arcing vs. straight back and thru putting

hfhjr · January 27, 2009

I use a Wilson 8802 like putter which is toe down and I think my stroke is more of an arcing stroke which is supposed to be more suited to a toe down putter. I generally am a good long putter for my handicap, but when I putt badly it is always short putting and nothing consistent- some pulls and some pushes.Any thoughts?

**Stacey_E** · January 27, 2009

I use a Wilson 8802 like putter which is toe down and I think my stroke is more of an arcing stroke which is supposed to be more suited to a toe down putter. I generally am a good long putter for my handicap, but when I putt badly it is always short putting and nothing consistent- some pulls and some pushes.Any thoughts?

By toe down, I'm guessing you mean a flatter lie? I played for 3 or 4 years with a 33" putter with the lie 4 degrees flat. I tried to go back and through. I'm not sure I always did go straight back and through, but I did have fairly good results. I was playing a Craze-E because it helped me align those short putts better. I was nearly automatic from inside 5 feet. And on my best days that auto-zone went out to 8+ feet.

Now I've went back to a 35" blade type putter. I'm now dipping my toe in the Stan Utley pool. Video clips here and online articles there. I haven't committed to a book purchase yet. One thing he advocates is letting the putter arc like you do, but keeping the face square to that arc; it's not really the classic open-square-closed idea. I think that is the idea? My point is, maybe you (we) should concentrate on two things on those short putts.... 1. alignment, alignment, alignment 2. not letting the face rotate too much/too little and thus bringing wrist timing into the equation I'm still working on my new stroke so I'm kinda in the same boat as you. I haven't been able to play much lately with our weather. Hopefully we can both groove those short putts soon. Good Luck!

**DaveLeeNC** · January 27, 2009

I use a Wilson 8802 like putter which is toe down and I think my stroke is more of an arcing stroke which is supposed to be more suited to a toe down putter. I generally am a good long putter for my handicap, but when I putt badly it is always short putting and nothing consistent- some pulls and some pushes.Any thoughts?

IMHO this is (most likely) not going to be an equipment problem (or at least that isn't where I would look first).

I would start with alignment (being sure that your putterface AND your body are square to your intended line). Next I would pay very close attention to your hands. In my case an amount of 'hand flip' that is almost not detectable can cause pulls (and then you compensate leading to a push). dave ps. It has never been obvious to me that face balanced vs. toe down putters really matters that much WRT different putting strokes. But then again I am not a good putter, so maybe I should be ignored

hfhjr · January 28, 2009

Thanks, I agree about alignment, but it's harder than you would think to fine tune alignment on short putts.

hfhjr · January 28, 2009

Thanks. I did not mean to suggest that the problem was an equipment problem. I wonder if on short putts I am sometimes too conscious of arcing open and then because on the short backswing on a short putt, I either can't let the face square or Iovercompensate for the arc and over close the face withmy right hand.

**Stacey_E** · January 28, 2009

Thanks. I did not mean to suggest that the problem was an equipment problem. I wonder if on short putts I am sometimes too conscious of arcing open and then because on the short backswing on a short putt, I either can't let the face square or Iovercompensate for the arc and over close the face withmy right hand.

I knew what you meant. I think that could be the problem. I think I'm still going to force myself into a back and through putt on the short ones. I suppose that depends on your definition of "short". I call it inside 5 feet. I like to imagine a gutter, like on a house, with the ball funneling to the hole and my club face following straight down that line. Of course I only like to use this imagery on those short putts.

PROCEED WITH CAUTION>>>>ADVICE MAY NOT BE SOUND

Also I'll take a little less backstroke. It gives me less time/room to get the clubhead moving off line. Then I use a little longer follow through. Putting the short ones this way helps me stay on line and accelerate the putter head through. To practice this, I'll place the head directly behind the ball where the face is barely touching. Then from that static position, I roll some putts by just going forward with no back stroke at all. It really grooves the feeling of accelarating down the line and rolling the ball as opposed to hitting it.

**uttexas** · January 28, 2009

depends what feels good. Putting, imo, is 95% mental/feel and 5% technique. Look at all the great putters and their vastly different putting styles.

To answer your question, for me straight back and through makes sense, but is too technically difficult to pull off. In order to do this, you need to make tiny, perfect adjustments to make the putter move in a straight line. I tried for 3 years to make putts using this method, and it does not work for me.

Small arc putter path with long belly putter is the way to go for me. I agree with Tom Watsons "Getting up and down" 40 yards and in putting theory.

**Snake** · January 28, 2009

Not long ago I was reading too many golf tips and over-analyzing everything and was getting more confused than ever about how I should be putting. Eventually I said screw all that, grabbed my putter, closed my eyes and just let the club swing naturally over and over and over. Not even hitting a ball, just swinging the putter. Then I started hitting balls, not aiming for anything, just hitting balls. Now I don't worry about someone says I should be doing because my putting stroke feels great and it all comes down reading greens and alignment.

