I have been line drive spin putting for years, and am an OK putter. However, several things drive me nuts about my putting. 1st being wind putting. How many times do i have to 3 putt from 25' before I am laying up from that distance? 2nd crazy spits and bounce outs or ricochets off the baskets costing me much needed strokes . Since the Z-Boaz open I have been working on lob putting.
I keep my throwing arm staight and loft the disc in an arch so that it is on it's way down when it arrives at the chains. This seems to work well in practice, but when a competative round arrives I seem to revert back my old style of putting.

How long can I expect these growing pains? How many more extra hours of practice do I need to put in? Should I change at all?

Any advice would be appreciated.

ce

This seems to work well in practice, but when a competative round arrives I seem to revert back my old style of putting.


and


Should I change at all?

Since you are a better player than me, take this for what it is worth. Those two statements seem to indicate to me that you are not truly committed to a new putting philosophy.

When one stands at the tee with both a hyzer and an anhyzer line in their mind, without a commitment to one line, they are much more likely to throw a poor shot. I'd say your in that same situation. Embrace one style or the other and make it work, but don't court both at the same time.

I basically switched the same way you are trying to do.

You have to consistently and constantly force yourself into the new habit to break the old.

One thing that helped me was starting to straddle putt everything. It is more of a "lob putt" style where I was bring my straight arm from down below my waist.

There will be growing pains and missed putts. But practice will pay off in the long run.

First of all, I'd suggest you practice more than one putting style so you're not mentally "trapped" into one method. On most courses, you'll probably need to use more than one style for a few shots anyway. Straddle putting is my primary style because it works with obstacles and in the open, but I also practice the typical foot forward style with less loft than my straddle putts. I loosen my arm up with upside down shots/putts. I've also developed a pretty good shot playing from my knee. I've been known to putt from my knee in the wide open when my regular style seems to not feel right or is letting me down, just to mix things up.

I need to figure out how to putt , when I'm dead tired after a weekend of power golf.

Any suggestions ?

I need to figure out how to putt , when I'm dead tired after a weekend of power golf.

Any suggestions ?



tell yourself if you miss you are going to have to give away one of your most prized Aviars. that should get your adrenaline to kick in :D

when I am tired I focus a little higher on the pole... thanks for the advice guys... I will keep you posted... just wish I was as good new style putting while making the switch... will come in time I guess.


ce

For one I got to point out the obvious. Short of a fluke rollaway you should never three putt from 25'.

If you experience a pattern of spit outs I believe it would be worthwhile to overhaul the flight shape of your putt.

I've witnessed many a line drive putt bounce out. I've played with players that have 3 or 4 on target putts jump out per round. Then they curse, blame the basket, or attribute it to bad luck.

I try to employ a putt that is what I call a "nose up descending" putt. I can honestly say when this style putt is on target it will not bounce out. I experience maybe one bounce out every 200 holes and it is usually because either the nose isn't up or the disc isn't on a descending angle.

Tweaking your putt is not as difficult as you may think. I believe if you set aside 15 minutes a day to practicing the flight you're after you can make a reasonable transition over a week or two. And if this saves you 1 bounce out and one 3 putt per round isn't it well worth the effort?

Chuck is right...developing varied putting styles will only help your game. the secret is not to completely abandon the primary style when you are practicing the secondary.

I went through a funk and couldn't hit a "rocker style" putt (one foot in front = kenny style) and said, "what the heck, might as well try straddle (barry-fu)."
When I got really good at straddle, I forgot about rocker and lost all coordination with it. As I gained distance and accuracy with one, the scales tipped and I lost from the other. lesson learned.
Now my friends are having their growing pains with their one putting style, unwilling to branch out and try something new (one guy has a ron russell style anhyzer putt), he will put his body in the strangest positions for a 15'er, leaning this way and that, still missing the putt...when all he needs to do is step out and hit a 15' putt... but he'll not have an open mind about it.

For anyone who plays at a variety of courses, the straddle putt is a shot you must have. This is particuliarly true if you play wooded courses. There are often times when you're within 15-45 feet of the basket and behind a tree, so if you can't straddle putt your only options are sidearm putt (more difficult than straddle) or layup.

One thing to note: Straddle putts tend to produce a better line while "rocker" putts tend to deliver better heigth control.

