The Lads Putting-Youtube Rabbit Hole

Jason Day has been one of the best putters on tour for a long time. When I saw this video pop up, I was immediately excited. The majority of this video is built around the thought process of putting which I think is the biggest variable. There are a lot of great putters that have garbage strokes, but can get the face square. What this video does a good job of is focusing on speed, line, and routine. Nothing on physical stroke issues that can then throw you down the rabbit hole while playing.

Let's start out with the why. If you want to become a great putter, you have to understand "why" you are missing putts. JDAY discusses how putting is the perfect marriage of speed and line, and if those two things match, you would make every putt. Jeg is explaining his process to Jason and how he goes about his own routine. I highly recommend listening to this part, everyone clicked the video for JDAY but Jeg is a damn good player in his own right.

The second main topic is the concept of adjusting. Jason is a huge advocate of being able to adjust when you're actually turned sideways. I am a huge proponent of this as well. Why? You don't hit putts with both eyes behind it unless you're Bryson using that insane front facing putter a couple years back. Train your eyes sideways. Just an analogy I have used before with students:

Imagine you are in an alternate universe where cars are the same as today but you have to sit sideways and drive. So your head is constantly turned left. This would change everything about driving and how our eyes perceive things. Now when you are practicing for that drivers test in an alternate universe would you practice like how we normally drive in today's world looking straight?

Of course not, you would look sideways since thats the way you have to actually do the task. In putting however, we do exactly that. I see so many good players that can see the right line but when they actually turn sideways and get over the ball everything is completely misaligned and down the drain. Practice seeing and visualizing your putts turned sideways.

An amazing question that I love: If I were to hit a straight putt at the hole, where would this end up? Now how much do I need to adjust the line of the ball so after the fall line the ball ends up in the hole or misses just slightly high. The first thing this does is give the ball an opportunity to hit the biggest part of the cup coming in at an angle. Difficult to imagine but think about it for a second and it makes sense. The second thing is, it always gives you a chance for the putt to actually go in.

Another great question Jason talks about, "what does a good putt look like". Very simple thing that absolutely none of us do. Jeg and Day also discuss the concept of commitment. If you get over the putt and all of a sudden feel like you're not playing enough break, just back off please and readjust. Why would you do something where you don't even believe you have a chance of achieving what you want?

Another interesting thing that Jeg talks about in this video. You need to become your own friend on the golf course. Meaning, if you have a friend that cares about you and is a +5 and he tells you to do something, you're most likely going to listen. A lot of us have the knowledge to be scratch or better from reading things like The Fairway Times (wink wink), but when we know we need to do something on the course, we just don't do it.

I love when Day talks about his own individual routine. He describes the way he sees putts below. He is clearly a full line thinker. He can see the actual line of the putt and its curve before he hits the ball.

I myself only see putts as straight, so if I did this same exercise I would just putt the ball straight at the point that I thought the ball was going to break off of.

I think this is an extremely important concept for people to grasp. Figure out which one you are. That way when you are practicing, there is a purpose behind what you are seeing. They end the video by discussing how you should definitely try to get film of yourself putting from behind. You can actually see your alignment.

Is this a rabbit hole worth going down? Yes, this is definitely a video that I think can actually help your game, click the link above to hear straight from Jason Day!