What's your favorite putting training aid?

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By Rick V., Team Titleist Staff

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  1. Team Titleist Staff

    Hey, Team Titleist.

    Last week Mike D. gave me a great training aid for putting that I’m planning on using throughout the off-season.  It’s small sheet of foam with an adhesive backing that you tape to the face of your putter.  The foam has an opening cut out of the middle to reveal a small oval section of the putter’s sweet spot. If you make contact with the ball slightly towards the heel or toe, or slightly low or high on the face of the putter, you’ll hit the foam and produce a dead and wayward roll. The foam gives you instant feedback in the form of squishy feel and dampened sound, too.

    I had a suspicion that I had been missing a lot of putts out towards the toe of my putter and this little aid confirmed it.  I did pretty well on short putts, but once I moved out past 15 feet or so, the toe hits started creeping in. Something very easy to improve upon.

    Do you have any favorite aids that might help us out on the greens?  Thanks for sharing!

    Rick  

  2. DV

    DV

    Yeah Rick...that's a good one. You can easily make this putting aid by using 2 rubber bands. Triple warp each one and place over and around the putter face. Do the same with the other rubber band. Leave a space about 1 inch between the bands centered around the putter sweet spot. Hit putts so you do not contact rubber bands. As you improve, tighten up the spacing of the bands. This drill will improve you making center contact which is essential for speed and distance control.

    Another good cheap training aid is to buy a steel/aluminum yard stick. Putt on top of the yardstick so the ball will run the entire length of the yardstick. This is a great device to help with your stroke and to get your putts tracking on line. Try this, it's not easy. If you stay with this drill you will be deadly from 5-6 feet and in.

    These are great drills to do inside over the winter.

    Regards,

    DV
  3. Greg D

    Greg D
    Oklahoma City, OK

    Thats a great idea! Hadn't heard of that one before. I'm also on the hunt for good putter training aids. Interested to see the comments to come!
  4. Dwayne N

    Dwayne N
    Island, KY

    Tall tees and a tight piece of string
  5. zachcolburn

    zachcolburn
    Byron Center, Michigan

    I really like the Dave Pelz Putting Tutor. It really helps to get the ball started on the correct line. It gives instant feedback that shows exactly where the ball is going off line.
  6. Dr. Kovatchian

    Dr. Kovatchian
    Carlsbad

    I Love my Scotty Cameron Putting Path Tools!
    You can really get the club head on a good path with a little practice.
    Throw in some alignment rods and you can create some great drills.

    Cheers,
    Dr. K
  7. Christian J

    Christian J
    Cambridge

    I am a big fan of the yardstick drill that was mentioned above. It gives instant feedback on how the ball comes off your putter face which is the one thing you can control. You can't control the slope, bumps and bounces, or rub of the green. If you can get it coming off straight and true each time, everything else will take care of itself.

    I've been tempted this offseason to try the Pelz training aid and the mirror alignment aid but those accomplish the same thing the yardstick aid does. Cheers to making more putts in 2017!
  8. Cath D.

    Cath D.
    Carlsbad, CA

    Several of us in the office got together and ordered a variety of mirrors and the railing as well from Eyeline. The mirror was very handy for showing you where your eyes and shoulders were throughout your stroke and the railing really helped keep your path on the right track while still allowing you to rotate the putter head. Verdict is still out but so far, so good.
  9. Team Titleist Staff
    Thanks for the responses, everyone! I'm going to give these all a try.

    Much appreciated,

    Rick
  10. RRomanowicz

    RRomanowicz
    New Bedford, Massachusetts

    I picked up an eyeline putting mirror last season, works great. Keeps your alignment proper and I never realized my eyes were not square with the ball while putting, big difference.
  11. Chuck Z

    Chuck Z
    Mt Pleasant, SC

    Military
    Couple of TT alignment sticks always help to ensure that you are keeping the head on line thru the stroke. Rick I went to the GolfPride SNSR 140 TOUR grip. Like the softness of the larger hammer grip and I seem to hit more in the middle than before. Prevents me from over gripping, which most folks do. I use to play with an older gentlemen who was a wonderful putter. He us to gamble with Snead and Hogan up and down the east coast. A tip he gave me about hitting in the middle of the club was to take a penny and hold it on your forehead and take your normal stance. Drop the penny. Where the penny lands is where you should be striking the ball with your putter each time and if you check it will be in the middle of the putter and one line. The man could putt. Always took him on my Captains choice team because of his short game and that flat stick. Cheers, Chuck........
  12. Team Titleist Staff

    Chuck Z said:

    Couple of TT alignment sticks always help to ensure that you are keeping the head on line thru the stroke. Rick I went to the GolfPride SNSR 140 TOUR grip. Like the softness of the larger hammer grip and I seem to hit more in the middle than before. Prevents me from over gripping, which most folks do. I use to play with an older gentlemen who was a wonderful putter. He us to gamble with Snead and Hogan up and down the east coast. A tip he gave me about hitting in the middle of the club was to take a penny and hold it on your forehead and take your normal stance. Drop the penny. Where the penny lands is where you should be striking the ball with your putter each time and if you check it will be in the middle of the putter and one line. The man could putt. Always took him on my Captains choice team because of his short game and that flat stick. Cheers, Chuck........

    Thanks, Chuck. I'm going to try that penny tip tonight!

    Rick
  13. Jay S

    Jay S
    Chicago, IL

    I like the putter wheel. Gives me instant feedback if my face angle is off, or if I deloft the face.
  14. LBazzard

    LBazzard
    Essex

    I have a £20 Bosch laser spirit level and a £3 camera tripod. Mount the laser spirit level on the tripod and it will draw a perfect straight line on your carpet or the putting green. Great for making sure you can start it on the line you intended.
  15. Peter C

    Peter C
    Pleasanton, CA

    Yard stick drill sounds like a good one (and quite affordable!)
  16. David T

    David T
    Grosse Pointe Farms, MI

    Got to Home Depot or Lowes and got one of their cheapy laser levels. ($10-$15)
    Place it on a book and aim it at through the ball at your target. Amazing to see what straight actually looks like!

    Another drill is to hold the laser pointing down against the shaft of your putter and swing it back and forth. Great way to see what your path looks like.
  17. Robert

    Robert
    Corpus Christi, TX

    i don't have alignment sticks but i like to use tees or my scotty cameron putting path tool pre-round to dial it in.
  18. blair

    blair
    Scotland

    Me personally i don't think training aids are needed when it comes to putting. Keep it simple adresss the ball, smooth stroke and keep the head down. Most important is just practice it and try hole every putt no matter how long. Aim small miss small as they say

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