Alright, so today I finally got around to properly trying out this plumb line putting thing. I’ve seen folks do it, mostly older chaps, and always wondered if it was one of those golf myths or if there was something to it. My putting’s been a bit all over the place lately, so I figured, why not give it a real shot on the practice green?
My First Awkward Attempts
So, I get to the green, pick a nice little 10-footer with what I thought was a bit of a break. Then comes the tricky part – actually doing the plumb-bob. I stood behind my ball, facing the hole, and let my putter hang loosely from my fingers. The idea, as I understood it, is to use the shaft of the putter as a vertical line. You line it up so it sort of covers the ball, and then you see where the hole is in relation to this vertical line.
Honestly, the first few times I felt like a complete idiot. It’s not as easy as it looks! Keeping the putter perfectly still, letting it hang naturally without me influencing it, and then trying to squint and see how the hole lines up… yeah, it took a few tries just to feel like I was even doing the mechanics right. My hand wanted to steady it, or I’d move my head and lose the perspective.
Starting to See (or Not See) the Break
After a bit, I started to get the hang of the physical action. I’d close one eye, try to get the putter shaft to visually ‘slice’ through the ball. Then I’d look at the hole. If the hole appeared to the right of the shaft, the putt should break right-to-left. If it was to the left, then left-to-right. That’s the theory, anyway.
On some putts, it seemed to confirm what my feet were telling me about the slope. I’d be like, “Okay, feels like it’s going left,” and the plumb line would show the hole to the right of the shaft. Confidence boost! I’d hit the putt, and it would be pretty close.
But then, other times… total confusion. The plumb line would suggest one thing, my gut another. Or I’d do it twice on the same putt and get slightly different reads, probably because I wasn’t holding the putter exactly the same way or standing perfectly still. Consistency is super key, I realized, and it’s tough.
What I Learned on the Green Today
So, here’s what I sort of gathered from my little experiment:
- It’s definitely not a magic bullet. It’s not going to suddenly make you sink every putt.
- It can give you another piece of information. Sometimes it’s helpful, especially if you’re really unsure about a subtle break.
- You have to be patient with it. Rushing it just gives you bad info.
- Feeling the slope with your feet is still, for me, a big part of reading greens. The plumb line is like a secondary check.
- I also found it more useful for figuring out the general tilt of the green around the hole, rather than the exact line from my ball. Like, is this whole area sloping left or right?
I also noticed that the type of putter might make a small difference in how it feels to hang it, but the principle is the same. Mine’s a blade, and it dangled okay. I reckon it’s more about your technique than the putter itself.
Towards the end of my practice, I felt a bit more comfortable with the routine. I wasn’t second-guessing every tiny movement. I’d take my stance, let it hang, take a peek, and then trust that initial read (or combine it with what my feet told me). Some putts went in, some didn’t – standard golf, eh?
Will I Keep Doing It?
Yeah, I think I will, at least for a while. It didn’t revolutionize my game in one session, but it didn’t hurt either. It made me slow down and think a bit more about the slope, which is probably a good thing. It’s another tool to try and get a better read. And hey, if it helps me shave off even one or two putts a round, it’s worth looking a little peculiar on the green for a few seconds. Though I’m pretty sure the guy practicing his chipping nearby thought I was performing some kind of ritual.
So, that was my adventure with plumb line putting. Not a game-changer straight out of the gate, but interesting enough to keep working on. We’ll see how it goes in a real round!
