SeeMore Putters Blog

Can Someone With a Forward Press Use a SeeMore?

Can Some With a Forward Press Use a SeeMore?

We get this question all the time.  Jim Grundberg, CEO of the SeeMore Putter Company, and Ted Gallina, Director of Instruction of the SeeMore Putter Institute, explain below.

“I like to have my hands ahead of the ball. Can I still use a SeeMore?"

Our answer to them is of course!  But we will still need to give some history on the forward press and how many factors have now come into play in golf which make the big forward press a thing of the past.  Because many golfers believe they need a forward press for the wrong reasons.

First, the benefits of a more neutral position in the putting stroke.  This is the huge trend on tour.  Pros are getting away from a big forward press of the hands.  They are coming toward neutral.  "Hiding the Red Dot" is huge benefit that helps the golfer get into neutral.  A word that is used over and over again during the explanation is CONSISTENCY.

A SeeMore putter can improve anyone's putting stroke.  This is accomplished by having the same consistent set-up and the same consistent ball position and the same consistent putter loft.  Which of course leads to the same consistent stroke.  

There are a number of golfers who have grown up with a forward press and believe they need to have their hands slightly forward.  One of the big reasons that led to the forward press is now no longer an issue.  Many popular putters in the 70’s and 80’s were created in an era where more loft was needed because of greens that were slow and bumpy.  It was the only way to get the ball up and rolling from a surface that was not smooth.

As agronomy has improved, and greens got faster, and metal spikes disappeared, and greens got smoother, the high loft putters are no longer effective. Golfers still owned putters with 5 to 7 degrees of loft, so a forward press was the only way to get the ball rolling on the new faster greens, effectively reducing loft from 5 to 7 degrees, down to 2 to 3 degrees. But a high lofted putter with a forward press to get the ball rolling well is a double negative with a lot of variables that can go wrong.  A more neutral position with a lower loft (and SeeMore putters all have 2 to 3 degrees loft by design) is a much easier way to putt great!

There are other reasons why some instructors believe a forward press is a good thing, but most of those reasons still create too many variables for great putting, when there is a better way. 

So back to the golfer who uses some form of forward press and really does not wish to change that right now.  SeeMore offers offset models featuring a plumber neck hosel and RST2 (The DB4 and Si4 series), and the offset gooseneck bend straight in whistle shaft series, in addition to its core line of straight shaft putters.  Each of these offset models allow the golfer the feel of having the hands forward, but while still allowing a vertical shaft and a more consistent neutral position than a true forward leaning forward press (which is not a great thing as we all know.)

Some of the better golfers at club or golf course have a forward press but how many times have you heard them walk into the golf shop and say, "I could have shot 66 out there today if I would have just made some putts."  Their #1 problem is the consistency of their putting.

You can give most of these players a piece of wood and they are going to find a way to make the ball get into the hole.  However, they will not be able to do it on a consistent basis.  Because they do not have a reminder, or a reference point, as RST offers.  Their hands are always forward but never the same.

This is why these golfers go through so many putters.  They believe it is the putter’s fault.  They are hot with one putter then cold with another ... hot with another ... then cold ... hot/cold ... hot/cold.  They have no system to fall back on.

So lets say you get tired of hearing about their putting and you give them your SeeMore putter to try on the putting green.  They go outside and become very good with it on the putting green in about 10-15 minutes.  They understand the system, but when they come back to you their comment is, "I like the putter but I can not use it because I see the red dot."  This is when the door is open to tell them about a RST2 or a whisle shaft putter, which may very well be the answer, as they are created for these players.  Or you may simply engage in the following scenario, sticking with the straight shaft putter.

SeeMore User: Where do you see the red dot? 

Golfer: I see a small spec of red in the bottom right hand corner.

SeeMore User: Do you see the same small spec of red on every putt?

Golfer: Yes, I see it the same place every time.

SeeMore User: Did you say that you see the spec of red in the same place every time?

Golfer: Yes.

SeeMore User: Welcome to SeeMore!! Because he sees the same spec of red every single time - his putter loft will be the same for every putt.

Now begin to explain to him the benefits of consistency.  Over time, the golfer will most likely gradually reduce the slight forward press and become better and better.  The other possibility is the golfer will use the RST to set up neutral and hide the red dot every time, and then simply use a small forward press as a trigger prior to the stroke, which is fine as well.

Let us know your thoughts!!

 

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News from the Nationwide Tour - Chitimacha Louisiana Open

Last week I was in Broussard, LA for the Nationwide Tour - Chitimacha Louisiana Open.  Other than the 40 mph wind, the stop was a successful one for us. A number of players explored the many different putter models that were around the tour bag and asked me about the SeeMore system. This was the first Nationwide event for 2012 held in the United States.

On Tuesday, I worked with PGA Tour player Russell Knox. Russell received his PGA Tour Card this year for being in the Top 25 on the Nationwide Tour money list in 2011.

 

As a quick background, I first met Russell at the Nationwide Tour event in Cincinnati last year when he picked up an Si3 putter and asked me to show him how SeeMore could help him.  We worked together that Tuesday, he used it in the pro am on Wednesday, and that week, his first time out with SeeMore, he ended up winning the event with an astonishing score of 25 under par!  That victory propelled Russell to the PGA Tour, which brings us back to this week.

