If you’ve ever been on the practice putting green at a tour event, you’ve probably seen players using a thin string while putting. It’s called one starting line sequence or an alignment cord, and it’s one of the most effective – yet underrated – training tools for dialing in your putting.
Recently Ian Poulter shared one behind the scenes video in which he explains how he uses this Tour-trusted training tool to improve his alignment on the green – and how you can do it too.
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Using an alignment string
The string is stretched between two posts and runs directly across your target line, providing you with a visual guide to align your eyes and putter face. To set it up, Poulter says to place one post behind the putt line and the other behind the hole.
“About where you think the ball will move,” he says.
From here he says to hit a few putts to see if the target starting line you selected reflects what the ball actually does.
“You want to see if your eyes noticed how much the ball is going to break,” Poulter says. “This is a really good test.”
You should be able to immediately see if the selected line is correct. If your starting line is off, simply adjust the string by moving the post behind the hole to account for any additional bends in the green that you didn’t initially see.
Once you’ve set your goal, you can check your starting line. All you have to do is pay attention to your ball after you hit it. If your ball rolls directly under the string, you have started on the correct line.
By practicing with this tool, you will not only improve your attunement, but you will even become a better green reader. You can also use the alignment cord to check your eye position (a crucial aspect of setup) and stroke length.
To check your eye position, Poulter says to line up with your putter – with the string across the centerline of the golf ball. Take a second ball and bring it directly under your dominant eye. Then drop it from this position.
“You want the ball to ideally land straight on the ball underneath,” he says. “That means your eye line is directly above the line.”
To check your shot, Poulter says to place two tees down to mark the length of your shot.
“In an ideal world you would want the backstroke to be exactly the same distance as the follow-up stroke,” says Poulter, “That helps give you a nice pace back, a slight acceleration to the actual ball itself. And when the putt is done, it finishes on the way out the same distance as the distance you took back.”
The alignment sequence may be a simple tool, but as Ian Poulter shows, its impact on well performance can be enormous. Whether you’re working on aim, eye position or shot consistency, this underrated training tool gives you the quick feedback you need to putt like the pros.
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