**ugottabjoshinme** · February 5, 2009

Hi all.
I am new to this site and fairly new to golf itself. This will be my third season playing golf, last season was my first serious one. I have improved my ball striking a lot, but I am losing a ton of shots on the green. While playing 9 holes, it is common for me to 3 putt 5-6 greens. Does anybody have any advice on the best putting style for a new player? I always thought that straight back straight through was really the only way to do it, and this idea of arc putting is relatively new to me. I currently have a face balanced putter, so in my mind SBST would work best with it. Can one arc putt with this type of putter, or do you need a toe heavy one so that it opens and closes during the swing? Anything you guys got for me would be great.

**Jenks465** · February 5, 2009

I tend to think of the blade going straight-back and through on any putt of six feet or less, as your not making a long enough swing for the putter to have an arc without making it almost imposible to time the squaring of the blade. Anything longer and the putter will naturally swing a touch inside due to the longer swing but it's not worth worrying about the exact amount, as you'll destroy all your natural athletic ability. For the guy just starting out i'd suggest that you spend 30 minutes 3 times a week practicing with the first ten minutes being holing three and six footers working on technique, the second ten minutes hitting long putts (30-45 feet and try to hole them), and the last ten minutes just going around the putting green with one ball and try to play nine holes in 15 putts or less. Hope that helps, it's worked for me the last couple of years!

**ryan772** · August 5, 2015

I went looking cause i figured there was a thread for this. Ive beenusing the straight back and thru, but was messing around and used the arcing method and it felt more comfortable and my putts seems to come closer even from a longer distance. Would love to get some new feedback on this.

**ryan772** · August 5, 2015

Went looking and found another thread and got the answers i was looking for. No wonderi never felt i could a longer putt or really put it close. Too many moving parts with sbst.

**Hatchman** · August 5, 2015

@ryan772 I'm interested in your progress in the the method change or adjustment. I practice putting constantly and realize I benefit more from a slightly arched released blade putter stroke. One of my straightening out drills (plus it works on tempo and speed) is to roll three balls across a fairly flat putting green from 20-30 paces. This will help mindset weight of stroke for use later. BTY I have my putter fitted. Then I stroke the first one normal and subsequent putts with a deliberate toe release. I stroke ball after ball of different lengths working down to my short put work. 1/2 to 1 hour. I use my 7i putter from 6-10' to help simulate the feeling sometimes. Just my way of practicing. Keep posting, I'll try and get a picture or two, but I may have some.

**saevel25** · August 5, 2015

I went looking cause i figured there was a thread for this. Ive beenusing the straight back and thru, but was messing around and used the arcing method and it felt more comfortable and my putts seems to come closer even from a longer distance. Would love to get some new feedback on this.

Everyone naturally putts on an arc. It's how the putter moves because of how we align. Trying to do anything otherwise is adding complexity to a simple golf movement.

**ryan772** · August 5, 2015

Yea the local teaching pro at a golf couse i frequent about 4 months ago pretty much had me go from arc to sbst and i didnt have much knowledge so i started using it. Never felt comfortable from more then 4 feet out, pushes and pulls. Never consistent misses. Even on lag putts i was using sbst and i struggled with aim and distance. I finished 18 the other day after a long lag putt and had noone behind me so i was fooling around and started used more of an arc stroke and it was withen inches. Went around the green from various distances abd was putting it withen a foot or two everytime. Really excited to practice this and play a round to see if it helps. Generally my practice to work on my putting i like to start of with about 5 lag putts of various lengths from about 20 to 40 feet. Generally not aiming at a hole but at the end of the green. Just trying to get distance down. Then ill work on 3-5 foot putts til i feel i have a good stroke. Then ill place 3 balls 1 behind another but at about 4 foot intervals. I like to do that for flat surfaces and when theres break so i can practice speed control.

**saevel25** · August 5, 2015

One thing i've learned from my incremental putting changes over the last two years. Incremental in being small tweaks when needed. I putt best when I just hit the ball. I really don't think of anything. I just go through the routine. Then it's set up and hit the putt.

**ryan772** · August 5, 2015

I dont 3 putt much, usually on 30+ putts, or very slopy pin locations where i dont start the ball high enough. I average about 32-34 putts a round. Lately ive been chipping in a buch of putts from around the green. What hurts my putting the most is i have a horrible bump and run game so im generally using a pitch even when im a few yards off the green but the holes 30-45 feet away. On slow greens i dont get any rollout and will leave myself 15 footers when it should be 5-6 feet.

**Hatchman** · August 5, 2015

I dont 3 putt much, usually on 30+ putts, or very slopy pin locations where i dont start the ball high enough. I average about 32-34 putts a round. Lately ive been chipping in a buch of putts from around the green. What hurts my putting the most is i have a horrible bump and run game so im generally using a pitch even when im a few yards off the green but the holes 30-45 feet away. On slow greens i dont get any rollout and will leave myself 15 footers when it should be 5-6 feet.

Ok, there are two areas I practice hours on. Short chipping and longer lag putting as described. If I have 30 putts I pull hair out. Today was 27. My weakness is my approach shot which is getting better due to my improved driving distance. Approach now hitting more greens so putting numbers will most likely change.

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arcing vs. straight back and thru putting

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