How To Use | Theputtruler

How to Use “The Putt Ruler” – Learning and Teaching Tips

There are three basic putting skills.

1. “Green reading” to determine speed and identify the accurate start direction (line) for a putt.

2. A “repeatable address position” to promote accurate stroking.

3. “Accurate stroking” to create "perfect impact" (sending the ball on line with speed control).

“Practice with The Putt Ruler teaches all three putting skills simultaneously.”

Drop one of the fulcrum pins through the front most hole of The Putt Ruler (TPR) and push it fully through into the putting green surface until the pin top lies below the surface of the ruler.
Seat a golf ball in the cavity above the fulcrum pin which is the "play ball" (the one to be holed).
Seat a second ball in the adjacent hole which is the "stroke ball" (the one to be stroked).
When seated correctly the balls will be centered on the length of TPR and slighting touching one another.
Swivel TPR around the embedded fulcrum pin to aim it on your intended start line.
Take your address position and stroke the stroke ball with a compatible speed as if the play ball were not in the way. Doing so will propel the play ball wherever TPR is pointed (regardless of minor stroke error), and at the same speed as stroking a singular ball.

Putting Skill #1 – Learning accurate green reading and identifying “accurate start lines” for your putts.

On the practice green choose a putt of 15 to 20 feet with a noticeable amount of break, install and load TPR with both the play ball and the stroke ball as described above.
Use your normal pre-shot routine to determine the speed and start line of the putt. Feeling the speed of a putt first will help you find a more accurate start line.
Aim TPR on your start line, take your address position and stroke the stroke ball as described above.
Analyze the result of the play ball for speed and line, and if necessary make adjustments to one or both speed and line and try the putt again.
Repeat this a few times until you have success finding the accurate start line and gain a better understanding of the relationship of speed and start line and their influence on the play ball.
Success is holing shorter and easier putts, and holing or laying the ball close on longer and more difficult putts. As certain putts are seldom holed, after a few attempts and once you have determined an acceptable speed and line combination for that putt, move on to a different one.
Repeat on other putts of varying lengths and break direction on uphill, downhill and level terrain to simulate on course play.
Training with TPR, your ability to identify accurate start lines and control speed will improve immediately, and more so with additional practice.

Putting Skill #2 - Learning to address the ball for “perfect impact” (solid contact and rolling the ball on line).

While using the same practice routine described above for learning putting skill #1, practice taking the same address position on each putt. TPR can help you do this, and guide you to a few universally accepted positions as well.

A. Set your body position relative to TPR the same for every putt .

B. Position your putter face relative to the start line by using the crosshair lines inscribed on TPR directly behind the play ball.

C. Set your eye position directly over, or slightly inside the stroke ball. At your address position if there is an equal amount of TPR edges (long side silver colored edges) on either side of the stroke ball your eyes will be positioned directly over the ball. If your eyes are slightly inside the ball you will see a bit more of the ruler closest to you. Do not position your eyes where you will see more of the roller farthest away from you.

Putting Skill #3 – Learning to make “perfect impact strokes”.

While using the same practice routine described above for learning putting skills #1 and #2, stroke to send both the stroke ball and the play ball off TPR in the same initial direction. Successfully doing so will indicate that you have made "perfect impact". Using TPR, the play ball will always start on the start line, but if the stroke ball starts off left or right of the play ball the stroke was faulty. Observing to which side of the play ball the stroke ball has immediately veered indicates the stroke fault to be corrected. This stroke fault could be a path or putter face angle error, not making solid contact or a faulty address position.

Practice with TPR will improve the 3 basic putting skills needed to putt well. Improvement will be immediate, and stand to get better each time you train with TPR. Additionally, when your putting gets off (as it always will) a bit of practice with TPR will allow you to identify which skill or combination of skills is the cause so you can quickly get back to putting well. Of course you can’t legally use TPR in competition, but there is an easy way to take the skills you learn with TPR to the course.

Transition from TPR to actual play.

In actual play most of the best putters today use a line on the ball and point it down the intended start line when replacing their ball on the putting green. Simply using a line on your ball in actual play in place of aiming TPR makes the transition easy and comfortable.

Read the putt for speed, then pick an appropriate start line and point a line on the ball down that start line to simulate aiming TPR.
Place your putter face perpendicular to the line on the ball, or if the line happens to point a bit left or right adjust your putter face accordingly so it is pointing down your intended start line. The line on the ball does not have to be exact. The line is a guide to help you take an address position on your intended start line.
Stroke the ball at a speed most compatible with your intended start line so it will finish in the hole, or if not stop very close to the hole.