Read the green as usual by looking at the slope, grain, and significant affects on any break. Determine alignment for your stroke. Visualize effective distance to the hole by whether the slope is generally downhill or uphill, then setup your putt.
Position the ball just forward of center, (left, for a right-handed golfer) with your weight slightly more on the forward foot with your body well balanced.
Head movement: don’t do it.
Once you have established the length for your backswing to meet the
effective distance you wish to putt; visualize the putter head position
for your swing at the desired backswing length - take a practice swing
while keeping your eyes on the ball. Your perimeter awareness should
allow you to ‘hit’ your intended swing length with timing and rhythm
perfected by your practice sessions using the Rithm Rite.
A - Trust your read. B - Trust your rhythm. C - Trust your stroke.
Address the ball for the actual putt; verify putter head perpendicular
to the intended path, align stance to your “read” direction for the putt. Focus
on the ball, take one glance to verify the hole and the alignment, then
‘pull the trigger.’ That's it.
Your skill with reading the break and effective distance takes care of the path and desired backswing length, and your RithmRite practice takes care of the stroke. That surprisingly awesome sound of your ball bouncing in the bottom of the cup is icing.
Pendulum Physics 101 for golf: You have likely heard golfers, TV personalities, and pro’s mention the “pendulum” swing of a putting stroke. The basics are simple, but key is understanding how to apply this simply to your putting.
A pendulum is a weight at the end of a freely swinging support that is secured at the top and relies on gravity to keep a constant tempo, like the one on a ‘grandfather’ clock, regardless of the length travelled by the swing. For instance, with a fixed length of cable, say 36” long, hanging a weight on one end and releasing it from 3 inches away will swing at the same number of times per minute, or at the same ‘tempo’ as releasing the same pendulum from 12 inches away.
When applied to putting, the theory is that you should swing your putter so that the elapsed time, from takeaway to striking through the ball, should be precisely the same for all putts. The natural tempo of your stroke is based on your personal center of rotation to the center of the ‘sweet spot’ of your putter face. IT IS NOT based solely on the length of your putter, since you do NOT hold your arms stationary and flip your wrists to make the putt. NOTE that those using a 'belly' putter will have a swing that is different; more 'out of plane' than that of a golfer standing more vertically over the ball. They may have a correspondingly different axis of rotation, but the same physics apply universally. That is, the timing is consistent for your stroke regardless of the distance of the putt, your height, the weight of the putter, or the temperature of your dogs nose.*
So although your own rhythm may be slightly different than that for other golfers, you personally should have a smooth, consistent tempo for every putt regardless of whether you are putting 3 feet or 30 feet. The difference becomes varying the length of your backswing, which will result in application of the correct force applied to the ball.
If someone took a perfect digital snapshot at the moment of takeaway, maximum backswing position, and contact for a series of putts at 3 feet, 12 feet, and 24 feet, they would see and measure the head of your putter travelling back further with each. A timestamp would reveal that the overall elapsed time was exactly the same.
Any attempt by a golfer to putt consistently with the mental handicap of an obsolete model such as ‘rolling’ the ball from a constant backswing position by trying to vary the ‘force’ of his arms in order to ‘feel’ his way to the right striking speed is doomed to failure. You will see such a golfer mystified as to why he is so good at one range of putts, and yet seemingly incapable of lagging the ball within ‘gimme’ distance on longer putts or otherwise inconsistent on shorter ones.
*yeah, just had to throw that last one in there...
What is green "Stimp" - and how is relative green speed measured?
The "Stimpmeter" was designed by golfer Edward Stimpson, Sr. in 1935. Stimpson was watching the U.S. Open, where a professional carefully stroked his putt...and rolled it right off the green.
Convinced that the rolling, cross cutting, top dressing, and other treatment given the greens had resulted in a green surface that was too "fast" for reasonable play, he set about figuring out how to measure this so that valid comparisons could be made. He made a simple grooved track in a piece of wood, and notched a spot to hold the ball so that as one end was raised, it would naturally release to provide a consistant velocity at the bottom. The distance rolled on a green's surface could be measured and compared to others. The current official USGA stimpmeter is basically the same, though now made of aluminum.
It is important to professional golfers to have that day's "Stimp" in mind as they warm up for the round, as it gives them a relative indication of the length of back-and-through swing distance that will be needed for a given putt.
