High Lofted Putter?

[imtomtomim]

I was just recalling a fun experiment I did a while ago on the putting greens using a 3 iron.  I hit some long (30-60') putts with it by delofting the face and I found my distance control to be superb.  From there, I kind of made nothing of it, I don't even have room for the 3 iron anymore, I bought the hybrid because they were going out of business and I felt guilty so I gotta use it.

It was definitely the short hop and skid which really helped me judge when the putt was going to break and how fast, and because the ball would leave the ground for a few feet just hovering, it wouldn't take the first bit of break.  It rolls out like a chip, I kind of like that.  I was wondering if anyone has had any experience with something that pursued this idea, like a 10* or 15* putter.  I'm not sure about this on short putts though, it could work, or maybe you would need 2 putters!  Try this out and tell me what you think.

[Fourputt]

Just a lead in note:  The maximum loft allowed for a putter is 10°.  A putter with a higher loft than that would have to made to conform with the rules for regular clubs - basically it becomes a chipper.

I wouldn't be interested in such a thing because it's been proven that the best putter is the one which gets the ball rolling soonest.  Any bouncing or skidding adds variables into the trajectory which make it less accurate overall.  If your theory was valid, then everyone would be doing it that way.

[HackerD]

However, in his book The Art of Putting, Stan Utley advocates a putter with 5* loft, which is more than the typical.  Promotes rolling over skidding I believe.

[Fourputt]

  HackerD said:

Originally Posted by HackerD

However, in his book The Art of Putting, Stan Utley advocates a putter with 5* loft, which is more than the typical.  Promotes rolling over skidding I believe.

That depends totally on the stroke.    Higher loft would tend to cause more back spin which is inevitably going to cause skidding before the ball starts rolling (think of a pitching wedge versus a 3 iron).  I have to dispute his contention.  I haven't done any testing to confirm or refute my belief, only going on my knowledge of physics.

[imtomtomim]

Hey Fourputt, thanks for answering.

Under conventional wisdom, putting the ball on the ground as soon as possible removes any excess variables right?  But how is flying the ball over the ground not removing variables, such as initial break?  I understand that more things could go wrong with the stroke of the ball, but I found the skid to be extremely predictable and helpful for controlling distance.

I also do not think that this is a technique for those who have trouble getting the club to the ball.

When you say that it has been proven, I haven't seen any experimentation that demonstrates this theory.  I have only seen how the normal putter lofts can promote the ball rolling earlier, which is fine and dandy when you're closer to the hole.  However, you can't tell me that 60 footer is not going to skid.  If your putt doesn't skid, it's not going to make it (unless downhill).

The greater problem here is that you guys are talking about getting the ball rolling asap.  I'm not looking for that.  I am looking to embrace  backspin and instead judge speed by the release of the ball.  Have you ever met a golfer who would prefer to chip it than putt?  This experiment would probably be for those guys.

[Fourputt]

  imtomtomim said:

Originally Posted by imtomtomim

When you say that it has been proven, I haven't seen any experimentation that demonstrates this theory.  I have only seen how the normal putter lofts can promote the ball rolling earlier, which is fine and dandy when you're closer to the hole.  However, you can't tell me that 60 footer is not going to skid.  If your putt doesn't skid, it's not going to make it (unless downhill).

The greater problem here is that you guys are talking about getting the ball rolling asap.  I'm not looking for that.  I am looking to embrace  backspin and instead judge speed by the release of the ball.  Have you ever met a golfer who would prefer to chip it than putt?  This experiment would probably be for those guys.

Any putting guru will tell you to get the ball rolling as fast as possible.  I've read it so many times I can't even point to any specific incident.  If this wasn't so, don't you think that you would see the pros using lofted putters?  They don't want to put the variability of the ball bouncing and spinning into the equation.

And yes, I have seen players who preferred to chip rather than putt longer shots, but that was only because they never learned to putt.  I used to be in that group, but when I learned how to putt, I reversed that opinion, strongly.  Once again, good players want the ball on the ground and rolling as soon as possible because it's easier to control and to predict what is going to happen.  You don't see pros using lofted putters, or chipping on the green except in very unusual circumstances.  A chip type of shot is never going to be as dependable as a putt.