Putter fitting

[GolfSpy Barbajo]

This "fitting" thing is getting out of hand -- first got fit for irons and wound up buying MP-50's. Had a putter fitting today -- I'm surprised I was holding the right end of the friggin' stick!

 

Fitted for a 31.5" to 31.75" length putter, with a heavier head. Looking for a toe-down, due to a slight to heavy arc. My "guy" is a Coutour dealer - wound up looking at a 365 gram head. Had a "Gullane" model to demo - it wasn't the right type of head for my arc, but I couldn't miss-hit the dang thing. It felt GREAT during ht back swing, and controlling the distance was a ton easier, too.

 

The right length and weight makes all the difference...

 

Yet another new toy the Mrs. is going to have to let me buy!

 

Anyone use a Coutour? Seems like a high quality piece of equipment...

[GolfSpy Tim]

the one stick people skip in fittings

 

no experience on my end with contour

[GolfSpy Barbajo]

the one stick people skip in fittings

 

no experience on my end with contour

 

They have a pretty slick fitting system - you take a comfortable stance and then they adjust their fitting device. That gives you the height from your hands to the ground. Then you look straight down at the bad of the fitting device -- it's a mirror with a ruler on it -- you see at what measurement the reflection of your eye falls. Then they use the Pythagorean theorem A² + B² = C²) to find the right putter length. Then they match the right head weight --the shorter the stick, the heavier the head. Had been using a Bobby Grace Softie -- sweet putter for way to long and way to light. Using the Ping app, the fitter found my consistency was WAY off, tempo was inconsistent and face at impact was all over the place.

 

With the right stick, the consistency improved dramatically, and both tempo and face at impact were much better. On the green found it MUCH easier to control distance.

 

Gang, if you haven't done it, do it. The whole process took about 30 minutes...

[Matt Saternus]

I'm glad you enjoyed your experience with Coutour.

 

Two questions I would ask:

 

What benefit do I derive from having my eyes over the ball? Since this is the heart of the system, that should be explained, IMO.

 

Why do I need a heavier head on a shorter putter (or lighter on longer)? What is the goal?

[GolfSpy Barbajo]

I'm glad you enjoyed your experience with Coutour.

 

Two questions I would ask:

 

What benefit do I derive from having my eyes over the ball? Since this is the heart of the system, that should be explained, IMO.

 

Why do I need a heavier head on a shorter putter (or lighter on longer)? What is the goal?

 

Both good questions, Matt...

 

Here's how it was explained to me:

 

1. Keeping left eye over the ball for me (left eye dominant) makes it easier to make sure the putter head is on line at the moment of impact. For my stroke -- if the ball is too far away I tend to push, if it's too close, I tend to pull. It may not be that way for others, but it sure made sense to me. Have found since making that change that if I read the putt right and make a smooth stroke, the ball goes where I want.

 

2. The heavier head is for balance - my Bobby Grace, at 35" - was way to long for me, and it's a light putter anyway. Cutting it down to 31.5" or so would have made it feel even lighter. I'd been gripping it way down on the grip, but still couldn't make a consistent stroke. Was able to make do, but had WAY too many 3-putts and distance control was atrocious. Here's what Coutour has to say about weight:

 

Swingweight is the most overlooked aspect of putter fitting, mainly because it is not visible. Swingweight has to do with feel. It is the feel of the putter head as it swings. Swingweight influences the distance the putter travels on the back and forth stroke. It influences tempo as well as the path the putter head swings. Swingweight is crucial to the fitting of a putter.

 

The swingweight of your putter should be close to the swingweight of the rest of your golf clubs. Industry standard for men's swingweight is D0-D2. Women's is C6-C8. Whenever you alter the length of a golf club by cutting it down, gripping down it or even adding length to it, you change the swingweight. When you shorten a club, you decrease swingweight. When you lengthen a club you add swingweight. For every inch you alter the length of a golf club, you change the swingweight by 6 points. 1 swingweight equals 2 grams of weight. Ultimately, if you have shortened your putter or even grip down on your putter by one inch, you decrease it's swingweight by 6 points or 12 grams of weight. 6 swingweights is enough to drastically change the feel of your putter, your tempo and your stroke.

 

Anyway, it did seem to make sense to me...played yesterday with a demo - 32.5" with a 365 gram head weight. Putts were mostly on line, distance control was much better than it had been, canned several 5 to 8 foot putts to save par (which had been a nemesis!) and didn't 3-putt once. Hey, maybe the difference is mostly between the ears (although my wife might say there ain't much between the ears ), but so far, so good...

 

Found Coutour's website -- here's a link to their fitting philosophy video that can explain it way better than I can...

[Matt Saternus]

Both good questions, Matt...

 

Here's how it was explained to me:

 

1. Keeping left eye over the ball for me (left eye dominant) makes it easier to make sure the putter head is on line at the moment of impact. For my stroke -- if the ball is too far away I tend to push, if it's too close, I tend to pull. It may not be that way for others, but it sure made sense to me. Have found since making that change that if I read the putt right and make a smooth stroke, the ball goes where I want.

 

2. The heavier head is for balance - my Bobby Grace, at 35" - was way to long for me, and it's a light putter anyway. Cutting it down to 31.5" or so would have made it feel even lighter. I'd been gripping it way down on the grip, but still couldn't make a consistent stroke. Was able to make do, but had WAY too many 3-putts and distance control was atrocious. Here's what Coutour has to say about weight:

 

Swingweight is the most overlooked aspect of putter fitting, mainly because it is not visible. Swingweight has to do with feel. It is the feel of the putter head as it swings. Swingweight influences the distance the putter travels on the back and forth stroke. It influences tempo as well as the path the putter head swings. Swingweight is crucial to the fitting of a putter.

 

The swingweight of your putter should be close to the swingweight of the rest of your golf clubs. Industry standard for men's swingweight is D0-D2. Women's is C6-C8. Whenever you alter the length of a golf club by cutting it down, gripping down it or even adding length to it, you change the swingweight. When you shorten a club, you decrease swingweight. When you lengthen a club you add swingweight. For every inch you alter the length of a golf club, you change the swingweight by 6 points. 1 swingweight equals 2 grams of weight. Ultimately, if you have shortened your putter or even grip down on your putter by one inch, you decrease it's swingweight by 6 points or 12 grams of weight. 6 swingweights is enough to drastically change the feel of your putter, your tempo and your stroke.

 

Anyway, it did seem to make sense to me...played yesterday with a demo - 32.5" with a 365 gram head weight. Putts were mostly on line, distance control was much better than it had been, canned several 5 to 8 foot putts to save par (which had been a nemesis!) and didn't 3-putt once. Hey, maybe the difference is mostly between the ears (although my wife might say there ain't much between the ears ), but so far, so good...

 

Found Coutour's website -- here's a link to their fitting philosophy video that can explain it way better than I can...

 

I pretty well expected to hear that, just curious as to what they told you.

 

I really just wanted to make the point that when someone tells you something in a fitting, lesson, etc, you should be asking, "Why?" (Not you personally, but you as in everyone out there).

[GolfSpy Barbajo]

I pretty well expected to hear that, just curious as to what they told you.

 

I really just wanted to make the point that when someone tells you something in a fitting, lesson, etc, you should be asking, "Why?" (Not you personally, but you as in everyone out there).

 

The fitter/pro I'm working with does a great job of explaining - rather than telling me something he usually makes a statement and then asks "what would happen then?" And let's me figure it out, if I can. He makes the game ridiculously logical. I swear, if Spock played golf, he'd be a 1, maybe 2 handicap at worst...