In developing the concepts that led to the Rithm Rite, Fred Stewart noted that the Stimp of the greens at a match affected the LENGTH of the putting swing by successful professional golfers, but did NOT affect the TIMING.
The yard-long device now used by the USGA is not necessary for you to get a rough estimate of "Stimp," but you can make a simple track for yourself to get close. If you want to get a relative idea of the green speed prior to beginning your practice, that can be a helpful step that you will find very valuable as you progress, as it adds another level of precision to your efforts. You can use a simple 36" piece of wood 'molding' - look for one with a narrow channel for the ball. You will want to cut, grind, or sand the bottom of one end, and add a small sawblade slot cut across the channel about 6" down from the 'top' end. As you raise the top end with a ball resting in that slot, if the ball begins to roll on it's own at about 20 degrees, you have a usable Stimpmeter to pull out of your bag. Those with higher ambitions can get a piece of aluminum channel with a 1/2" slot like the USGA, but the quick wooden version is only a few dollars and a few minutes to prepare.
The
official process slowly lifts the slotted bar to about 20 degrees,
where gravity then rolls the ball down a path of 30" to the tapered
bottom, allowing a roll from an initial 6-feet-per-second until a
natural stop. When three balls stop within an 8" area, the process is
repeated from the other direction to remove any minor slope from the
equation. For instance, if the 'nearly' level area chosen results in
distances (center of the circle of 3 balls) of 8' in one direction, and
9' in the other, a Stimp rating at that time, on that course, under
those conditions, would be:
2*8*9/(8+9) = 8.47
Rounded
to one decimal, this would be reported as "8.5" and would be "medium"
speed on a professional event like the U.S. Open. That is also the
recommended maximum for a "fast" green on a public course.
The average, or "medium" speed for a public course is 6.5, which happens to align with the "slow" rating for a professional event.
The distance reference markings on your Rithm Rite golf trainer are the approximate stroke lengths for the average golfer's timing at a medium (public) 6.5 Stimp green speed rating.
During practice, always begin with shorter putts, then work your way out.
Time and Length
Goal: 6 successive putts
Distance: 6' - 8'
Surface: any
Basic timing drill to ensure your personal swing can be repeated and match with a consistant backswing length. Practice to bring these two basic key elements together.
A - Decide on an appropriate distance to putt (such as six feet)
B - Locate the backswing length needed on the backswing arm for this distance.
C - Putt successive balls while concentrating on matching your timing with a backswing of the same length every swing.
Results
1 - When all putts stop within the diameter of a cup (approximately 4 inches) you are consistant. of the distance.
2 - When all putts also stop within 4 inches of the intended distance, you have matched the two for precision.
NOTE: The distance travelled may not exactly match the representative distance labelled on the backswing arm of your Rithm Rite. This is due to the particular "speed" of the surface on which you are practicing. See "What is the Stimp rating?" for the description of why this is the case, and how you measure and adjust for this speed rating before each practice session.
This drill helps develop feel for your personal Rhythm, coupled with consistant backswing length for a representative putt distance.
BUNT
Goal: 6 successive putts
Distance: 9'-15'
Surface: any
Everyone knows what the Baseball infield looks like - now imagine the cup is homeplate, and you have an opportunity to win the game if you can bunt away from homeplate while not reaching the basemen 12" away.
Place your empty coffee mug or soft drink cup upside down and 'jiggle' it to scruff-up and mark a target circle on your grass, carpet or other surface. Now scratch up a half-circle around the area past it, at about the distance of a ruler. If you are creative, you can likely find some chalk or other means to mark your target if desired.
Now Bunt! - but stay in the infield!
A - Decide on an appropriate distance to putt (such as nine feet)
B - Locate the backswing length needed on the backswing arm for this distance.
C - Try to consistantly reach the homeplate circle, without going past the infield line.
Results
1
- When all putts stop within the infield (approximately a 12" half
circle) at a range outside of your usual 'gimme' range, you will have
developed a confident larger distance range that you can putt with
consistant timing and accuracy.
Competition:
Move your Rithm Rite away from the practice area, and demonstrate the skill you have just developed by taking on some friendly competition.
The 'perfect' bunt in this situation gets past the pitcher to the front edge of 2nd base, between the infielders. So take turns putting 3 balls each, to see who can keep all three in the infield with one ball closest to that mystical spot 'on' the line, directly in the middle...without going past the line.
