Back to School at the London Putting Academy

Luke Donald’s incredible run of consecutive holes without a three putt came to an end last week at an astonishing 449. With statistics like that, it’s no surprise to find Donald occupying the World No.1 spot, Major win or no Major win. Donald will be the first to acknowledge that his phenomenal success this year has been largely down to an incredibly sharp short game, and, in particular, his ability to hole-out. The best putters always feature at the top of the leader boards and lately Donald’s putting has been akin to Woods in his pomp; inside 10 feet is as good as a gimmie.

Given that most mortals will forever be denied the pleasure of swinging a golf club like Luke Donald, perhaps we should all be focusing instead on emulating him on the greens. The challenge is finding a way to do so and trust me, heading down to the putting green for 20 minutes with your faithful wand and a handful of golf balls isn’t going to cut it.

Recently I visited the London Putting Academy at Royal Blackheath GC in South East London (incidentally held to be the oldest golf club in the world having been instituted in 1608) and was thoroughly impressed by the set-up that owner and operator, Matthew Johns, has built. From the outside, it’s an unassuming place, but inside is a flawlessly controlled putting environment with state-of-the-art software. My eyes were immediately drawn to the photographic testimonials on the wall – signed tributes to Matt from successful pupils clutching trophies.

The academy provides the three things you’ll need to have a shot at breaking Luke Donald’s 449 hole streak – a world class fitting centre, expert guidance, and the most erudite putting coaching I’ve come across. The Quintic Ball Roll software can tell the exact speed of the putt, the amount of skid or bounce, the time until the ball begins rolling forwards, the time until the ball has completed one revolution, the amount of hook or side spin, and the initial launch angle. Basically, everything you’ll ever need to know about what your putts are doing and areas for improvement.

Matt coaches the individual rather than a method, and he quickly makes you understand that an ideal putt will be one that is ‘rolling’ forwards as soon after impact as possible. Much like a snowball rolling down a hill, forward rolling momentum is less likely to deviate than one that hops, skips, and bounces.

Having put myself to the test with my current putter, a Ping Redwood, I was pleased to learn that I was maintaining control of the pace of my putts and wasn’t hitting them with any overly-worrying amount of side spin. My problem, however, was that the ball wasn’t rolling forwards quickly enough after the point of impact owing to a launch angle that was a little high causing the ball to lift and then bounce in the early stages of the putt, which makes pace control more difficult as the ball loses speed at an uneven rate.

Matt then asked me to try again with a GEL Hurrion Sedo II putter. Face balanced with a grooved face insert, he chose it to reduce the small amount of side spin I was imparting and to promote a faster forward roll with the groove technology. Immediately the forward rotation improved from that of my current ‘plain faced’ putter, while the launch angle also reduced as a direct benefit of using the Pendulum++ shaft that is fitted into the GEL Hurrion Series putters.

Stage two involved a perception test to identify the ideal head and eye position at address, with the aim being to align my eyes correctly to ‘see’ a straight putt, taking away any compensation or manipulation in the stroke. Once we had identified my ideal position, Matt used the GEL fitting putter to ensure the length of my putter promoted a balanced and suitable posture, and to ensure that the sole of the putter sat perfectly flat to the floor at address – a vital key for reducing side spin and alignment errors. Following this perception test he identified the ideal ball position to help control the launch angle, and also encourage positive forward rotation in the initial stage of the putt.

The final test was with all the modifications in place, and it unsurprisingly produced my lowest side spin rates, most consistent forward rotation (closer to ‘true roll’), and a launch angle closer to the optimum.

The long-term benefit, of course, relies on practice once away from the London Putting Academy, but as Matt says, “When you go away and miss putts, you’ll be able to identify whether you pushed or pulled it, misread it, or hit it at the wrong pace. We’re all human and we all miss putts. The key to improvement is to understand why a putt missed, so that you can go back to the practice green knowing what you need to improve.”

What sets the academy apart further still is the opportunity for regular coaching beyond the fitting process via various tutorial packages that Matt has implemented. Many of us seek regular ‘swing’ lessons from a PGA pro but how many lessons concentrate on putting? When you consider how many shots you take with a putter compared to that of your long game, it’s clearly the greatest opportunity for improvement.

Some might consider it a niche, but the value of quality putting performance is unequivocal. Names such as Dave Pelz, Dave Stockton and Paul Hurrion are all highly respected putting coaches who’ve had major success over the years. Think of Harrington holing everything in sight when winning three Majors in just over a year, or McIlroy’s runaway victory at the US Open? Both players would fully endorse the influence of Paul Hurrion and Dave Stockton respectively.

Equally, given a quiet moment, most coaches would concur that there is a correlation between their own reputations and that of their players. I’m prepared to wager that you can’t name a famous coach who hasn’t had a famous pupil. Obviously they can argue that it was their help and advice that allowed them to win, but were Butch Harmon and David Leadbetter as famous before the likes of Greg Norman, Nick Faldo, and Tiger Woods started winning?

While we’d all jump at the chance of a lesson from Butch Harmon, access may be a little tough and, let’s be honest, price may be a factor for most of us, too! Access to the London Putting Academy is fortunately a little easier, undoubtedly cheaper, and it’ll certainly do wonders for your game. I’m sure Matt will concede that he’s not in the same bracket of fame as Butch, David Leadbetter or Pete Cowan, but for my money, he’s only one high profile player away from being so. Catch him while you can!

To contact Matt at the London Putting Academy, please call 0208 8501763 or email matt@londonputtingacademy.com. Fitting sessions start at £25 and there are a range of other packages, and tuition options available. Please see the London Putting Academy website by clicking here.