Aim Point Chicago

I would like to thank everyone that participated in the Aim Point fundamental class this past Friday at Links and Tees in Addison, Illinois. Senior Instructor John Graham did an outstanding job. It's easy to see why he is so popular. I'd also like to recognize General Manager Charles Sims and his staff for hosting the clinic at what is the finest municipal practice facility in the midwest. The city of Addison should be very proud of the job Charles has done.

 John Graham explaining how to......

The biggest thing I took out of the class was that Aim Point and green reading is a skill that must be practiced just like anything else in your game. I've been saying this for a while and John just galvanized it, but if you want to improve as a putter, you need to dedicate time to green reading and getting lined up where you think you are. We need to practice these skills as much or more than we do practicing our stroke mechanics. You also need to start using the stripe or line on the ball to help you in that endeavor. I realize some of you are just not going to do it. OK that's fine, but you might as well putt with your eyes closed.  I watched a very good player during the class Friday miss 4 straight 10 footers before I convinced him to use the line on the ball to help him aim at a point 4 inches to the right of the edge of the hole. Of course he made the first one. Not only was he aiming too far right, sometimes he was actually aiming left of the aiming point!

left to right- Phil Sampogna, Biv Wadden, Tom Broders, Dave Lenhard, and 50% of Bull Valley Head Professional Michael Picciano.

I don't want to give too much away, but the main focus in Aim Point is finding the straight putt below the hole.  Or the zero line. If you can find that, you are on your way. As much math as there is in this system there is also a lot of common sense involved. Knowing how gravity works is a plus as well ;-)

Determining green speed and slope are  basics. Finding the high and low points on the green and learning to read the surface more with your feet than your eyes is also huge in this system. From there you are reading a simple planar surface. Planar just means the slope is front to back with no humps or bumps. The key to learning this system is to learn and develop a little at a time. It's very intimidating the first time you go to the course.  Graham's best work is his ability to make sure you understand that this is not magic. It's a methodical system that takes practice.

I played yesterday and my goal was to just determine the slope, and find the straight putt or zero line. John McArtin, Director of Instruction at Whisper Creek is going through the Aim Point Certification process and he told me that he spent weeks this winter in Arizona just plotting points on the greens without a putter. Just rolling balls on the green. This is absolutely the way to learn it. I think that it would be easy to become discouraged with this system if you were under the impression that  you should be able to just go out the first day after the fundamental class and have it nailed down. It can take weeks, months, or maybe even a full season to be able to feel comfortable with Aim Point.  If you just keep it to 20 feet and in you'll be better off at first. But PLEASE don't give up on it. After a while you'll be able to perform this system faster than you ever read greens before. You'll also be able to read greens without even opening up the charts because you'll have the numbers memorized.  That's why you need to stick with it at first and develop bits and pieces. 

I love symmetry!

Aim Point deserves all the credit it is getting in the golf instruction community. But I can't say this strongly enough. Green reading, regardless of your approach is a skill just like anything else we do in golf. It takes hours and hours of practice. If you approach every putt in that 20 foot circle and focus on the planar aspect you'll have the basics nailed down in no time. If you have a 40 foot putt over hill and dale, don't waste a lot of time trying to figure it out. Just keep doing what you're doing. Most putts within 10 to 20 feet can be read with the planar approach. Then work your way out. Remember, always seek the zero line and go from there.