Alright, let me tell you about my time messing around with the SAM PuttLab thing.
I’d been hearing about this system for a while, you know, how it supposedly tells you everything about your putting stroke. My putting felt okay, sometimes good, sometimes shaky, like most golfers I guess. So, I figured, why not? Let’s see what this gizmo actually says.
Getting Started
Found a place nearby that had one. Went down there, wasn’t too sure what to expect. The setup was pretty straightforward, really. The tech guy attached a couple of little sensor things to my putter shaft, just below the grip. Didn’t feel heavy or weird or anything. Then he pointed me towards a mat and told me to hit some putts towards a projected hole on a screen.
Hitting Putts and Seeing the Data
So, I stepped up and started rolling some putts. Felt pretty normal, just hitting balls like I usually would on a practice green. The interesting part was watching the screen after each putt. This thing measures a ton of stuff, apparently. Instantly, after the ball left the face, numbers and graphics popped up.
It showed things like:
- Where my putter face was aiming when I set up.
- Where it was actually pointing at impact.
- The path my putter took – inside-to-out, outside-to-in, stuff like that.
- Where I hit the ball on the putter face – center, heel, toe.
- Even the timing, the rhythm of my stroke.
Honestly, it was a bit overwhelming at first. So much information flashing up. But the tech guy was helpful, pointed out the main things.
What I Learned
The biggest surprise for me? My aim. I thought I was aiming square, maybe slightly left sometimes. Nope. The PuttLab showed I was consistently aiming a bit right of the target at address. Like, every single putt. Explains why I sometimes felt like I had to pull the putt to get it online.
It also showed my stroke path wasn’t too bad, pretty consistent, but my face angle at impact was a little all over the place. Sometimes open, sometimes closed. Not wild swings, but enough to make a difference on those 10-footers.
Seeing the impact location was useful too. Mostly centered, but a few sneaky ones off the toe when I wasn’t concentrating.
Making Sense of It
We spent a bit of time just hitting putts and watching the results. Then the guy suggested a small tweak to my setup based on the aiming issue. Just a little adjustment in how I stood over the ball. Tried hitting more putts like that.
It felt weird at first, like I was aiming way left. But guess what? The screen showed I was aiming much closer to the actual target now. Crazy how what feels right isn’t always what is right.
Didn’t fix everything in one session, obviously. Still had some inconsistency in the face angle at impact. But just knowing about that initial aiming flaw was huge. It gave me something concrete to actually work on.
Final Thoughts
So yeah, the SAM PuttLab session was pretty eye-opening. Didn’t magically turn me into a pro putter overnight, but it definitely showed me the reality of my stroke, not just what I thought I was doing. Seeing the actual data, right there in black and white (well, color graphics), cuts through the guesswork. It’s a tool, right? Doesn’t do the work for you, but it points you in the right direction. Worth doing if you’re serious about figuring out your putting, I’d say.
