Unofficial Review: The "Putting Thing" by WhyGolf

[BallsLeon]

The "Putting Thing" by WhyGolf – MGS Forum Member Review by BallsLeon (TJ)

Intro: (2/19/24)
As a high-handicap golfer, I try my best to manage my expectations for my golf game. However, recently when my putting plummeted through the floor I started scrambling for solutions. Somewhere in a YouTube rabbit hole I happened upon this video of Cam Smith and his putting approach. The simplicity of his practice and the amount of time spent doing it really resonated with me. I felt that would be as good a start as any, and started looking into putting mirrors/other putting trainers.

In my search, I discovered the "Putting Thing" from WhyGolf, which, although not a traditional putting mirror, shares a similar purpose. What caught my attention was that it not only serves the same function as a putting mirror, but in addition there are ball/putter gates to provide feedback on face control. WhyGolf also advertises that the "Putting Thing" is ideal for either indoor or outdoor practice with an ultra-thin profile, and flexible anchoring options. This is especially important to me with most of my practice currently being indoors (putting mat + PuttOut and PuttView practice green), but would allow me to bring it to the course for warm-up as well.

In this review, I'll dive into my experience with the "Putting Thing," exploring its features, benefits, and how it has contributed to my ongoing efforts to improve my putting game. While the "Putting Thing" won't actually find a permanent spot in my golf bag—more on that later—my goal is to incorporate it into my routine for 20 minutes every day, with the hope of bringing my putting average below 32 strokes per round. Also for more about me, please see my previous reviews here:

 

First Impressions (4 out of 5) : (2/19/24)
Let's address the price tag first: the "Putting Thing" isn't the most budget friendly putting trainer on the market, coming in at $99.99 (use code "WHYSGUY15" to get it for $85). Comparatively, some traditional putting mirrors are available for $25 or less, and making putter and ball gates with tees is free. However, the "Putting Thing's" advantage is quick setup and adjustability.

Upon unboxing, the "Putting Thing" impresses with its thin yet sturdy build. However, it's worth noting that while the base is thin, it is also very wide, posing a challenge for finding a suitable spot in a golf bag. The setup process is straightforward—once the alignment cover is in place, a few practice putts help ensure your alignment is spot-on. Afterward, simply pop off the cover and fine-tune the gates to tailor your practice. This will take some tinkering based on your putter/proficiency.

For example, my Sycamore 009 Mini, with it's smaller head, effortlessly passes through the front gates but encounters difficulties with the ball gates. Conversely, my Cobra King Vintage Sport 60 blade putter struggles getting through front gates when set to position two, yet manages the ball gets better. For the purposes of this review, I will primarily practice with the Cobra blade to better evaluate feedback provided by both sets of gates.

I'm deducting half a star for the price—it's on the steeper side, but perhaps it'll prove its worth by the end of the review. Additionally, I'm docking half a star for its portability not meeting my initial expectations



Aesthetics (5 out of 5) : (2/19/24)
While the "Putting Thing" doesn't boast a particularly sexy or unique appearance, I contend that a putting trainer shouldn't necessarily prioritize those attributes. What the "Putting Thing" excels at visually is offering subtle yet effective setup lines, aiding in the adjustment of your putter and eye line. One subtle design feature worth highlighting is the thin strip of rubber/foam behind the ball, preventing your putter from sliding all over the plate. I see no reason to deduct stars for its design; in fact, I appreciate how non-distracting and functional it is.




The Numbers (# out of 5) :
To be continued...

On The Course (# out of 5) :
To be continued...

The Good, the Bad, the In-between (# out of 5) :
To be continued...

Play It or Trade It? (# out of 5) :
To be continued...

Conclusion: To be continued...
Final Score (## out of 30) : To be continued...

[GolferXY]

Good start toa review.  Looking at the back of the "mirror" it seems a bit short.  I have a fairly shallow putter swing.  Does it encourage you to lift your putter rather than "push" it back?

