Line up the ball on the green?

I really didn't know where to put this question but what is the purpose of picking up your ball on the green and then doing what the pros do of what seems to be lining the ball up? Are they lining up the printed text on ball with the line they're going to take when they hit or what? Does it make it easier to make the putt that way? I'm confused.

Thanks,

Robert

To clean the ball.

And, yes, many people use lines on the ball to line up their puts.

Yep that's what I do. I mark it, clean it, and line it up with the lines on the ball. (Titleist).

Now if it's a tap it, no need for that.

yes, thats what they do.  i prefer to turn the ball so theres nothing showing.  the lines and writing throw me off.

As I close my eyes during the stroke, it doesn't really matter for me.

I make a straight line on my ball over the alignment markings.  Mostly because I tend to see things crooked in my dominant eye and always feel that I'm aiming off line otherwise.  If I line it up and trust it, it works best for me.  I've overode the line on occasion, and I end up missing right by quite a bit if the putts are long.  Once I'm lined up I look at a spot a couple of inches in front of the ball on that line.  Takes all the anticipation out of the hit and keeps me from sneaking a look at my putter on the way back but that's a whole other story.

Another thing I do. Is when I tee it up, I also use the lines on the ball pointed at my target line. It helps me align my stance/feet.

This is what I do now... I use to line the ball up but missed a lot of putts... I noticed that I'd get frustrated and then stop lining it up and I'd make a few more putts, so now I mark it, clean it, and then place it so I don't see anything but white and go...

I do this as well.  Always was afraid that without actually pulling a Villegas or laying flat on the ground I would run the risk of not quite getting that line pointing in the right direction ... and then I've missed the putt before I even addressed it. Unless, of course, I also misread it (which I do often) and the two counteract each other.

In some cases, 2 wrongs make a right.

I see. Now that I understand it, I think I'll give it a shot next round.

Thanks!

I'm the same way...................

Most AM golfers who try to use lines are probably doing themselves a disservice.  Not to mention slowing play.............

What about those of us who like to play in the afternoon???

Pros (and regular golfers) mark their ball in order to clean it and/or line it up using the line. You also have to mark it so that somone else can putt their ball which I believe is a rule. I personally use the line on the ball to align myself because when I am putting, I can focus on my stroke and only that. I do the aligning before hand and I will trust that and just focus on my putting stroke. It works for me because there are less things to worry about.

i've done both.. I had a hard time setting up to lines, and i line up the putt on a line, then i really got to honed in on the line i forgot about the pace. So now i dont like to see any markings..

I guess it is a matter of personal choice, but I have settled on having the two parallel lines that you can see in my avatar picture.  I bought a plastic template that has the parallel grooves to use with a Sharpie marker.  My eye(s) 'see' the desired track better with the two lines than with a single line. It does require that I mark my ball, orient the ball, then take away the marker.  This takes a little more time, but makes me focus on the track instead of rushing to putt the ball.  My putter has a line on the top of the head which I address with that line bisecting the two parallel lines on the ball.  This has gotten pretty automatic for me and seems to be a big help to me.

it takes feel to be a good putter.  No line on the ball will give that....................

This is a joke, right?  It'd be kind of cool if you were serious and had so grooved a perfect putting stroke that once you lined up correctly having your eyes open could only hurt!

I'm in this camp.  In fact, I do this on the tee too.  Not really necessary as I don't find the writing on the ball distracting me on approach shots, but once I realized that some guys line up the writing or markings on the ball when they're teeing off, I started thinking about it standing over tee shots and it was distracting me, so I just make sure I can only see white now.