Putter length and lie question. Pushing putts, eyes are inside ball.

Need some help guys. Been reading what I can, but not 100% sure I have my head on right. I am ordering a Kari Lajosi for my wife. I need to get the specs to Kari soon. On an island (Nantucket) where we work, no golf shop. My wife is left handed and this is the source of some confusion for me.

My wife's current putter is a Ping Karsten B60 black dot (4 deg loft and 70 deg lie, 34" putter). Reading on Geoff Mangum's site, he suggest most folks under 6' tall would benefit from a shorter and more upright putter. Watching my wife intently today at the practice putting green, she has her eyes 4-5" inside the line of the ball. Her body position looks good, bending from hips (not waist), her arms look to be in good position, etc.. However, her eyes are too far inside the ball.

Stroke looks pretty darn good for a beginner. 85% of the time, she gets a nice stroke and the ball goes on her intended aim line. Her misses are always (100% of the time) to the left of the hole. Keep in mind she is left handed so this would be a push for her. I confirmed that the ball at times is hitting toward the toe from center 1/2-3/4" while using impact tape. The stroke needs fine tuning, but I am wondering how changing putter specs will effect this.

My thought is to order her putter at 33" (rather than the current 34") and also to order the new putter 2 degrees upright (72 rather than the current 70). Does this sound logical based on her tendencies? I wanted some input before telling Kari the specs for my wife's first custom. Any thoughts?


-Dan

Any chance you could get an in-person fitting from someone?

Last year, I won a putter fitting from Golf Galaxy. My Ping Pal was playing a little iffy, but the putter fitting changes straightened things out nicely. Now if I putt poorly, it's operator error.

This putter fitting did wonders for me. Any chance you can get her a personal fitting on the mainland, especially with a custom putter?

In theory, yes, I could. But we won't be off work and able to get off island till Friday. I am ordering the putter tonight. It is being made in Australia and to ensure timely shipping for putting under tree, it needs to be completed by Nov 25th. This being a Christmas present puts a sense of urgency on it. It is not ideal I admit. Mostly I am just hoping to get her eyes more over the ball, a fundamental in putting for sure. However, I am uncertain on the relationship with the length and lie required to do so. At 6'6", I have a putter OAL of 36.25" and 3 deg up. Much of what I have learned for my putting style is of little usage to what a 5'7" woman would need. Thanks for any additional thoughts.


-Dan

I wouldn't order the putter 2 degrees upright unless you know for sure. I would get the standard 33" and then check the lie (does it rest on the toe or heel). I just had my putter bent a degree flatter for 7 bucks, and all my irons are fitted at one up. I would just try it first then bend it as the shorter shaft may be all that is required.

Hi Dan,

I have hooked up with a putting fitter on another site and he is helping me with an online fitting with a series of questions, but one thing he mentioned in one of his emails is that in doing his putting fittings, he's found that over 60% of the people have not had their eyes directly over the ball in order to properly line up their putts straight. If you would like to get in touch with him, PM me and I can give you more information about him. Also, in Stan Utley's Art of Putting book, he says (I've also heard other instructors say this as well) is that the eyes should be slightly inside of the the ball. A drill to check this is to take your normal address stance and drop a ball from the bridge of your nose. The ball should land about an inch or so inside and behind the ball, so your wife may not be TOO bad in her setup.

Coutour putters have an online fitting system on there site

Odyssey has an online fitting that you can go thru. I took it and one of the recommended putters is one I currently use and I have already had it cut to the correct length. That was oddly satisfying. How often does that happen?

Get her to stand closer to the ball and then see what happens.

I have spoke with Bruce, I assume that is who you are referring to. He is quite against the eyes over the ball. I tend to agree with him for the most part, but I don't like the distance her eyes are off the ball currently. I would be pleased to get her eyes 1-2" inside the ball, but no further. Then there is eye dominance which will determine much of this. Then putting style and such. We are early in the game and have much to work on. I just want to start her off in a good place. Further testing and lessons will determine the finer points. As of now, 33" putter and 71 deg lie is sounding about right. But I know this will likely not hold up over time. For the sake of ordering a custom putter, I just want a good base. Based on her current putter specs and stroke, I think a more upright and shorter putter would be a plus. However, I have been wrong before. Ha ha.... -Dan

I only read to the part were you said you were ording your wife a Lajosi putter.
Get it and you will never look back, these putters are the BEST on the market!

Yes, I was referring to Bruce. He's only asked me step one of his process, so I can't come to a conclusion as to whether or not he's against having the eyes over the ball at address. He actually sent me 3 images and asked which I was more like and stated "keep in mind neither one is incorrect". The figures he sent had one with the eyes inside the line of the ball, another on line with the ball, and the last one over the line of the ball.

Can I ask another question? In your OP, you stated that 85% of her putts are straight and online with the putter she has with her misses being 15%. I personally think that those stats are pretty good. I don't even want to know how often I'm offline. Have you had her try and choke down on her putter a little bit and stand closer to see what type of stats she will have then? Just a thought...