So knowing this if your line is off you may want to go with the straddle, if your heigth is off you may want to switch to the rocker putt. I'm not advocating constant switching but it may help during a tournament until you work out the glitch.

How much snap /spin do you use with each style ?

How much snap /spin do you use with each style ?



I don't consciously adjust the amount of spin between the styles.

The only time I try to put more spin into a putt is if I'm dealing with wind or need to airbounce my putt.

I disagree with you about the flights concerning putting styles.

For you, straddle putts have a better line, while foot forward putts you can easily adjust the height.

For me, it is the dead opposite. I will use straddle putts for putts of significant elevation change. For all standard putts I will use the foot forward putt as this is my main style.

I just think it is a matter of personal execution and not an effect of the style.

Is the straddle your main form of putting?

No straddle is not my main style.

But I also prefer the straddle for significant elevation change (moreso on fast downhill putts). The reason for the preference in such a situation is because straddle putts drop like a lead weight, they don't float or glide well.

It is precisely this reason that they are harder to maintain at chain heigth. Think about it for a minute. A standard putt can be released at 35 feet and maintain a 3-5 foot heigth 90% of its flight towards the basket. Try to achieve the same flight with a straddle. It's possible but much harder to acclomplish with the straddle stance.

Therefore the foot forward putt lends itself to putting with the disc in "target heigth" for much longer and thus you have more margin for error in the heigth/descent factor.

Conversely most straddle putters tend to have a higher arc where the disc may travel several feet higher than the top of the basket and then descend rapidly down through the target area. The straddle, because of its rapid descent makes distance control easier but allows for less error in timing the descent to coincide with the arrival at the basket.

Does this makes sense to you?

I agree that there is less variance in the elevation of flight path with a foot forward putt then the straddle.

I got turned around when you referenced height control in your earlier post.

I've recently learned to putt--------

-------Beware

I've recently learned to putt--------

-------Beware



Please say it's with a banger GT so we know you're only lethal to 25 feet.

This past winter I changed from a foot forward approach to straddle putt. I have found that I am more on line with my putts and that I miss fewer short putts (within 20ft). Missing putts from within 20ft was my biggest putting demon last year and cost me usually 2 strokes a round (sad but true). I have ben practicing a lot this winter; 3-5 times a week with just putting at baskets for at least 20 minutes. Generally when I miss, I get the nose down and it misses short. I have tried to correct this by working on releasing with the nose level and thinking of giving a slight anhyzer push. This leads to a more solid line to the basket for me.

I like straddle putting for elevation change (up or down)because your feet are at about the same level. I go to a foot forward putt when standing sideways on a hill if that feels more comfortable. Straddle putting also allows me to reach around trees and bushes easier and with the loft style, I do not worry about blowing by baskets with OB or dropoffs behind them. I also use a foot forward putt when I'm outside of 35ft. I get better power and spin becasue of the weight transfer, thus, a more predictable line to the basket over distance.

Thoughts on putting practice. You have to commit to the time or you won't get better. You have to not throw putt after putt from the same spot because you don't do that in tournaments. I throw my 5 putters from 15-35 feet away from the basket, walk up, take my stance and putt. It's not practice that makes perfect but "Perfect practice" that makes perfect. Practice putting like you will putt in a tournament. If something distracts you, pull back and set up again. I miss when I start to lose concentration and hurry up before I lose it completely instead of reseting.

Also, practice different putting styles. You should be at least proficient foot forward and straddle for situations that arise. You should be able to do a low-ceiling-one knee putt and a forehand putt to get under and around obstacles. I practice Turbo putts (also know as pizza toss) so I can make putts over bushes, rocks and other stuff found near baskets. I am not great at turbo putts but I am proficeint and they save me a couple of tournament strokes a year (just like being able to throw a half-decent spike hyzer, scooby/grenade, thumber/tommahawk, and short roller will help you somewhere this year in a tournament). If you don't have it in your arsenal of shots, you will limit your ablilities to get out of trouble and make that awesome par save or duece.

I'm not a perfect putter yet but I went the entire Memorial without three-putting (except on a roll-away OB. I only putted twice but the OB cost me the 3rd stroke). I plan to continue to practice and keep drilling putts all year long. Whichever way you putt, it's about the time you take to practice that makes the biggest difference.

-Max