What about Bryson DeChambeau's putting technique is good/bad? Is it worth emulating?

I’d categorize Bryson DeChambeau’s putting technique as perfect for him but not for everyone. What I mean by that is, his method of gathering data like the distance, the gradient of the slope, the speed of the green etc. then making a back and through swing measured by distance works for him. It wouldn’t work for me because I’m more of a look and shoot person. That simply means I feel and see the slope with my feet & eyes then find a target that makes sense for the distance and direction.

First I stand fairly close to the hole so that I can move around the hole to find the fall line, or the straight uphill line. Knowing the fall line gives me a line on the clock face to aim at for both distance and direction. It’s a best guess and frees me up to aim at the spot on the fall line, commit to hitting the putt to that spot on the fall line (allowing the slope and gravity to move the ball towards the hole) and as my eyes work from that spot back to the ball I begin my backswing. This is as close to looking at the target while putting as I’m personally comfortable with.

The biggest factor in deciding which way to go is to understand your own personality and what motivates you. Bryson get’s turned on by data so that he can get what motivates him, which is Certainty. Another player might get lost in that data because it isn’t what naturally gets him or her motivated. The 4 motivators that form our decisions and actions are; Goals, Relationships, Security, and Certainty. The folks that are motivated more by goals and relationships would be more; See it, Feel it, Trust it type people and the folks that are more security and certainty driven would be more comfortable with the Measure and Execute method.

Most teachers of…well pretty much anything are more than likely on the security and certainty side of things so they will like Bryson’s method because it has data and is more concrete feeling to them. Those of us though that are more goals, & relationship driven will not enjoy all the data and would rather Feel & React to a target. Find what works for you and commit to it. Also, find a teacher that is motivated like you or at least understands the differences.

Putting is very personal and there are really no musts in putting. One thing I think is very important is good posture–you don’t see any tour players today–PGA or LPGA–who have bad posture when putting. Here’s what I’ll say about Bryson’s style:

1. It works for him. As I mentioned there are no musts–find a way to putt that you can do successfully and stick with it.

2. He has fairly good posture–a little tall and erect but the bottom line is it takes a lot of strain off his legs, hips and especially his back. All this allows him to stay still over the putt and also allows him to practice for long periods of time without that strain.

3. His left wrist does not break down. This is one reason why a lot of folks have gone to left hand low (or right hand low for left handers). If the left wrist doesn’t break down it’s much easier to control the speed, hit solid putts and have a square club face at impact.

Bottom line is this: There a millions of ways to putt, a lot of different styles of putters and many ways to grip the club. Find a putter you can aim, get in a comfortable posture, develop a consistent routine, think you can make everything and LOVE TO PUTT!

He finished 10th in SG Putting for the 2020 season. There is a lot of value here. Bryson has matched up his putting to his equipment and how he processes information to make him a great putter.

If you want to do a straight back straight thru (SBST) stroke then you need a putter with an upright lie. Bryson’s putter is at the limit for lie angle, 80 degrees. This means the putter face does not need to rotate as much to be square compared to a standard putter of 70 degrees lie angle. If you are trying to do SBST get a putter more upright this should make it easier to accomplish the task.

The next thing to emulate is Bryson’s speed control. He hits the ball in sweet spot a lot so face and path control are great. This is based on what I said above. This allows him to have great control of his speed. Bryson has discovered checkpoints for himself with his stroke to hit certain distances. If you are a more analytical learner this may be great for you on how to decide to hit putts. He turns those check points into feels so he can be consistent with speed. Bryson discusses this topic on a segment on Chris Cuomo’s Swing Expedition.

No matter what your feelings are about Bryson; Bryson is an excellent putter. There are things worth emulating if you have the right equipment.

In my opinion Bryson looks so mechanical in his putting stroke but he has had great putting rounds. Look at the last round of this years US Open! So my point is if you find a style of putting that works, then use it until you find the putts not being holed or the speed is lost. Then change be it putter or grip, even if it’s mid round! It’s amazing how a little tiny change can bring you renewed confidence and that’s what putting is all about. If you don’t think you’re going to make a good stroke, you won’t! Change is good in putting and nothing is not worth trying if it seems to work. Good luck and find your confidence!!

Bryson removed many varibles while employing his putting technique. Many putts are missed due to excessive indipendent arm and wrist motions. His style while difficult to develop touch with is very scientifically sound.

Brysons technique for putting is brilliant because of its simplicity. With the shaft of the putter more vertical the stroke becomes more straight back and straight through. The longer shaft secures the putter against his forearm so it’s easier to square the face at impact. Fewer moving parts and simple angles in the setup make holing short putts a little bit easier

Bryson DeChambeau is too mechanical for the average person…However, there are some you could teach this method to…I want a free flowing motion in putting , I call it classical or putt like Mozart would have putted…He would have very good technique and be graceful on putts 10 feet and in!

