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Putting Alignment: Do you use a line or no?

Puttin4Bird

Puttin4Bird

Say what again mf'er!
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As you can about imagine I get more than my fair share of putting practice living in the upper Midwest. I've found that I have to practice with a purpose so I'll pick something to work on early in the winter and keep pounding it when I practice. This winter I've started to use the alignment arrow to help line up my putts. I've done this some before but I usually lose patience with it during my rounds and stop doing it. I've got this cup sized coaster that I use, I put it in the center of my basement which has nice low carpet and gives me a good roll and I've been taking various different lines and utilizing the alignment arrow to get my line. In the past when I've done this I've found that the line I pick from behind and ultimately when replacing my ball doesn't always jive with what I see/feel when addressing the putt. So I'm working on trying to get my reads more accurate then just trust my line that I have picked. Sure my putts in the basement are straight, but by using a variety of different distances and lines into the "cup" I'm getting good practice at both quickly and accurately setting up my ball. One thing I need to make sure I'm doing is keeping a good pace while utilizing this with my putting, I've played with dudes who take forever then they keep going back and realigning and jacking around and it takes forever. I think I've got plenty of time to get my routine in while I wait for others to putt and do my thing in a timely manner. I know from experience that I tend to hole more putts when doing this and I hope to get a good system down so I can implement it into my putting routine full time.

Who else uses either drawn line or the alignment arrow when putting? Do you hold up others or have you got a routine in place that keeps pace well? Do you consistently go with it and what happens if you feel something different when you address the ball? Do you mark your ball, realign your arrow then go or just putt knowing your line is wrong?
 
I use all the help I can get. I use the line on the ball and point it down my intended line.
 
I do not use one. In fact I like to see only white. I putt much better when picking a target on the green 6 to 12 inches in front of the ball.
 
I used to, but then I realized that I could never get it perfect. If I have to mark my ball, I'll put it back down with the arrow in the general direction of my aim point; but I don't over think it and never remark to tweak the aim.

It lets me focus more on the stroke and the aim point rather than the way my ball looks.

Tapped out on my EVO 4G LTE
 
I use my Frog tin cup. I line up his nose towards the hole and tap him in the butt to get him moving.
 
I go full white on top as well. Not sure why, but I just never really got in to lining it up with anything on the ball. I don't think it's accurate enough.
 
JB said:
I do not use one. In fact I like to see only white. I putt much better when picking a target on the green 6 to 12 inches in front of the ball.
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+1 to this! I like a clean white ball, no logo or writing looking back at me, and I find a blade of grass or something that stands out about a foot in front of the ball to line up with.
 
I have tried over and over to use a line on my ball to line up with but I just can't get into it. I always over think my puts way to much with the line. I do alot better with just feeling my line and letting it rip, not that I am a great putter LoL.
 
15ft and in I'll usually just pick a spot a few ft in front of the ball. I use a line when it's a long putts and try to trust it, so I don't talk myself out of my original read. Seeing all that green between the cup and ball is easy to make adjustments while standing over the ball.
 
Blue line on ball, line extends halfway around the ball, and I always use it to line up my putts. I also use it to line up all of my tee shots as well, I'll take all of the alignment help that I can get.
 
I have tried using a line before, but couldn't get use to it. No line now.
 
I actually stopped after watching "Pat O'Brien on Putting". He said something to the effect of it being more of a crutch then an anything I tend to agree with that. I feel my routine is much better not taking the additional step.
 
arydolphin said:
Blue line on ball, line extends halfway around the ball, and I always use it to line up my putts. I also use it to line up all of my tee shots as well, I'll take all of the alignment help that I can get.
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Duke blue I assume?
 
I use the line and aim it 6 or 8 inches in front of the ball on the line I want. I don't think I hold anyone up, I feel like I'm pretty quick but I don't know for sure.
 
I've nerver really used one, but this year I'm going to try a lot of things I haven't done before, so I'm going to see if it helps me or not.
 
My angular perspective changes pretty wildly when I move from behind the ball to address position due to my astigmatism.

So, I have learned that I not only have to use the line, but I really have to trust it and not make last minute alterations.
 
I love all the feedback guys, keep it coming. Ary I like that you use it off the tee too, I used to seam my original Pro V1 (rumor of it being longer that way back then) and liked how that got me lined up.

I go back and forth on it, ultimately the last thing I want is additional confusion and/or more time added to my routine but I think I can make a lot more 15 footers or so doing this.
 
ddxu said:
Duke blue I assume?
Click to expand...

Of course, blue Sharpie Mini does the trick, it's always in my bag. I have a little tool that goes over the ball that lets me draw the line as well.

To those that like to focus on a spot just in front of the ball: I prefer to focus on a spot near the hole where I want my ball to go towards, so the line on the ball more helps with knowing that my putter face is square to the ball.
 
Jake,

I do use the stock "line" that comes on each ball that i use. I say "line" because most times it's just the name of the ball and two tiny arrows. I consistently line this up to read my putts, but I may change my mind once i address the ball, if that last read gives me any indication that the previous could be wrong.

Like you, I do a large amount of indoor putting, or just tinkering around during our long winter up here in NWPA.
My latest attack on improving my putting stroke, was to increase the line size on the ball, so that i could get a better idea of whether or not i was striking the ball correctly and achieving that end over end roll and seeing one continuous line, instead of a wobbly barrage of logos when putting.
Well, since I didn't have a ball stencil for line drawing and because i didn't want to sharpie up all my golf balls, i found some blue self adhesive athletic tape and wrapped it around the balls a few times. Doesn't create too much of a hindrance on the roll of the ball and besides that, i'm putting on carpet here, so not that big of a deal.

BUT, i am rewarded greatly when i make a perfect putting stroke as that nice thick, half-inch, blue line, will roll end over end and i love seeing those results. Instant visual feedback and i thrive off that.
 
I've tried that pick a spot a foot in front of the ball thing but that does not work well for me. I've heard of people actually focusing on that spot while they stroke the putt, nope not for me. The biggest thing I'll struggle with is just trusting my line and keeping my focus on the speed of the putt only.
 
I use a line on every putt and every tee shot, including par 3's. Way I see it, if I can use help with alignment I'm going to take advantage of it.
 
As others have mentioned, I prefer a clean look when addressing the ball. I always say that if I could get a premium ball with no markings on it I would be happy.
 
I do not use a line, I always feel as thought it is pointing me way left of my target and I just cannot get comfortable over the ball. I like to pick something just in front of my ball to use as an aiming tool. Sometimes you are unable to find something, but more times than not there is a perfect mark to use.
 
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