Do you straight line or arc your putting stroke?

In golf there are two types of putting strokes that you should be aware of, the ’straight back and through’ and the ‘arc’.

My leased preferred style is a straight back and through putting stroke.
In this type of stroke the putter moves straight back from the ball and the face of the blade tries to stay square to the ball-to-hole line. Then on the downswing the face has to open the same amount. To make this stroke work, the face needs to be manipulated in a shut-to-open fashion. This can produce a roll with a sliced and skid shape

This style of stroke was made very popular by short game guru Dave Pelz. In his book “the putting bible” Pelz promotes a shoulder dominated straight-line motion with no forearm rotation.

My preferred putting style is to let the putter work on a more natural in-to-in shape with the face staying square to the arc. This arcing in-to-in path has a more open to closing face like a swing door. The face should be kept square to the plane of movement – a style similar to the shape to the full swing fundamentals.

Your golf equipment will influence the type of putting style you use. The length and lie angle of the shaft will help to determine which of the styles are most suitable. The more upright lie and shorter / closer you stand to the ball, the more straight the path of the putter will tend to move back and through. Whereas a flatter lie will help to promote a more rounded movement.

The longer the shaft the more the shoulders will move around – although I try to encourage my students to make much more of the stroke with the arms than the shoulders. Rocking your shoulders can also cause a lot of head movement.

One other area that might help is to match your putting style to your putter. It makes sense to me to use a face-balanced putter if you’re a straight-line putter, and a heel toe weighted putter if you’ve more of an arc putting style.

If you want more information on this email me at info@golf-equipment-suppliers.co.uk or ask your PGA Pro for assistance.