Score one point only for the player closest to 2nd base, with no ball in that round of 3 balls inside the field. Determine the winning score first, such as 'first to score 7' and you will both develop that desired combination of accuracy and precision.
So - you understand pendulum motion, you have used your RithmRite to establish your personal tempo, and are now comfortably skilled with the basic putting drills. You may find the following advanced discussion useful for improving how you approach your putting game. Much of the following is paraphrased from resources and notes that the developer of the RithmRite and this author have found to be the best and most succinct advice from personal experience and a variety of the best putting experts and teaching pro's.
SETTING UP YOUR PUTT
- READ THE GREEN: Two things are involved - direction and distance.
1st - Identify the direction. Judge the slope, modify a bit for the grain and other factors, to establish the expected 'break' the ball should make left or right. Yes, this is the major delineator between amateurs, who most often under-read the break as the ball slows, and professionals who have spent many more hours attentively learning how the ball reacts to various conditions from initial contact at full speed, through the final drop into the cup. Experience still rules here. But note that you CAN develop some internal mental guidelines about how far the ball should travel laterally (left or right) between the elevation of your ball and the elevation – higher or lower – to the left or right needed for the ball to come to rest past the hole.
2nd - Identify the "effective" distance to the hole. i.e. If it is a downhill roll of 20' and the slope and stimp of the green would result in a 20' roll if the ball were hit "as if" to travel 11' on a flat green, then you visualize hitting the ball about 12'. Your backswing length should be expected to be that of a flat, level, 12' putt and that is all you need to think about and visualize from that point on.
- THE VIRTUAL HOLE POSITION
Note that the above process for "reading" the green result in a target that IS NOT the hole.
All professional golfers have developed a personal process for making this determination, and you must learn this skill as well. You first judge the effective hole “position” TO WHICH the ball would be hit on a FLAT and LEVEL green, which would result in travel to where the hole actually is.
Add approximately one foot minimum, somewhat more for uphill putts against the grain of the grass, up to about two foot maximum, to determine a "virtual" hole position that becomes your target.
This mental determination of a VIRTUAL HOLE allows your stroke to compensate for the inevitable disturbances in the area of the average hole on a real green in the middle of a real day. You need to drive the ball through any unpredictable variances in grass texture and indentations from earlier footprints and cleats and groundings of the flag, to hit the back of the cup. Attempting to carefully ‘drop’ the ball just over the lip is a sure way to hold back on your rhythm, leaving the ball short or subject to increased deflection from the uneven green surface around the hole.
- SQUARE EVERYTHING TO THE LINE: Feet, shoulders, eyes and clubface square (perpendicular) to the line you have chosen during your green 'read' process, aimed squarely at the “virtual” hole location you mentally decided upon as you read the green.
- TAKE A NATURAL BALANCED STANCE: Arms should hang naturally, with the ball just forward (nearer the cup) of the center of your stance. This allows for a very slight bit of 'release' as the face of your putter will contact the ball with neutral-to-slightly-upward motion as it begins the upstroke. Most quality putters are available with anywhere from a 2-4 degree pitch, to ensure a clean roll from the resting position. The exact position in the stance with which you feel most comfortable should dictate your selection of putter. Do not allow your putter to dictate your swing or stance – it may very well be that you need a trip to a local proshop with your putter in hand, to determine whether the first step to improving your putting is the purchase of a new putter, or modifying your existing one. The putter loft angle should enhance the contact action without imparting undue lift (too much upward angle) nor unwelcome deflection (from pushing into the green).
- GLANCE AT THE ‘VIRTUAL’ HOLE LOCATION, FOCUS BACK ON THE BALL, THEN PULL THE TRIGGER: Focusing your eyes on the ball while on mentally visualizing the backswing length needed, paired with your personal rhythm (tempo/timing) developed through practice with your RithmRite will result in the effective distance needed. You are about to swing the club with your arms and smooth shoulder rotation for a pendulum-like stroke that avoids any wrist action. Make the stroke.
Notice...you end with making a stroke.
You are swinging the club. You do *not* "hit the ball" or "make the putt" or any such end-result oriented focus. Trying to achieve a “hit” or changing focus from the ball over to “the hole” may result in either turning your body, head, or even anticipating ball contact by tightening your grip (the “yips”). Putting under situational pressure is an exercise in focus and mental strength. Working with your RithmRite removes these concerns from your swing.
