03/02/2022
Putters for juniors and beginners to golf.
You wouldn’t teach a learner driver to drive in a T model Ford then why do we put inferior balanced putters in the hands of beginners to golf.
Whether it be from a parents urgings or a genuine desire by a child to play the game of golf how do we go about starting them out. A few chips around the back yard or a few putts around the lounge room. Then why do we disadvantage them from the very beginning.
Whether it be an old putter cut down to size or store bought one we're starting them down the wrong path.
Kids don't have the strength in their hands and arms to counter the negative force and opening bias of the putters we put in their hands, so from day one we don't only provide inappropriate equipment we start the process of "I can't get a putt, I don't want to play anymore" or if they stick to it they quite often develop the yips from using too much bottom hand during those formative years.
If the enjoyment of playing the game and making it easier can be given to the kids from day one, the game has to be the winner as well as the child when after 40 odd years he or she looks forward to another 20 (maybe) of getting their grandchildren hooked on the game also.
So let me explain "negative force/opening bias"
Most putters (about 99%) are made with a degree of negative force or a slice/opening bias, they don't balanced in the swing plane. Some are what they refer to as "face balanced" where the face points skyward when held horizontally across your finger. If you move the putter from this position down into the normal putting position (the swing plane) the putter points away from you at 90 degrees to the intended line, hardly the ideal position from which to make a putt. With a toe weighted putter the opening bias is even greater.
This negative force is more or less and historical result. It's the way putters were originally made in 1800's and hasn't changed much except for a few more bells and whistles hanging off today's creations.
Back then the putter was just a cut down Cleek with the face filed flatter. The stroke was a wristy flick over a bumpy terrain. Today we are presented with greens of exceptional quality but we are still using the old technology of the 1800's.
The negative force or slice bias is created by having more weight towards the toe end of the putter. When the putter is in the neutral position ( resting on the grass behind the ball) everything is fine, the second we lift the putter to make a swing the slice bias kicks in. Because of the uneven weight distribution the toe of the putter wants to move away quicker than the heel resulting in the opening of the face, if a correction isn't made with the hands during the stroke a pushed putt results. An over correction and the dreaded pull happens.
This is magnified 10 fold with the young ones who don't have the strength in their hands and arms to counter this force as would an older person. Plus they don't have any perception of what the putter head is doing during the stroke.
Let's use the PGA Tour as an example. Here we have most of the worlds elite golfers on show every week. How many of these elite golfers have their hands on the putter in an unconventional way?, the average percentage is just short of 40 and rising.
Here are some examples of unconventional.
Right handed: Left hand below right
The pencil grip or claw grip, here again there are different versions, finger and thumb, 2 fingers, 3 & 4 and even the palm.
The forearm grip.
The split hands grip.
The broomsticks also have a wide variety of different hand positions.
Then there is also a huge choice of putter grips, mostly fatter and some with odd shapes,
I could go on and on but I'm sure you get the picture.
The WHY of course is the influence the bottom hand, (right for right handers, left for left handers, )has on the putting stroke and all of these different grips and hand positions are an effort to try and reduce this influence, an influence that has been ingrained from the first day they picked up a putter that was way too heavily biased for them in the first place.
If we are able to start kids off with a pure or target line balanced putter with Zero Opening Bias they would get a lot more enjoyment out of the game and that bottom hand would have less or no influence during the stroke.
Sure, as they grow and develop physically they can make their own equipment decisions but by then they will have the strength in their hands and arms to counter the slice bias that most putters have. The real benefit would be NO bottom hand influence built in to their putting DNA from day one.
Technological advancements with equipment has been massive over the last 20 or so years but it really hasn't grown the game. If we can give juniors a more enjoyable experience on the greens then maybe they will stick to the sport or at the very least come back to it when they are done with footy, cricket or other sports.
At Drop Putters we have a range of symmetrically balanced putters that have zero opening bias. They are perfectly balanced in the swing plane. The benefit to those new to golf is eliminating the over use of the bottom hand.
