Welcome to Shaving Strokes, a GOLF.com series in which we’re sharing improvements, learnings and takeaways from amateur golfers just like you — including some of the speed bumps and challenges they faced along the way.
Does it feel like you’re missing too many putts that you really think you should be making? I’m not talking about false confidence but rather the feeling that something just isn’t right with the gear you’re using.
For years I had used the same old putter, sticking with a vintage flat stick that had been given to me with my first set of clubs when I was 12 years old. The putter itself resembled one from a putt-putt course and wasn’t the weapon of someone who’s remotely serious about golf.
Not only was it a model from the 1960s, but the grip had shifted, meaning my clubface was never really square at address. Naturally, that’s a recipe for disaster, and led me to pushing my putts even when I put a good stroke on it.
Eventually, I tested out a few different putters and discovered something else: the length was off, too. After some sampling, I settled on a putter with the length and feel that fit me.
So if you feel like you’re leaving strokes on the course and think the putter’s partly to blame, take a look below at some tips on how to measure putter length the right way, which will immediately give you the upgrade you’re looking for.
View Product
How to measure the perfect putter length for you
In the video above, GOLF Top 100 Teacher Todd Sones works with Adam Porzak on the putting surface, with the former telling his student that he’s going to build him a new putter to help him instantly improve on the green.
“I’m going to build this putter right on the screen,” Sones says. “When you have instruction, you have the putter made for you, and you have it fitted, you’re going to walk away and get better right away.”
As the two get into the lesson, Sones mentions three goals he’s focusing on understanding during his lesson with Porzak — which includes how to measure putter length for yourself.
First, why you have the wrong putter, second, how to build a proper putting setup, and third, how to go through a live fitting.
“How often do people show up and want help with their putting, but they’ve got a putter they’ve adapted to and are in the wrong setup,” Sones says. “You can’t teach someone a great putting stroke from a bad setup position.”
As Porzak takes out the putter that’s in the bag near them, he shows how a 35-inch putter (which is standard length for one off the shelf), is way too long an option.
“Look where [the head] of this putter falls down in relationship to my eyeline, it’s way out [to the right],” Porzak says. “I’d have to grip this about three inches down the grip to have it feel right to me.”
So how can you figure out how to measure putter length? After some instruction tips from Sones, the top teacher walks Porzak through a fitting process.
Sones has Porzac rotate his arms in, flex and tuck his elbows to his side and step forward into his proper putting setup. From there he uses a fitting tool, which adjusts in height to help determine which putter length works best, while also determining where the eyeline is for each person.
“We’re measuring where 30 inches is from the grip to the ground,” says Sones. “Using this helpful chart, given Porzak’s natural setup, his putter shaft should be cut at 32.25 inches.”
After constructing the putter fit specifically for Porzak, he’s now able to confidently match his equipment with his setup.
“The visual that the putter gave me of framing the golf ball, my tendencies were knocked out right away,” he says. “I was already in the right spot, and it felt like the putter was on a train track and I just need to let it go.”