You will experience a mental shift after practicing with your RithmRite consistently that is noticeable once you look back. The kind of precision, effective practice and drills noted above and in the accompanying video by Brad Redding will develop your timing, but the related benefits include greater mental toughness and confidence in your stroke. Your entire job at the point of address is to swing - with your arms but using ‘dead’ hands/wrists and from the shoulders - in a smooth motion that takes the putter back to your pre-visualized location and ‘allows’ it to simply flow back down through the bottom using your ingrained rhythm. The fact that there is a golf ball in the way just past the bottom of that stroke, or the fact that the ball happens to roll right into the cup at the speed and path you established during your read, is AWESOME - BUT IRRELEVANT.
The goal of your putting practice is to remove all complexity, remove all hand or wrist effort, remove all thoughts about forcing the ball to move, and instead allow a simple flow to occur with consistent rhythm reinforced by your RithmRite, for a straight and square contact void of any pressure or resistance in your technique.
Expect the stroke to swing naturally through at least the distance used for the backswing. This will ensure that you do not ‘use’ your hands or forearms in any way through at least the first several inches after ball contact. The face may rotate slightly to the left of the target after impact, depending on your stance angle away from vertical over the ball. As you practice, every stroke should feel natural, freely completed no matter the backswing length, with no unusual stress to cutoff the motion on the follow through.
Remember, the 'sunk' putt is the by-product of a good read, an accurate alignment of both stance and clubhead perpendicular to that read, and a precise stroke. That precisely performed putting stroke is a simple matter of repeating what you have practiced with your RithmRite.
On the course this will result in more putts going into the cup. More of those missed reads or missed alignments will now end up closer to the hole for a 'gimme,' and your score will drop. Doing this consistently will result in more confidence throughout your game and lead to having more fun enjoying longer periods of golfing 'in the zone' than you have ever experienced.
MISSED PUTTSIt is also NOT, however, "luck" that makes those professional's incredible putts on Sunday in that final round for thousands of dollars and a jacket, to drop in the hole a significant percentage of the time greater than the general populace. Nor is it any genetic makeup that makes a touring pro an inevitably better putter than the rest. Natural talent will always give some people an easier time mastering any particular skill, but skills must be practiced, honed, and consistently applied, and anyone can work on that. Regardless of your current putting skill, you WILL become a better putter through consistent, precise, effective putting practice with the RithmRite.
Tips for troubleshooting your putting
There is a wide-ranging plethora of advice out there on the internet, including full videos and detailed tutorials from professional golfers and trainers. Once you have perfected your timing using the Rithm Rite training system, you may well find that other problems you previously had with your putting game may simply disappear.
Many minor issues with the mental part of your game, especially your short game and putting, can be directly affected by a basic misunderstanding of the role of consistant timing. Once you begin to engrain into your game a simple series of steps related to estimating and visualizing an appropriate backswing head position, and combine this with consistant rhythm honed to perfection using your Rithm Rite, you will find confidence rising during the setup of every swing.
Once this part of your putting game begins to show the results of precise, repeated practice, you will be much more prepared to take full advantage of any professional putting sessions available from your local pro.
Here are a couple of troubleshooting tips during practice sessions we have found helpful
If you have a problem of loose hand or wrist position through the putt, try working for one full practice session with the left index finger, or both index fingers, extended straight down along the putter. Golfers who putt with this type of grip seldom have an issue of wrist movement, as it helps the feeling of the hands being ‘connected’ through the putt.
For some people who become 'shaky' when approaching short (sub-6’) distances, try an exercise that removes the right hand from control. This can be done by taking the club in your left hand only, then grip the club with your right hand below your left, as you would grip a pencil for writing. Go through an exercise set to develop a feel for keeping around 80% of your grip strength in your guiding left hand, without any wrist action closure from the right hand at all, as it simply follows the left.
And finally, if anything is distracting you or if old habits are preventing you from performing your best, start by getting your rhythm right with your RithmRite. Closely follow the video training and practice each and every day, wherever you are, on a green or off the green, for at least 30 minutes to an hour for 2 weeks. Then take your new locked-in focus and reinforced rhythm with your RithmRite on the road to your favorite course. Anything remaining that you need to work on for reading the break of a green and judging the effective distance will be developed out on the grass. If you feel the need for faster and more effective work in the real world to improve your overall approach, there is truly no substitute for developing a close working relationship with your local pro. Just be sure to take your RithmRite along with you and show him or her the part of your game that is solid, so they can focus their efforts on assisting you where your game needs polishing.