I had done a little research on this a month ago or so. It is a very unique technique. I believe they refer to it as an arm lock style of putting.

Conceptually it makes sense for the way Bryson’s head works. It is a bio mechanical way of putting. The way he locks his wrists and elbows in is to eliminate excessive movement.

To me it looks like a very mechanical way to putt, and for me personally I believe it would take a lot of the feel out of the putting stroke. However, if your mind works in a very mechanical way/engineering, and you are struggling with your putting it may be worth a try.

The one thing I can say is Jack Nicklaus was considered one of the greatest putters of all time and I have never seen anyone on Tour trying to copy that putting style. Just because something works well for one person doesn’t mean it will work well for everyone.

Bryson’s putting stroke should be emulated regardless of the length of the putter with this in mind. The ball position sits under the fulcrum point of the lever system , left armpit , right armpit in context. That is the lowest point in your stroke pattern . It should , could result in better roll , less skid and bounce as the putter is neither going down nor up in its arc. Try it ! Coincidentally I posted and referenced this exact topic last week @kamgolf on Instagram! Good luck!

What makes anybody a great putter isn’t just the stroke. It’s the ability to read greens and sense of feel. All your putting stroke can do, at best, is roll the ball down a line with a good sense of distance. If your read is off by 3 inches, or speed is off, you miss. Common stroke killers include decelerating through impact, not having your eyes over the ball, and lack of a consistent pre-shot routine. If you want to copy someone, what works for Bryson might work for you, but might not. Bear in mind how his mind works. If you play more by instinct, his techniques may not be for you. Whatever method allows you to roll that ball down your line with a good sense of touch is the method for you.

Over the years, players have tried all sorts of ways to get the ball in the hole. The long putters eventually could not be anchored, but you had to practice with it for weeks before you had the confidence to put in into competition.Sam Snead used a short putter and straddled the line of the putt like croquet, until it was banned.Bryson has a lot of revolutionary techniques in his approach to the game. Everyone is welcome to try them.

Again practice with it for a few weeks and see if you can develop a like result. Who knows until you experiment.Golf swings have evolved. Why not ways to putt?

It’s impossible and foolish to try and suggest what Bryson is doing isn’t what’s best for him. The key to that is that it work FOR HIM! If you have the dredded yikes or struggle coming out of putts before impact then I absolutely think some of his methods would be worth a shot. When anchoring was outlawed by the powers that be, this is what was created. Arm lock style of putting is the new age belly putter and its here to stay for the select few.

On the putting green the golf ball does not care how you hold the club / align your feet or body.

The only things that matters – did you send it on the correct speed down the correct line!

The more you putt the better you can get at figuring out the correct speed and line.

Hint: your eyes will help you .. look at your target often and that will help with your speed control

DeChambeau’s putting style works very well as there is little chance of unnecessary body movement during the putting stroke. The most important thing to realize is, Bryson determines his start line and the length of each putt down to the millimeter. The fact that the putter shaft is connected to his left arm doesn’t allow for and wrist action. I believe his style of putting is worth experimenting with but, get fit for the putter you choose to really benefit from DeChambeau‘s putting style. Good luck rolling the rock!

All that is required to be a great putter is great direction control and great distance control and great green reading. If this technique works for Bryson who is to argue. I’ve found most people who have tried this method improve direction but struggle with distance. Oh, one more thing that is required to be a great putter, complete trust in your stroke and read. Find the technique that you trust! Bryson obviously has.

The putting stroke I teach is simple and has very few moving parts. I prefer my students to be more focused on feel and target. Bryson’s stroke, although stranger looking, seems to be quite simple with only the shoulders swinging the putter. I’d also predict that his putter is built to fit that stroke perfectly.

Bryson’s new putting technique is simply a putting drill that we used to do 40 plus years ago.. The only difference is that the putter is made specifically for using that type of putting stroke. This is very similar to Matt Kutcher’s technique that hes been using for many years. The technique allows the user to lock in and use shoulder movement as the only means to move the club back-and-forth. Very effective putting technique!+

The lie angle must deviate by 10 degrees from vertical, good for Bryson for noticing. The more vertical the stroke ( a shaft plane deviation of only 10 degrees) the more margin for error. Why haven’t the putter companies featured more models with that shaft angle? Coupled with the arm lock Bryson has created a style with few angles and moving parts. I’m sure he has put a lot of hours in grooving it; in the last few weeks his putting seems to outshine his driving. He probably noticed a lot of long putters have a shaft angle of 80 degrees, he was rewarded for his creativity.

Simply 90 & 0 degrees horizontally shoulder stroke plane …. very efficient!