[BallsLeon]

10 minutes ago, GolferXY said:

Good start toa review.  Looking at the back of the "mirror" it seems a bit short.  I have a fairly shallow putter swing.  Does it encourage you to lift your putter rather than "push" it back?

Good question, and I'm unsure if it would promote lifting versus pushing to be honest that's not a swing thought I currently have during putting. My putting stroke is going beyond the back of the plate, but haven't had any issues with clipping it on the way back.

Next time I practice with it, I'll try to focus more on pushing my putter down to see if I am clipping it.

[GolferXY]

Yeah, my first move is to tap the ground behind the ball with the putter so I'm not taking it back from a dead stop. Then I push the putter away from the  ball and try to maintain that same smooth angle of attack into the ball. If I may give unsolicited advice, maybe you should just use the same style as you do when actually putting to avoid changing your stroke, especially not for the likes of me!

[BallsLeon]

24 minutes ago, GolferXY said:

Yeah, my first move is to tap the ground behind the ball with the putter so I'm not taking it back from a dead stop. Then I push the putter away from the  ball and try to maintain that same smooth angle of attack into the ball. If I may give unsolicited advice, maybe you should just use the same style as you do when actually putting to avoid changing your stroke, especially not for the likes of me!

I think you bring up a good point about the length though. Compared to a more traditional putting mirror it is quite a bit shorter. I'll give that a shot when I practice next, and think it will be valuable feedback to the review, thank you!

While this is a review, it's also partially (and hopefully) a journey to better putting so advice is welcome!

[cnosil]

1 hour ago, GolferXY said:

Good start toa review.  Looking at the back of the "mirror" it seems a bit short.  I have a fairly shallow putter swing.  Does it encourage you to lift your putter rather than "push" it back?

 

13 minutes ago, BallsLeon said:

I think you bring up a good point about the length though. Compared to a more traditional putting mirror it is quite a bit shorter. I'll give that a shot when I practice next, and think it will be valuable feedback to the review, thank you!
 

I don't think it is short as closely resembles the Pelz putting tutor with the addition of a putter gate.   The intent of the device is to make a putting stroke and have the putter go through the putter gate and the ball go through the ball gate.  Even if you tap your putter you still want to make center contact which means the putter still needs to go through the gate.  It doesn't seem to be designed to make you lift or push the putter.  

[GolferXY]

I think you misunderstand my concern, and I should have been clearer.  I've used a number of putting mirrors and they all have a much longer area behind the ball.  While it isn't designed to produce a specific type of stroke, I wonder whether having that short lip on the backstroke will affect me psychologically to inadvertently chop down to avoid hitting the back lip of the device. 

[berkeleybob]

It seems you have the latest iteration of the putting thing, since the picture on the packaging is different. 

Nice start! I’ve never used a putting aid before, so I’m interested to see how this works for you. I know it’s on my list to get something at some point. 

[BallsLeon]

@berkeleybob Good eye! I had not noticed that until now. It seems like the final spoked design will catch easier and provide better feedback (especially for the putter face).

Something else I forgot to mention about the gates, the gates for the putter head spin more freely than the ball gates. I was curious why that was at first, but makes sense with the putter head hitting them you want them to spin as to not mark up your putter head. Haven't noticed any wear patterns so far using it, but something to keep an eye on.

Day 3 of my practice with the trainer. Currently using setting 1 for the putter face, and setting 2 for the ball. Best streak of "clean" putts (not hitting either gate) was only 3 today.
Managing the ball gates fairly well, but currently I am not great at delivering the putter head consistently. While the face angle seems to be right, my stroke has an inconsistent path leading to off-center strikes (more often hitting the top gate than bottom).

@GolferXY I spent some putts trying to replicate the setup you described, and focusing on keeping the putter down. I found that I really had to focus on the back edge of the plate to clip it.

[BallsLeon]

Day 4 of practice, don't intend to make a post everyday about this but had a breakthrough...

