How to coax it downhill: let the putterhead pass the hands for a softer roll

Golf Digest, August, 2006 by Jim Flick

Can you believe that Hale Irwin has been winning tournaments across five decades now? He won the individual title at the NCAA Championship in 1967, and last year he won four times on the Champions Tour. In between, he has won three U.S. opens, more than 60 tournaments and nearly $30 million in official money. Hale is generally known for accurate driving and stellar iron play. But an often overlooked reason for his success is a great putting touch, especially on fast greens.

Irwin is basically self-taught, and he told me he figured out how to handle certain shots by experimenting with different ideas. Experimentation is a major part of the learning process. For example, on slick downhillers he discovered that he should hold the putter more lightly than usual and allow the putterhead to pass his hands through impact. His left wrist actually cups a little on the through-stroke (left).

This motion increases the effective loft of the putter at impact and gives the feeling of adding backspin to the ball as it comes off the putterface. The result is a soft touch and a slow but true roll as the ball trickles down the slope.

By Jim Flick

Golf Digest Teaching Professional

Jim Flick, ranked in the top 10 by his peers among Golf Digest's 50 Greatest Teachers, is based in Carlsbad, Calif. For more tips from Flick, click golfdigest.com/flick.