The Putting Challenge
So taking a look at some before Lean Lock and after Lean Lock stats...
I'm seeing improvement on the short range, particularly the 3-6 footers, but otherwise it's not better and the overall results are actually slightly worse. I think that's because my speed is generally worse, specifically, faster, with the Lean Lock, and therefore I just leave myself too many of those knee knockers coming back. Before Lean Lock I was 57% short with putts, after Lean Lock I'm 64% long. I know the general wisdom is you need to get the ball to the hole, and generally I agree, but not when you have a tough come backer.
At this point, I think I really need to either commit to some focused speed practice. I'm also thinking about reverting to the traditional putter for a round just to see how it goes and see if some of the short putting benefits I've seen from the Lean Lock method carry over to the conventional method, because I think the feel for speed might be better with the conventional putter.
| Stat | Before Lean Lock | After Lean Lock |
| SG putting (to 10 cap) | -0.81 | -0.95 |
| Avg holes per 3 putt | 11.5 | 10.6 |
| Avg putts | 32.6 | 33.3 |
| Make % inside 3 ft | 97% | 100% |
| Make % 3-6 ft | 60% | 81% |
| Make % 6-9 ft | 20% | 22% |
I'm seeing improvement on the short range, particularly the 3-6 footers, but otherwise it's not better and the overall results are actually slightly worse. I think that's because my speed is generally worse, specifically, faster, with the Lean Lock, and therefore I just leave myself too many of those knee knockers coming back. Before Lean Lock I was 57% short with putts, after Lean Lock I'm 64% long. I know the general wisdom is you need to get the ball to the hole, and generally I agree, but not when you have a tough come backer.
At this point, I think I really need to either commit to some focused speed practice. I'm also thinking about reverting to the traditional putter for a round just to see how it goes and see if some of the short putting benefits I've seen from the Lean Lock method carry over to the conventional method, because I think the feel for speed might be better with the conventional putter.
Speed control on shorts putts is where I suffer also. I'm also in the boat of hitting it too far past when I miss that I leave those long comeback putts that I can miss also!
It's actually more the mid and longer range putts (outside of about 15 feet) where speed is a problem. The short ones I'm actually OK. It's made my lag putting very streaky of late - tough to keep 3 putts off the card if you keep leaving yourself 8-10 footers on your 2nd putt.
I will leave 1 6ft putt with 8-10ft comebacker because I blow it by then the rest of the round I'm scared to putt.
Oh man, yeah that's tough. And you don't have that issue with a conventional putter, correct?
I don't blow 6footers 8ft past with a conventional putter. If anything I leave them like 2 revolutions short
I suck at putting no matter what I try!
I don't blow 6footers 8ft past with a conventional putter. If anything I leave them like 2 revolutions short
I think I am improving in little bits but I've still got work to do!
it's just such a strange feel to it. I love it in that 12-20ft range. I've made more of those than ever. Even the 3-6ft range shotscope tells me I"m better but it feels worse because I"m scared.
I think I am improving in little bits but I've still got work to do!
Sunday due to a snafu, I had to use a buddys Scotty. It didnt work for me. 11 3 putts. Yesterday I had the Lean Lock. Zero 3 putts, One longer putt made somewhere between 25 & 30'. A lot of poor pitching and chipping forgiven with every putt 8' and under made. This Lean Lock really, really works for me.
So I went ahead and reverted back to a conventional putter (Piretti Cottonwood II at 33.5" w/ Super Stroke Tour 3.0), as I suggested I might do in my previous post, to see how that affected things, especially 1) if short putts suffered and 2) if speed control improved. Here are the results, stacked against the previous chart:
A few key data points / assumptions here:
Why is that? I think it's down to lag speed. Though I'm tending to leave it a bit short more often, which isn't ideal for making putts, what I'm also not doing with the Piretti is blowing putts past the hole and leaving myself those longer comebackers. It's hard to show this in Shot Scope data, but I am having a lot more short tap ins for 2 putts than I do with the Lean Lock, because even though I'm short my speed is still closer and leaving me a shorter putt.
I'm going to get a few more rounds in with the Piretti to see if the data holds up, but ultimately it's looking like the right move for my game might be to go back to the conventional putter. That said, I DO think Brian's putting lessons, particularly on making a good strike and taking it away and back on the same line, are helping me tremendously even when I'm not using the Lean Lock.
| Stat | Before Lean Lock | Lean Lock | Piretti conventional |
| SG putting (to 10 cap) | -0.81 | -0.95 | 0.94 |
| Avg holes per 3 putt | 11.5 | 10.6 | 12.0 |
| Avg putts | 32.6 | 33.3 | 32.0 |
| Make % inside 3 ft | 97% | 100% | 100% |
| Make % 3-6 ft | 60% | 81% | 67% |
| Make % 6-9 ft | 20% | 22% | 0% |
A few key data points / assumptions here:
- The data is limited at only 2 rounds with the Piretti, compared to 10 rounds with the Lean Lock and 15+ prior to Lean Lock (which was my Odyssey).