In the first 10 minutes of practice I started with same settings (setting 2 - ball gate, setting 1 - putter gate) and managed a new best streak of "clean" putts — 12 putts! Had a good flow going, making my first move a slight shaft lean towards the target before I take away, and focusing on the very back of the ball. This move seemed to help smooth things out on my stroke.

On the second 10 minutes, I bumped the ball gate setting up to 3 (pictured below) and my best streak was 5. More often than not when I fail it's still on the putter gates, but did not notice a pattern when hitting the ball gates. Tomorrow I'll see what I can manage when I bump the putter gates up to setting 2.


 

[cksurfdude]

First, kudos on great review .. format, pics, info, writing style! 

This thing looks pretty well-designed to me .. eg. easy to understand, simple to use, provides immediate feedback and is something that encourages you to keep using it. Kudos to WhyGolf!

And it's clearly an effective practice tool as you're already seeing improvement.

If i didn't already have something similar I'd prob be already ordering one! 

[BallsLeon]

Thank you @cksurfdude, appreciate the kind words, and Cam Smith’s practice routine is starting to make a lot of sense, setup is key!

Curious what tools everyone else is using out there? 

On day 7 of 20mins of practice a day, have graduated up to ball gates on setting 3 and putter gates on setting 2. Very challenging, think the best streak I’ve managed has been two.

I recorded a video of myself using it, but accidentally pressed slo-mo so it’s the most boring 3mins of video you’ll ever see . Will try again this week.

[cnosil]

16 minutes ago, BallsLeon said:

Curious what tools everyone else is using out there? 

outdoors -

• tees to make the ball and putter gate. 
• I'll put a ball on the line of a flat putt and work on aim/stroke to hit the ball squarely.

indoors -

• use a couple of heavy objects to make ball gate. I'll use a couple of sleeves of balls to make the putter gate. 
• roll the ball over a dime.
• I have a visio start line trainer and just putt tees upside down over the gate hole
• hit  any object with a flat end and ensure  it goes straight.  

 

All of these are done using different length strokes to make sure I can hit short and long putts with equal effectiveness.

 

 

 

[BallsLeon]

On Day 11 of putting for 20 mins with the trainer.

Blade putter was in the shop for a few days so I practiced with the Sub 70 Sycamore 009 Mini. As I practice this new putting setup two things have become apparent with this putter: this putter is too long - currently at 35" to setup properly I need to choke down to the bottom of the grip, and I have a major tendency to start the ball right.
While the putter head is too small to provide any feedback (even on the smallest setting) I continually hit the right ball gate. It's suddenly starting to make a lot of sense why I could never get the PuttOut Devil Balls straight with this putter. While it fails the training aides, I can still make putts with this putter... I guess I have just adjusted to it's tendency over time. Would like to chop some length off the shaft, and see how that feels down the road.

Today however, I got my blade putter back! New look and feel, and with that seems to have come some good mojo. Back to the same settings (ball gate -3 & putter gate -2) and I managed a streak of five clean putts in a row, miss, and the four more.

Golf seasons starts in Kansas this weekend, so hopefully I'll have some more rounds to go for <32 putts.

[GolferXY]

What did you have done to your blade?

[BallsLeon]

@GolferXY regripped, and reshafted with a Garsen Quad Tour Taper and SteelFiber P125, respectively. Ended up needing an adapter for the shaft to work, and extended to 34”. Was supposed to be stock 34” when I bought it, but it was more like 33.75” (even with the sensor thing in the grip).

Put a link to the “What Have You Bought Lately? (CHA - Club Ho's Anonymous)” thread in the last post, but they don’t stand out too well:

 

[Willie T]

On 2/22/2024 at 3:11 PM, BallsLeon said:

Had a good flow going, making my first move a slight shaft lean towards the target before I take away, and focusing on the very back of the ball. This move seemed to help smooth things out on my stroke.

Just started reading the thread - really good start on this review.  I really like the looks of the rig, I could easliy get into using this thing especially about dialing in the roll of the ball between the gates.   

