Putterface
Alignment

Putterface Alignment is the bugbear of every golfer. It is not easy from a side-on position. Golfers know it and have resorted to using a line on their ball to align more accurately to their target.

Unfortunately the solution is not without its own problems. The biggest problem is that, having carefully aimed the line at your target from behind, the line can look wrong when you are over the ball.

The temptation then is to ignore the direction of the line, and re-target your putterface. This is not a good idea. If you are going to fine-tune your alignment from a setup position, it is better to abandon the line on the ball method.

The last thing your brain needs is mixed messages. When there is conflict, the outcome is usually a poor putt. It is for this reason a number of golfers prefer to see only the white of the ball when they look down. There is no line to confuse them and undermine their confidence.

However, there is another way to use a line on your ball. Instead of pointing it at your target, position the line so it is at 90 degrees to your target. The idea is to match the line on the ball with your putterface. This helps you to square your putterface more consistently.

Putter by Dr Hegarty

An Australian medical doctor Dr Tim Hegarty has taken this idea further with the combination of a putter whose alignment aids match a corresponding pattern on the ball. As he states 'With this system, the mind can picture a flat surface striking another flat surface'.

The visual challenge of putting is leading the development of putter designs. The use of circles, converging lines, colour contrasts and other design features are directed at helping you to align your putteface.

Part of the difficulty is aligning a flat surface to a curved surface. It is much easier to align a flat surface to a flat surface. However, as the golf ball is round, we have to find a way around this visual problem. To create the illusion of flat to flat, a line on the ball oriented differently to the usual way can work.

You may ask how do your aim a line that is at right angles to your target? You can solve this dilemma by drawing a tiny arrow that meets the line at 90 degrees and then use this for aiming from behind. Because the arrow is small compared to the actual line, it will not cause confusion when you are over your putt.

Therefore before you abandon the line on the ball technique, try a different approach to using it. It could well solve the bugbear of accurate putterface alignment.

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