Welcome to Play Smart, a regular GOLF.com game-improvement column that will help us play smarter, better golf.
There are two schools of thought when it comes to aligning our golf ball on the greens. One is to use a line on our ball. The other is to go at it without the line.
Now, there are benefits to either. For example, with a line, we can point the ball directly at our line, giving us a clear target on the greens. But without a line, we become more in tune with our feel.
“Anytime we use the line, we struggle with our speed,” Rory McIlroy said several years ago. “We’re so into what we’re doing here, that we lose connection with the target. So there are two different trains of thought.”
If we’re more of a feel player, going without a line might be our best bet. However, if we want to see if our ball is rolling end over end or not, using a line is the better option… or so we thought.
Do we line up the ball when we putt and judge our stroke based on how straight that line is rolling end to end?
Well, that’s not the best way to do it. It’s actually very hard to line up the ball perfectly on top which means the line will roll crooked even with a perfect stroke… pic.twitter.com/jk8ay1T1ce
Michael Kim has become one of the best follows in professional golf of late, and he recently shared his thoughts on the line vs. no line debate. And according to the PGA Tour pro, using the line on our ball to see how it’s rolling isn’t as beneficial as we might think.
“That’s not the best way to do it,” he wrote. “It’s actually very hard to line up the ball perfectly on top which means the line will roll crooked even with a perfect stroke and greens are imperfect, it can easily bounce offline at the start.”
So what should we do instead to check our stroke? Let’s try a gate drill.
All we need to do is create a gate with tees a foot or so in front of our ball and try to hit the ball through it. If we’re actually rolling the ball well (and hitting our start line), the ball will roll straight through the gate. If not, the ball will bounce off the tees and we’ll know our stroke needs some work.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs):
Should I use a line on my golf ball when putting?
Using a line on a golf ball may provide a clear target on the greens, but it can also affect our speed and lose connection with the target. It is better to align our stroke and focus on our feel while putting.
How can I check if my ball is rolling straight?
Instead of depending on the line on the ball, we can try a gate drill. Create a gate with tees in front of the ball and aim to roll the ball through it. If the ball rolls straight through the gate, our stroke is on the right track. If the ball bounces off the tees, it indicates room for improvement in our stroke.
Conclusion
In summary, using a line on our golf ball when putting may not always be the best approach. It can affect our speed and connection with the target. Instead, we can focus on our feel and use alternative methods like the gate drill to assess the straightness of our strokes. By practicing these techniques, we can improve our putting game and achieve better results on the greens.
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