Putting – Focus on Your Eye Position

December 13, 2007
By: Butch Bundy

The position of your eyes as it relates to the putting line is critical. There are a couple of set up issues I always check when I’m having trouble starting the ball on the right line consistently. I always like to have my eyes directly over the top of my target line. This ensures that my posture is solid and that my distance from the ball is correct. If I am going to make an error, I will want my eyes to be inside of the line or between my feet and the golf ball. In all of my years of playing competitively and teaching, I have never seen a consistently good putter who had their eyes on the outside of the target line.
Secondly, I like to have my ball position in the front half of my stance. This does two things for me. It keeps my eyes behind the ball and allows me to see the target line easier. It also gives me the assurance that I am hitting up on my putts slightly. The worst thing a player can do is to hit down on a putt. This makes the ball leave the ground more than normal and makes it almost impossible to roll the ball consistently with no sidespin. As a teacher and a club fitter, the first thing that I look at is the length of the putter. This can drastically affect a player’s ability to set up properly.
The best way to check these positions is to take your putting stance and drop a golf ball from your right eye. It should land directly behind the golf ball in your stance or hit the back of the ball.