Dear
Friends,
The
October 2005 issue of Golf Magazine included two items that raised the question
of "what else does Dr. Putt know that Golf Magazine is just figuring
out?" Just in case you missed them, Dr. Putt wants to point them out! To
prevent this last newsletter of 2005 from being a complete exercise in hubris,
Dr. Putt will exhibit a small measure of humility and discuss something
inspired by a piece on the Golf Channel.
So here
are our three topics for this newsletter.
1)
"The New Way to Putt?" Not Exactly New!
2)
"Be Your Own Stimpmeter" and Dr. Putt's
"Reference Putt"
3)
Rehearsal Swings and the Actual Swings -- A World of Difference
1)
"The New Way to Putt?" Not Exactly New!
In the
October 2005 issue of Golf Magazine is an exclusive article featured on the
cover entitled "The New Way to Putt." Well, it is not exactly new. On
page 26 of "5 Steps to Better Putting," the book that sponsors this
newsletter and the "Dear Dr. Putt" website, it is suggested that
players develop a feeling for distance before every round by putting
with her or his eyes while LOOKING AT THE HOLE rather than at the ball. The
book adds that this is a "good practice exercise."
Obviously
if this technique works in practice, it could be used on the course in actual
play. Dr. Putt will concede that actually playing this way is not explicitly in
the book. He will also concede that the testing performed by Golf Magazine
lends scientific evidence that this is a good method of improving distance. Empirical
evidence is certainly worth having, even if Dr. Putt was pretty certain that
this would work in the first place. The testing indicated that the average
player would reduce error by about 25% on both long (28 to 43 feet) and short
puts (3 to 8 feet) (see p. 97).
But if
you are a relatively good player with the short stick (only one or so
three-putts a round and the number of putts consistently in the low 30's), then
this method could make you worse. Golf Magazine's test group included players
with handicaps from 8 to 36 with 20 in the experimental group and 20 in the
control group. Dr. Putt would like to see the relationship between improvement
and handicap. But given the overall small size of the sample, the n's at each handicap would be too small for a statistically
significant relationship. Dr. Putt would strongly suspect that the improvement
falls dramatically at lower handicaps.
The
potential problem is hitting the ball off center when looking at the hole. A
heel hit will make the putt miss short to the left and a toe hit will make the
putt miss short to the right. Mishits are likely to
be a greater problem for low handicap players who normally strike the ball near
center on their putter face. The weaker player, who rarely hits it on center even
when looking at the ball, probably does not do much worse in where she or he
strikes the ball while looking at the hole. The added benefits of acceleration
and hitting to where one is looking more than compensate for mishits of weaker players. Perhaps Golf Magazine will do
another study in a year or so testing this hypothesis!
The
bottom line for Dr. Putt is that he will continue to use this method as a
practice method, not on the course.
However,
if you lack confidence on short putts, at distances where you have difficulty
accelerating through the ball, you might settle on a compromise position. Putt
traditionally--looking at the ball--on longer putts, but look a the hole on short putts. The longer the backswing the more
likely you will experience a misshit.
Exactly
where the dividing line is something you will have to decide. Dr. Putt would
surmise that the dividing line would be at about 6 feet, or two paces. But on
fast greens it would be somewhat longer, possibly 10-15 feet. You may have to
set a rule for yourself each time you play while on the practice green. For
example, it might be that you will decide that all putts beyond three paces you
will look at the ball and all shorter ones you will look at the hole.
This
might be a worthwhile project on which to experiment on your living room rug
over the holidays and cold winter weather in the months to come!
2)
"Be Your Own Stimpmeter" and Dr. Putt's
"Reference Putt"
On page
101 of the same October 2005 issue of Golf Magazine is a short article entitled
"How to gauge the speed: Be Your Own Simpmeter."
It suggests taking a one foot stance and then a backstroke of the same distance
on a flat part of the green and hitting the ball normally with five balls, and
then noting the average distance. This tells you how fast greens are that
particular day on that particular course.
Great
idea, except that you could have learned this from Dr. Putt in the "Dear
Dr. Putt" letter entitled "Distance Control: Reference Putt
Method," which was posted about two years ago. It can be found at:
http://www.drputt.com/deardrputt/DistanceReference.php
Here is
what Dr. Putt wrote then -- direct quotation: "The reference putt is one
that you can do with ones eyes closed at a tempo that seems natural and with
little to no effort. It has about a 12 inch backswing. For Dr. Putt, this
backswing extends to about even with the large toe on his rear foot.
Incidentally, the tempo one establishes here is one that should be maintained
on all other putts. Putting speed is controlled by the length of the backswing,
not the force at which the ball is struck. This is also discussed in the
"Dear Dr. Putt" letter on "Tempo in Putting."
