Posture is the Key to Putting

Standing correctly to the ball is the foundation of my putting instruction – get this right and the rest falls easily into place. Your goal at address is to establish a posture that allows your shoulders to rock in a pendulum motion without any need for excess hand action or other compensations which wonʼt hold up under pressure.

In the diagram here I have highlighted the key parameters I look for in the posture of a golfer at the set-up – in this case LPGA tour player Beatriz Recari. If the set-up is not correct, there will be unwelcome compensations within the stroke as a result. I am looking to create a consistent and repeatable putting action that enables you to start the ball on the line that you have read – every time and under pressure!

 

Looking from the ʻBall to Target Lineʼ, the first aim is to have the top of your back flat and horizontal to the ground; it is not a tilt from the hips but more from the mid section of your back. Imagine a DVD case or even a glass of water resting on this top section of your back.As a result your face is flat and looking directly to the ground.

 

This horizontal position allows your shoulders to rock on a ʻsquare to squareʼ path. If your top of spine angle isnʼt horizontal, you will start to create an arc in the path of your shoulders. And if you consider that with a medium putt length (say 15ft) the ball stays in contact with the putter face for approximately half a millisecond (0.005 second), you will realise that with an arc in your putter path there is only slight opportunity to get the putter face exactly square at impact. Please check that an imaginary line can extended from the shaft of the putter, through your forearms. This will ensure that even the slightest wrist break will not cause the putter face to rotate.