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The Arc of Putting
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Golf is played on an inclined plane, or as more commonly referred to a swing plane. Several factors account for the need for an inclined plane; we stand to the side of the ball, the ball is below us, the shaft is made on an angle to the ground, the length of the shaft, we have a tilt/bend to our spine. These combine to mean that in relation to the low point of the swing, the club should travel upwards and inwards on the backswing, downwards and outwards on the downswing, and then upwards and inwards again on the follow through. It is conceivable that a putter could move in a straight back, straight through motion, but it is not desirable or practical. To achieve maximum consistency and accuracy the putter must swing on an arc.
Moving on a single inclined plane would guarantee the correct in-to-in putter path. The angle of this inclined plane is controlled by the angle of the putter shaft. Nearly all putters are made on an angle between ≈70-degree, making the arc that the putter head or sweet spot swings on roughly 20 degrees. Swinging the club on a single inclined plane angle of ≈70-degree would not only create the desired in-to-in path or arc, but also ensure centred contact and help to stabilise any rotation of the club face.
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When practicing a swing plane or arc, it is important to remember that the definition of an ‘inclined plane’ in mathematics is “a flat or level surface that continues in all directions” (https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/plane). To measure or monitor our swing plane we must therefore use a flat or level surface. A single point of reference is therefore unable to guarantee that we have achieved a constant swing plane. The Plane Face Putting Aid has two rails for this reason. If just one rail was present you would not be able to tell for certain if you had maintained the correct swing plane throughout the stroke. Looking at the picture below, if there was only one rail then it would be easy to think that I had achieved my goal on a consistent swing plane as my putter shaft is still in contact with the top rail. The two rails create the desired flat surface to measure our shaft against the inclined plane and as you can see the putter has not maintained the same plane throughout the stroke.
Looking at impact you can see that by not being in contact with the lower rail the ball was struck out of the heel of the putter. Moving the putter ‘off plane’ has also created a swing path that is in-to-out. For the ball to go towards the intended target it is likely that the face would have to be manipulated left or be closed. It is possible to hole putts with a stroke like this, but the variables are decreasing the likelihood of being able to repeat the action consistently than if the shaft moved on an single inclined plane.
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To create the correct arc to your putting stroke you therefore need to move the shaft up this inclined plane dictated by the shaft angle. Swinging the putter along the rails will promote your body to rotate in the correct manner to produce this motion. Any independent hand, wrist or shoulder movement will result in the club shaft moving off one or both rails giving you instant feedback about your stroke. This combined with the putting gate arguably gives the highest levels of feedback of any putting training aid. This results in improvements in your stroke often being visible withing minutes of using the Plane Face Putting Aid.
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To find out more about our putting training aid click here
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