To
establish the reference putt, take several balls (Dr. Putt uses three) to a
level part of the practice green, assume your putting stance, and take a few
practice swings, perhaps a couple with eyes closed. The backswing should be
about 12 inches, as mentioned, whatever distance feels natural without feeling
one has to make any real effort to extend any further. It should be a stroke
that one feels can be repeated over and over again. Then putt each of the three
balls without looking up or changing your stance. If you have the repeating
stroke memorized, all the balls should be within a foot of each other. If not,
repeat the process until you get them all close together and until you have
confidence that you can putt the ball that distance every time using that
stroke. For Dr. Putt, on his home course on most days, this distance is 21
feet, seven paces. Step off and note your distance.
Repeat
this process before you play any round of golf. Make sure that you use a level
part of the putting green. To ensure this, putt the balls in one direction, and
then putt them back in the other. The average of the two is your reference putt
distance. Of course, if you are really on a level place, there should be little
difference (though the grain of the grass can make a little difference, but
that is another matter for another letter). Of course, this distance will
change on any given day and any given course. So you must re-establish your
reference putt distance before you play each time.
What you
now have, before you step on the first green, is a putting distance you KNOW
you can hit any time you need it. Judge all putts in relation to this distance.
For example, if it is downhill at your reference putt distance, you putt with a
little shorter backswing. Uphill? A
little longer backswing. With the grain of the grass?
A little shorter backswing, and so on. Is the putt a
little longer than you reference putt distance? Then take a little longer
backswing, and visa versa.
Thus,
you need to learn to note all the factors that can affect the required speed of
the putt (slope, grain, moisture, hard or brown spots on the green,
and even wind). You step off the distance on each putt as you walk the line of
the putt, so you know exactly how it compares to your reference putt distance.
Learning how to factor in all these things will not come instantly, but you
will improve over time. But with a reference putt, you at least have somewhere
to start each time, something you can count on and have confidence in. And that
is more than most players have!"
End of
long quotation. There is more, but you will have to go to the letter to get it
all.
Dr. Putt
cannot help wonder where Golf Magazine got their idea for their much shorter
article. Perhaps they just had the same insight. Dr. Putt will leave this for
his dear readers to decide.
3)
Rehearsal Swings and the Actual Swings -- A World of Difference
A few
weeks ago as Dr. Putt was channel surfing he briefly stopped at the Golf
Channel, where one can get enough advice to choke an elephant and paralyze even
the best of swings. But that is another story. What caught Dr. Putt's attention
was a piece by Dave Pelz documenting the difference
between practice swings and actual swings of golfers at varying levels of
skill.
The
piece had three points. The first was on putts -- players with lower handicaps
kept their putter face square to the line of the putt on the follow-through.
Higher handicap players let the toe get ahead of the heel -- rolling the head
around. This suggests that the in-line putting stroke is strongly associated
with lower handicaps while the arced putting stroke is more likely to be found
among players with higher handicaps. Dr. Putt and Dave Pelz
agree on the in-line stroke -- a subject of many Dear Dr. Putt letters and
previous newsletters.
The
second point was one of rhythm and movement. Better players rarely froze over
the ball for more than a moment -- their routine built rhythmic motion into the
setup and swing. They were almost in constant motion, but motion with a
definite tempo and smooth rhythm. Watch professional players and note that
their routines rarely involve freezing over the ball. Dr. Putt has long
observed that this same trait is characteristic of good foul shooters in
basketball.
The
third point, and the point of emphasis here, is that while players of many different
skill levels can have decent practice swings, better players have actual swings
that look more like their practice swings. High handicap players have swings
that bear faint resemblance to the practice swing. Dr. Putt means REALLY REALLY DIFFERENT! The videos were dramatic. High handicap
players might not have even bothered to take a practice swing, because what
they did over the ball was not even in the same universe!
So here
is the lesson and something to give a try. On the practice range, take a good
practice swing behind the ball. Then go through your routine and hit the ball
focusing ONLY on how similar your actual swing is to the practice swing. Focus
in particular on tempo and finish. When they both feel the same, Dr. Putt will
bet that you are hitting the ball better. Something else to work on over the
winter!
Remember
to check the “Dear Dr. Putt web site” for all your putting questions - a search
feature allows you to look up almost any subject you
like.
Go to
http://www.drputt.com/deardrputt/deardrputt.php
Past
newsletters are also on the index, so check back there if you missed one. They
will also come up using the search feature. They are linked at the bottom of
the “Dear Dr. Putt” Webpage. Or you can go to them directly at
http://www.drputt.com/Newsletters/
If you
have not yet discovered the many advantages of the EOB putting system, check it
out. As most of you know, the EOB system really works!
And it
makes a great gift for the holidays!!!
Go to
http://www.drputt.com/overview.php
Dr. Putt
wishes you a warm winter and happy holidays.
Best
regards,
Dr. Putt
PS--If
you want to be removed from Dr. Putt’s newsletter list, please just reply to
this email and ask. He will remove you - really!