Golf Putters

The thing about a putter is that it is pivotal to the rest of our game. It can define how we feel about our day on the course. Here at AMERICAN GOLF, we have picked out our ten best putters for 2023. Please read on and see which one takes our fancy.

If you’re not sure on the correct putter length for you, we’d always recommend your first port of call being a custom fitting at one of our stores. However, there are a few guidelines to inform your decision. The best putters are based almost solely on your height, because you don’t need swing consideration for this club, only control. In general, if you’re over 6 foot then you’ll need a putter of around 35 inches, give or take more accurate measurements. If you’re between 5’7” to 5‘11”, then you’ll be better suited to a 34-inch putter, and so on. The best putters for you are those that feel most comfortable and natural in your stance – if you’re finding that you’re having to arch yourself over the ball, then your putter is too short. This is why we’d recommend visiting your nearest American Golf store to be properly fitted for golf putters, as you want the club that is typically used to finish a game to be accurately assigned to you in every way possible.

This is, again, something we’d recommend you visit us in-store for. You can try the following method at home, but we’d always recommend having it professionally verified by one of our trained fitters. Place a golf ball at your feet and resume your putting stance as if you were playing. Do this on your first try and without overthinking it, because if you adjust your stance to be different from the one you naturally and automatically assumed, the measurements will be off. Ask someone to measure the distance from the heel of your hand to the ground. This is your estimated putter shaft length. Because you will need an extra pair of hands to help you with measuring this anyway, we’d always recommend that extra pair of hands being one of our trained American Golf representatives. Visit us in store and a friendly face will always help you find the best putters.

There are a couple of ways you can grip your putter, so we’ll take you through the most popular and commonly used methods. The reverse overlap grip is the most common way to grip a putter that many professionals prefer. For this, you place your left hand just above your right hand on the putter grip, and link both hands by lifting your index finger of your left over your right. Rest your left thumb flat on top of the grip for additional support. For right-handed players, your right hand will obviously be the dominant hand during this, with the left hand for direction and steadiness. The Vardon grip is another commonly used grip amongst the professionals, and it involves placing the little finger of the hand placed lower down the club (your guiding hand) between the index and middle finger of your dominant hand. The top thumb will sit nicely underneath the bottom hand across the heel of the thumb or the lifeline of the palm. The Left Below Right technique is basically the reversal of the traditional putting grip, or the reverse of the reverse overlap. Still with us? Good. For right-handed people, this involves putting your weaker left hand below your dominant right hand, but still wrapping the index finger on the right, across the fingers of the left.

The best putters are fitted to your play style. For golfers who play consistently on or below-par games, then a traditional blade-style putter is what you’ll be looking for. They’re not the most forgiving for beginners, but for keen golfers they are a solid choice. For those who putt with a straight path, choose a face balanced putter, and for those who putt with a bend or a slight deviation in their path, choose a toe balanced putter.

putting is, in fact, the bedrock of the game. In all likelihood you will hit twice as many putts as tee shots in a round but how often do you practise this essential skill? Over your next three rounds, alongside your score for each hole, write in smaller letters the number of putts you take. Thirty-six would be reasonable; 32-35 good and below 32 is excellent. Also, if you can, make a mental not of the ones you missed; were they on the high or low side of the hole, short or long? Knowing where you’re going wrong is the first step in improving, if you want a detailed analysis to get better, check out our blog on how to improve at putting.

Start before you get there. From 20-40 yards away just look at the general topography; is the green higher on one side than another, or is the back more elevated than the front? Once you reach the green, have a look from both sides of the flagstick. Don’t get too hung up on reading the speed of the green. Check out our blog for more on how to improve your putting