On a side bar - what kind of control of the pace are you seeing?  Are the balls finishing consistently close to each other?   

[BallsLeon]

@Willie T great question; during my practice I have been setting it up about 3-4ft from my PuttOut, or in front of a hole. Getting some feedback from the PuttOut on pace, and I would say I am averaging about a foot of rollback. However, aligned properly in front of the cup if the ball goes through the gates it will go in the hole from 3-4ft.

I haven't focused much on pace in my practice, but your timing is perfect—just as I was about to address the struggles of my recent round. Throughout my last round, my strokes were consistently too soft, resulting in putts stopping halfway to the hole. While my setup may have been spot-on, it only matters if I can get the ball close. I need to adjust my practice to specifically target pace, considering putting to a designated space rather than to the PuttOut or a hole.

[BallsLeon]

Unfortunately due to life getting in the way I have fallen off my pace off daily practice, and I've adjusted my practice some per my last post. Putting from 6ft on my matt to the circle where PuttOut should be, with the goal being letting the ball die on that circle. Finding the longer distance, and without the PuttOut to catch balls brings a better focus to my pace.
In addition, I am focusing less on the putter head gates dialing them back to 1 allowing the tolerances for my stroke to be looser. I figure as long as I'm still rolling through the ball gates on settings 3-4 that variation in my path should be fine.
Close to wrapping up this review, just hoping for a couple days of practice in nice weather to close it out.

In other news, got this email from WhyGolf this morning:

Edited March 14 by BallsLeon

[GolferXY]

I use a putting gate myself, but only if my stroke is meandering.  I have a bad habit....maybe inability would be a better term...of not taking the putter head back smoothly on a consistent basis.  

I break my putting practice down into three areas - setup [including grip, stance, direction] pace, and takeaway.  I try to maintain the same setup routine on every putt since I often find myself getting bored, lazy, and careless and have to mentally rope myself back in.

My putting mat at home is a birdieball 4x14' mat with one hole that is straight and one at the other end that has a break in it.  Good for practicing my routine, and the occasional beer challenge, but not really translatable to the course in any meaningful way.  What it does do is keep the putter in my hands and working on that setup and smooooth stroke that I can take out to the golf course.

Out on the practice green I take 10 balls and drop them on the green.  Pace includes several balls scattered the same distance around the hole, then different distances, then lined up in a straight line so I'm putting on the same line with every putt, but at different distances.  Then I find an area on the practice green that has a good bend in it and try different speeds from the same point.  Die at the hole, 18" past, and ramming speed.  Takes about 30 minutes and then I go chip.  I keep a small stainless putting gate in my bag in the event that my takeaway is wandering, but honestly most times I'm too lazy to use it and just poke 4 tees in the green in two parallel rows, drop a dime a few feet away, and try to hit the coin without hitting the tees. [Hey! I was a kid once and couldn't afford balls much less training aids!  Putting between bird turds is a good way to learn to putt straight, lemme tellya!]

 

[BallsLeon]

@GolferXY totally agree with you, lot’s of ways to practice putting and achieve the same thing as this Putting Thing. That’s maybe my biggest criticism of the product, its price. That being said, it is super easy to just drop it on the ground and get to practicing, knowing everything is lined up right. 

Not using this daily anymore, but whenever I practice putting I warm up with 5-10 balls on this to check in on my setup and alignment. I like starting here, and then I can dial in my speed and aim. Been trying to be less technical in my approach, and something that’s helping me is just putting balls into each other around my carpet. Try not to think too much and just putt while I’m watching tv.

Courses are open, but the weather has still been pretty cruddy. Still want to get out on sunny day for some better pictures to wrap up the review, but got a round in yesterday. One hole is under construction, but had 28 putts over 17 holes, even if I would have 3 putt that’d put me under 32 putts for a round. Was doing a good job of placing myself in decent positions around the green, but had some solid rolls yesterday. 
 

[GolferXY]

2 hours ago, BallsLeon said:

but had some solid rolls yesterday. 

Nice stats, Balls!