Quote:
Originally Posted by JPsuff
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A rifle sight, just like a line on a golf ball is only a guide. A perfectly sighted rifle in the hands of a person who does not know much about how to aim that rifle is useless.
A line on a golf ball only works as a putting aid if the ball is placed in such a way as to point the line in the correct direction to begin with. But just like the poor marksman, if the line isn't pointed in the right direction to begin with, then even the most perfectly aligned putter followed by a perfectly aligned putting stroke will cause the ball to miss the target anyway because the ball was never pointed at the right target at the outset.
Let's say you do what most good players do and that is to decide on a direction and then align the line on the ball so it points towards an intermediate target (like a discolored grass blade). You then align your putterhead so that it is perfectly perpendicular to the line on the ball and if you swing the putter properly, the clubface should strike the ball in that same perpendicular alignment and it should cause the ball to move in the direction of your intermediate target and then onward towards the hole.
It's true that once the ball and putter are aligned correctly, all that's left is the speed, but this only works if your choice of direction was correct to begin with. If you've pointed the line on your ball at the wrong intermediate target, then everything else will be wrong as well.
So how is that any different than simply picking an intermediate target (using a ball with no line on it) and aligning your putterhead so that it points towards that target? It's the same thing as far as I can tell. And as I pointed out in another post, if (using a line on the ball) when you stand at address, and you sense that you may not have your line pointed in the right direction, you have to step away, mark your ball again and re-align your line and then set up again. With no mark on the ball, if I sense that I'm not pointing at my intermediate target, all I have to do is shift my stance until I am and then make the putt.
If drawing a line on a ball makes you feel more confident, then there's nothing wrong with that. But to compare an unmarked ball to an improperly sighted rifle is a bit much because a perfectly sighted rifle - aimed at the wrong target - is as inaccurate as a "line-adorned" golf ball also aimed at the wrong target.
To me, having to line up a line and then line up WITH that line is just more stuff I have to worry about and my goal is to simplify, not further complicate this game.
In my opinion.
-JP
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On analysis, the golf swings seem infinitely more difficult than they actually are...
You aim, you swing, you write down score...if your aim is wrong you miss, regardless of when that aiming occurs...
Like I said, my percentage of made putts drops signifigantly if I second guess line when standing over the ball, line or no line, and will always do better to step away and start again...
One negative of the line is that it can pull focus from the target and have you focusing on the line of the putt, which should be handled in short order in the preshot routine then allow the focus to remain on the hole and the feeling for the distance to the target, as this is the true art in putting and where most of the focus should be...
Biggest help of the line IMO is the squaring of the face to the line...the right angles make it easy...but once things are aimed and aligned, I stare at the cup and don't worry about the former...that is if I want to actually make the putt...