- SG putting seeing a massive initial improvement. Nearly a full 2 strokes better on average than the recent Lean Lock trend.
- Average holes per 3 putt up a hole and a half.
- Average putts per round down nearly a stroke and a half.
- Make % inside 10 ft (outside of 3 ft) is down somewhat. But again, data is limited - 3-6 ft range for example, I only missed one with the Piretti (2 for 3). I should also note, though I didn't show the data, I am actually making MORE in the longer ranges - about a 30% make rate with the Piretti in the 9-18 ft range, compared to only 17% with the Lean Lock.
- Another stat not shown is with Lean Lock I'm missing long 64% of the time, whereas with the Piretti I'm missing short 66% of the time.
Why is that? I think it's down to lag speed. Though I'm tending to leave it a bit short more often, which isn't ideal for making putts, what I'm also not doing with the Piretti is blowing putts past the hole and leaving myself those longer comebackers. It's hard to show this in Shot Scope data, but I am having a lot more short tap ins for 2 putts than I do with the Lean Lock, because even though I'm short my speed is still closer and leaving me a shorter putt.
I'm going to get a few more rounds in with the Piretti to see if the data holds up, but ultimately it's looking like the right move for my game might be to go back to the conventional putter. That said, I DO think Brian's putting lessons, particularly on making a good strike and taking it away and back on the same line, are helping me tremendously even when I'm not using the Lean Lock.
Wow, that is a MASSIVE difference. How much of that 11 3-putt day do you think is just readjustment, and how much of it is the method? Or, said differently, was that representative of a typical performance for you pre-Lean Lock?
No, it was worse than my pre lean lock performances. But I was bad, 3-4 4 putts in a round was not unusual at all. With lean lock, 3 putts aren't even one per round. I am brimming with confidence, especially on the dreaded 6-8' putt.
Got it. Completely eliminating 3-putts is an amazing place to be. Lean Lock isn't getting me there (at least not so far) but I'm glad it's got you there!
Make %'s are highest w/ the lean lock, but more putts total, and SG lower. Things that make you go hmmm....
Agreed. Limited data, but still a little counterintuitive. I should probably drop the full range of make % and feet of made putts in to show more of the story.
EDIT: Here's that data (in parentheses is the total number of putts hit, i.e. the denominator):
| Lean Lock | Piretti conventional | |
| 0-3 ft | 100% (117 putts) | 100% (28 putts) |
| 3-6 ft | 81% (53 putts) | 67% (3 putts) |
| 6-9 ft | 22% (41 putts) | 0% (4 putts) |
| 9-12 ft | 21% (29 putts) | 25% (4 putts) |
| 12-18 ft | 12% (25 putts) | 12-18 feet (9 putts) |
| 18-24 ft | 9% (22 putts) | 13% (8 putts) |
| Distance putts made | 59 ft | 65 ft |
So the numbers look better because I'm making more in the longer range (6 ft higher distance made) / leaving myself a lot less in the 3-12 ft range (much lower proportion of putt attempts in this range) with the Piretti. There just isn't enough data in the 3-9 ft range to be sure, but clearly a little work needs done here.
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M lag putting may not be as good with the lean lock. I need better pace control, but when everything under 8' may as well be a tap in, it doesn't matter. I am just ove .5
threev putts per round the last 16 rounds.
threev putts per round the last 16 rounds.
That's pretty incredible. Ultimately it's all about reducing the 3 putts and however you're doing it, the proof is in the pudding. I just haven't been able to make that kind of transformative improvement in the 6-9 footers, though it does appear to be better with Lean Lock.
That is incredible. I wish I had made that kind of improvement with the LeanLock.
I seem to be in this same boat. I improved slightly in that 3-6ft range but got worse in the 6-9ft range. Total number of putts has stayed about the same, holes per 3putt has stayed about the same. The one thing I have noticed with the LeanLock is that I seem to make 2 15-20ft putts per round that I never made before.
Had a rough putting round today with the conventional putter. The putt total was high, but the starting putt distance was high as well which made things tough, especially on a course with very difficult greens. Biggest problem was I didn't make anything outside 6 feet, except for a 30 footer for birdie which dropped. I felt like I was all over edges all day, and I kept blowing lags past and giving myself longer comebackers.
I'm going to stick with it for a little longer to get a better data set, but it's possible the Lean Lock is giving me something in the 6-9 ft range that I don't have with the conventional putter.
I'm going to stick with it for a little longer to get a better data set, but it's possible the Lean Lock is giving me something in the 6-9 ft range that I don't have with the conventional putter.