Putting · Tip
Read Greens by Finding the Straight Putt
Part of our putting programs for three-putts, start line, reading greens. Build a program with it
Every hole has a straight putt. It's the line straight uphill or downhill through the cup. Find it, and you know how the green tilts. Every other putt around that hole breaks in a way you can predict. Walk around the hole. Find the high and low sides. Then see where your ball sits compared to that line. It will break toward the low side. Add speed, and you have your aim.
Step by step
- Find the high and low sides of the hole.
- Find the straight uphill line.
- See where your ball sits.
- Expect the break toward the low side.
- Add speed to choose your aim.
Why it works
Gravity pulls the ball toward the low side of the green. A putt on the straight uphill or downhill line through the cup has no side pull, so it stays on line. Any putt that starts off that line has some side slope, so it curves toward the low side. Slower putts spend more time rolling, so gravity bends them more than firm ones.
Common mistakes
- You judge the slope only from behind the ball.Walk around the hole and look from the low side and the high side before you pick the straight line.
- You assume the putt breaks the same amount no matter how hard you hit it.Decide your speed first, because a softer putt breaks more and a firmer putt breaks less.
- You guess where the straight line is without checking the cup.Stand beside the hole, find the high and low sides, and trace the line straight uphill through the cup.
How you'll know it's working
- Your read matches the roll: putts you expect to break toward the low side do break that way.
- Your putts start on the line you picked and curve as you predicted, with fewer surprise misses to the high side.
- Your first putt from any spot finishes closer to the hole because your aim and speed agree.
Make it easier or harder
Easier: Practice from a spot straight above or below the hole first, where there is no break, then move a short step to the side.
Harder: Try longer putts from several spots around the hole, and pick both the straight line and your aim before each stroke.
Common questions
How do you find the straight putt on a green?
Walk around the hole and find where the ground is highest and lowest. The straight putt is the line running directly uphill or downhill through the cup.
Which way will my putt break?
It breaks toward the low side of the green. The farther your ball sits from the straight uphill line, the more side slope it faces and the more it will curve.
