Line or No Line Putting

[Strat-Pack Rick]

45 minutes ago, Ernest Jones said:

I used to. Then I learned to understand what affected the way I aimed a putter and purchased one that I could aim properly. Most people are gaming a putter that they perceive to be open or closed when it is in fact square and that wreaks all kinds of havoc. Easiest way to test this is with s laser and a mirror. 

Now that I have a putter that I see as square when it is square, I just pick a spot on my line about 2 feet out to help me see my line and then putt my line. 

What putter are you using, if you dont mind saying ? I have an Odyssey Metal X Milled #6 and im doing way better than i used to with my old one

[David in FL]

No line.

[Ernest Jones]

27 minutes ago, Strat-Pack said:

What putter are you using, if you dont mind saying ? I have an Odyssey Metal X Milled #6 and im doing way better than i used to with my old one

Brand is irrelevant. What's important, is that for me to "see" a square putter head as "square", I need a heel shafted putter with about a shaft or so of offset and a blade profile. 

Previously I was using a Yes! mallet (Athena) that I couldn't aim to save my life. Laser and mirror proved that when I thought I was aiming dead square to the hole I was actually aiming WAY left. The only reason I ever sank anything was because I had taught myself to be fairly decent at pushing every putt to compensate for the faulty aim. 

This is a very personal thing, as others may struggle to aim my putter, but excel at aiming a mallet. You need to find the proper offset, shape and alignment markers that work with your eyes. 

The best way to do that is through an Edel putter fitter, but I've heard good things about Seemore putter fitters too. Or you can buy a laser and a small mirror and experiment with different putters, but that isn't very efficient.

 

tl;dr

not all putters will appear square to you when they are actually square. Your eyes are stupid. 

[Patch]

3 hours ago, newtogolf said:

I used to use the spinning devices to mark my balls but stopped after I found that running the same ball through the process multiple times resulted in multiple lines that were not very close in proximity.  If the device was working as advertised, the line should be consistent no matter how many times you run it through the process.   

I never had that problem. Then again I never spun the same ball more than once. Never felt the need to. I'd mark them, play them, and then put the ball in my shag bag. 

[Hardspoon]

I used to use a line on my ball to align my putts, but I did some experimentation and found that I wasn't great at perfectly aligning it with the target anyway. The diameter of the ball is just too small for the line to be long enough to be useful.

Now, I have an Edge putter fit exactly to work with my stance and my eyes, so the line would be pointless anyway.

 

[Strat-Pack Rick]

43 minutes ago, Ernest Jones said:

Brand is irrelevant. What's important, is that for me to "see" a square putter head as "square", I need a heel shafted putter with about a shaft or so of offset and a blade profile. 

Previously I was using a Yes! mallet (Athena) that I couldn't aim to save my life. Laser and mirror proved that when I thought I was aiming dead square to the hole I was actually aiming WAY left. The only reason I ever sank anything was because I had taught myself to be fairly decent at pushing every putt to compensate for the faulty aim. 

This is a very personal thing, as others may struggle to aim my putter, but excel at aiming a mallet. You need to find the proper offset, shape and alignment markers that work with your eyes. 

The best way to do that is through an Edel putter fitter, but I've heard good things about Seemore putter fitters too. Or you can buy a laser and a small mirror and experiment with different putters, but that isn't very efficient.

 

tl;dr

not all putters will appear square to you when they are actually square. Your eyes are stupid. 

Its funny you are saying this. My old putter , i had to feel as though i was pushing or that the cup was just right of square at set up.. Now i feel square and aim what feels down a square line. Before i really had to look at it as if the cup was out to right. That is so weird to me. I sure like my new putter its perfect (for me)

[alleztom]

No line. Tried it for a while and didn't like it. As per some here, I have a couple of practice balls at home with lines so I can see roll.

 

 

[thefinlex]

I use a line,my course has very fast greens so I like a good idea on my line rather than worrying about speed so much.I use 30in mallet putter so im always  right over the ball,one look at target and away she goes...slow play is usually all the mucking about actually getting to the green and then leaving clubs/trolley on wrong side of green for next hole so another wander about...ZzZzzzz

I'm happy for someone to study a putt,just get on with the rest of your game!

[dchoye]

I use the line. Not all the time . More so when I have fast sliding putt.  When I have problems with the line it was focusing too much on the line and not seeing the whole picture and the whole ball

[dchoye]

Thoughts about this again and the line works well on fast moving putts that move right to left for me. Again as long as I am not too focused entirely at the line. Sometimes I will look at the hole and see the line in my peripheral view 

For some reason fast moving putts that move left to right I don't really need the line.  I do need to look at something specific and it ends up being the outer edge of the ball . Sometimes a curved line on the ball 

[easyjay39402]

Great topic. I'm an awful putter from 5 feet in. I've tried the line now and then while playing and have not found it to make a difference with results.  (The problem appears to be my inconsistent stroke, not my alignment. I often take the club back outside the line and then either slice or pull the putt.)

I wonder whether investing substantial time practicing with a line could result in an improved takeaway?  I'm definitely going to give this a try.

 

[Let it Fly]

Just came across this thread, and thought I'd chime in as it's something that's been on my mind, as well.

I used to use the line for every putt, but changed that up in the middle of the past season when I was missing far too many short range putts.  Stopped lining it up for the short ones, and found myself able to focus more on making a good stroke rather than thinking about if the line was perfectly aimed...worked very well.

Continue to use the line for long range putts, as I'm generally trying to putt to "hula hoop" range.  Feels like there is more margin for error even if the line isn't perfect, so I'm able focus mainly on speed.  

[djfajt71]

I don't use a line.  I tried for a few months and it was maddening trying to get that thing lined up just so! 

[saevel25]

I aim to a spot about 3-6 inches in front of the ball. I used a line for a short time. My biggest issue is the imperfections on the green make it hard to get the line right where you want. it. 

[Groucho Valentine]

I put a line on my ball, but i use it mostly for indentation. I use the line on my putter to aim at my target more than i do the one on the ball. 

[The Recreational Golfer]

I tried a line on the ball but ended up obsessing about whether or not the line was PERFECTLY aimed along my starting line. Now I just pick a spot from two to three inches in front of the ball and roll the ball over that spot.

I play with a guy who who took up golf in mid-life and isn't really getting it. One day he had about a 70-foot putt, uphill, I was tending the pin for him, and he's back there tweaking the line on the ball to get it just right: tweak, tweak, tweak. I was thinking, Man, do you really think you're that good?

 

[dchoye]

I use the line for short putts that I know will move right to left.

Some really good putter I know use the line for all short putts.

[Piz]

Definitely no-line.  I use the line to make stitch marks...cheesey as that may sound.