Putting is one of those things that simultaneously seems so simple and yet so complex. I am sure that you, like me, have said this should be so easy?! But, for some reason there are days where it couldn’t seem any harder. The main reason I see people have good days is a good consistent setup position, and the reason I have seen people have bad putting days is a setup that was not ideal for the person. I believe that if you get your setup in the correct place putting becomes much simpler and easier to repeat.

In this article, I am going to talk about what I believe to be the most important pieces of the setup for putting. If you can identify the positions that best suit you and how to routinely get into that position you will have a better chance for success more often.

The first key to a consistent putting stroke is the grip. The grip is what controls the path the putter swings, the clubface position, and the amount of clubface rotation. What is important to know about the putting grip is that the position in which you put your hands on the club directly corresponds to how well you putt. There are many different types of ways to grip the putter, for example, you have conventional (where the lead hand is on top), you have lead hand low, and you also have variations like the “claw”, “pencil grip” and others. The common theme behind these grips is that you want the pressure your hands apply to the grip to be on the sides of the grip, this allows the putter to travel more linear on your target line. When the hands apply pressure on the top or the bottom of the grip you will start to get more twist of the face and arc of the putter.

Left to right- The “Claw”, Lead Hand Low, Conventional

The steps to making sure that the hands are placed in the correct position on the grip is to make sure that the grip is resting into the palms of the hands, not the fingers. When the club rests in the fingers, the palm of your hand rotates on top causing the pressure that you apply to be more on top as opposed to the sides causing rotation. Once you have the club resting into the palms not the fingers, the way that you position your hands on the club (pictured above) is based on what gives YOU the best results.

The second key to being a good putter is making sure that your eyes are in the correct position in relation to the ball in order to see the target line the most efficient way for you. The conventional teaching of putting would tell you that you want your eyes to be right over top of the ball in order to be most efficient with your alignment. I don’t believe that that method suits everyone, I believe that some people need to have their eyes 1 inch inside the ball while others might need their eyes 3 inches inside the ball, it all depends how your eyes perceive the target.

There is an easy way to find out where your eyes need to be in relation to the ball. Take an alignment rod, ruler, or string and point it directly at the hole from 10 feet away. Without your putter in your hands, I would like you to set up to the alignment aid as if you were getting ready to hit a putt. Once you are in your putting setup I would like you to look down the alignment rod and see where your eyes perceive the alignment rod to be pointing in relation to where your eyes are located over the ball. For me when my eyes are directly over the ball, it looks as if that aid is pointing to the left of the target, but when in fact I know that it is pointing directly at the hole because I set it up from behind the alignment aid. When my eyes see a straight line, my eyes are 2 inches inside of the alignment rod, and I have come to know that through this test. Once you have figured out where your eyes need to be in relation to the ball that is where you then must build your stance around that point.

Eyes too close to the ball, giving the perception of the alignment rod pointing left of hole

Eyes too far from ball giving the perception of aim being too far right

Eyes in the right location to see the line

The last pieces to complete the setup is making sure that your weight is balanced on your feet and the ball position is forward of center. With the weight being balanced on your feet this ensures that you are balanced and have every ability to stay in your position while the putter swings back and through. If the weight is either too far forward, or too far back that could influence the path the putter swings. The ball position being forward of center ensures that the putter is swinging upward into the ball giving you a better opportunity to control the distance the putt rolls time after time.

Weight balanced on feet and eyes in the correct position in relation to ball

The keys highlighted above will put you in the positions where you need to be to have the best chance for success. I hope these ideas help you have more consistent days on the putting greens.

Give it a try!

A Proper Setup Is the Key to Good Putting