope it helped rudi999
Comment