Practice can be more effective if attention is paid to details. Once the principles are part of your routine, it can be better if they are applied automatically without conscious thought. In fact, a book on tennis notes that if your opponent compliments you on some aspect of your game, you are more apt to think about it as you are doing it and override the better job your well-prepared subconscious part of your brain can do. Golfers are just as likely to mess up their game if they try to think about their golf swing once they are ready.
USE OF A PUTTMETER OR A LINE LEVEL
Since a Puttmeter probably won't be available to you, a line level, that has inverted V-shaped supports at both ends, should be as effective, although not as comfortable in your pocket. It can help guide your choice of line to the hole when on the green. It also can help you estimate the length of putting stroke needed to go the distance to the hole.
Few of us play on- perfectly manicured greens of constant grass length and windless day that are neither wet nor overly dry. So adjustments may be needed for wind, wetness, grain and length of grass, uphill or downhill lies in addition to selection of a line for slope of the green if you are not on the uphill-downhill line.
Some aspects of the adjustments needed are:
WIND- adjust the line toward the wind proportional to the wind speed at ground level. Wind is much less of a factor in putting than it is in driving.
WETNESS- the wetter the green the harder the stroke needed, but the less correction for break needed.
GRAIN- a harder stroke is needed against the grain. Any grooves or lines from equipment will tend to move the ball to a parallel line to the grooves. Grain is the uniform bend in grass, usually due to mowing, the ball will tend to be forced in the direction the grass tips are pointing.
LENGTH OF GRASS- longer grass requires a harder stroke but less adjustment for break.
UPHILL OR DOWNHILL LIE- an uphill position of the cup results in less break than the same slope with the cup in a downhill position. Of coarse, directly uphill or downhill lines mean no break is assumed for such a location.
OPTICAL ILLUSIONS- various aspect of a golf course often include lakes, hills, or other features that can make a level green seem tilted or make a tilt look level. Use of the line level may make you aware of the distortion.
ADJUST YOUR LINE LEVEL Select a position for it on the shaft of your putter lying on a flat floor or table (the line level will read the same regardless of the direction the club is positioned if the floor is level).
On the green, position the club on the line to the hole (C, below) and then at a right angle to that line (B, below) and note the position of the air bubble in the the level for both positions.
Amount of movement of the bubble from the center of the level toward either end can be used to estimate how far the putting line should be set from the line to the hole as indicated by the diagram below. The diagram shows only the adjustment for right to left break. For bubble positions to the left of center the adjustments would be a similar amount to the left. Although the putter is used to measure the break in the diagram below, one could play like Monk, the almost psychic TV detective, and use the fingers of your hands at arms length to do the estimate.
The angle for your line is the same regardless of the distance to the pin. If there are multiple slopes of differing directions just choose the intermediate value. Distance is not a factor in line direction. You can prove this to yourself by putting numerous balls along the same line but different distances as indicated in the sketch below.
On extremely sloped greens you may do better by putting toward the line directly up-slope from the hole with only enough power to reach the line if there were no break. As indicated by the diagram below, the ball will move almost straight down slope toward the end.
The slower the movement of the ball, the greater the effect of slope. That is the reason for the varying lines needed for fast or slow greens, regardless of cause, and uphill or downhill lies.
Don't forget to take flag out of the hole before you putt. I left them in in the diagrams so you could tell which was the ball and which was the hole.
PUTTING
A pro could give you better advice about your putting stroke than I can. But I used to love to putt just using my wrists. Once I started using my arms and putter as a unit with no wrist movement, and adjusting the power by the length of a pendulum like swing (rather than adjusting the effort of the wrist movement), my ability to putt the appropriate distance improved markedly. As you can infer from the diagrams, if you plan to putt beyond the hole to minimize break at the end it requires a slightly different line. It can leave you with a tougher second putt than getting the distance just right. There may be a volcano-like hole (soil around the hole slightly raised, perhaps due to setting a new hole position or feet trampling the soil more a few inches from the hole?). Too much speed is even more likely to prevent the ball from dropping, even if the line is good.
Observing the different factors and their affects will usually make your subconscious optimize your performance sooner than will cussing your luck. Good luck with the rapidly approaching golf season.
Joe Engemann Kalamazoo, Michigan February 1, 2015