 

He came to me and said he needed a tune up, or a refresher course.  Which of course should be no surprise to anyone.  In the same way that a great golf swing requires regular monitoring, so does a great putting stroke.  He told me that he was not "seeing the line" as well as he wanted, and that he felt "a little on top of the golf ball."  Immediately, I noticed that the toe of the putter head was in the air and that he had rounded shoulders with eyes being on top of the golf ball.  In fact he showed me a video of his putting stroke from the prior week at the Transitions.  The video reflected what his putting stroke looked like when we started the lesson.  He had developed a few bad habits and his putting was suffering. 

 

He said that he had been putting well and then all of a sudden his putts started to go right on him.  What I was able to help him understand was that he was pushing his putts to the right because he was not "finishing his stroke."  When this "push" started he had a very good set-up and ball position but was not "finishing his putts or hitting through the ball", therefore all of his misses were to the right. He thought if he got down closer to the ball (this was his old stroke from last year before I saw him), he could make better putts.  However, it kept getting worse.  Because the ball kept on going to the right, he kept on aiming more to the left. Therefore when he made a good putt, the ball ended up going to the left - where he was aimed.  To say the least he was a little confused.  

Working with him this past Tuesday, we got him in this posture and set-up (picture right). All he had to due was trust the lie of his putter head.  When he soled the putter correctly, he immediately was in his posture of old.  In fact, after the first putt he said to me, "this is the feeling that I had when I won in Cincy last year."  

During the hour and half I was working with him, I reassured his posture and lie position.  I also reassured him on where he was aimed for every putt.  I evened showed his caddy, Eddie, what to look for. It was a successful lesson. Trusting your set-up and ball position, while remembering what our SeeMore Brand Ambassador and Platinum Instructor Pat O'Brien says about a neutral set-up, is key.

 

What does this tell you?  It shows how important the fundamentals of golf are in the putting stroke. Having something that is always with you, doing something the same way every time.  Do not stray from what got you there. Trust in your putting stroke.  

 

This is why it is so important to stick with a system.  We applaud you for taking the step to learn more about the SeeMore system and use it in your daily fittings when talking to your customers in the store or during a SeeMore putting lesson. Once the customer/client can "SEE" what you are talking to them about - it is a given that they will want to use the putter.

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Johnson (FGP blade) birdies No. 15 in Round 2 of Arnold Palmer - www.pgatour.com

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Points (FGP blade) birdies No. 10 in Round 2 of Arnold Palmer - www.pgatour.com

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Reifers (m1 belly) Birdies No. 9 of Transitions - www.pgatour.com

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Where would I need those 17 yards anyway? - SeeMore Putter Company

Where would I need those 17 yards anyway?   by Jim Grundberg, Owner-Managing Partner    I am not a teacher, but I had a revelation while playing golf yesterday with my son Drew, who just turned 16.  Of course it was something I already knew, of all people, but still it hit me in the head following my round of golf.  Sometimes you forget about some of the obvious things.  Until days like yesterday.     My simple revelation?  If you have $300-$400 to invest in a new golf club, which is what you will pay for the best of the best....there are only 2 clubs you should be thinking about.  A driver for improved distance and accuracy off the tee.  And a perfectly milled putter for improved confidence and accuracy on the greens.  And if you already have a new driver purchased within the past 3 years or so that you are happy with, it should be a putter.

I can give you 10 great reasons why a milled SeeMore puttershould be at the top of the milled putter list of course, but first the discovery of the obvious, or my "revelation."   Like all golfers, I have been bombarded this year by the the advertisements for new fairway woods, promising crazy gains in yardage, up to 17 yards by the most prominent claim.  Seems pretty good! So I borrowed a few demos from my pro shop, and took them to the course yesterday.  We played white tees, about 6400 yards.  As background, I hit my driver about 230 yards, and with its technology, I feel as confident hitting that club as any in my bag.  I am a 10 handicap.    I shot 85, not bad for an early Spring game on a very tough golf course (Nashville Golf and Athletic Club), even from the white tees. But here is the rub.  I finished the round of golf and took those 2 beautiful demo fairway woods back to the pro shop.  I had hit one of them.  One time.  Honestly, I was stunned to realize that I had to struggle to find one situation where I believed a fairway wood was the right shot.  All day.  18 holes.     And my son, who is scratch and hits his driver 270 yards, used his 3 wood twice off the tee, and once from the fairway on a par 5.  So between the 2 of us, we hit a total of 4 fairway wood shots.  And on none of those 4 shots was more distance called for.  Each shot was specific to a rare situation that would only arise a few times all day.  Yet we hit our drivers combined over 20 times (my son hit his 3 iron off the tee in several situations)....and our putters combined over 60 times.

I realize that 95% of golf instructors will say that I am stating the obvious.  But then why are millions of golfers running out to spend $300 plus on new "longer" fairway woods this year? I am not saying they should not do this.  But they should not be doing this if they don't have a new milled putter in their bag yet!     Now you don't have to spend $300 to get a great SeeMore putter, as we all know, but a milled SeeMore putter is the best of the best.  It brings great joy.  Great confidence.  And a great system of lifelong game improvement on the greens.  And you will use it 8-10 times more than a fairway wood, and even 3 times more than a driver.  The same for practice.  So please help your students understand this as you discuss their games this season.  And let us help you help them with a club they will cherish forever.  A custom fit, made in the USA, SeeMore mSeries putter.   I look forward to hearing your thoughts!  Jim Share with Friends below

Independent Putter Testing - Black Gunmetal mFGP2 CS Gets 9.2 of 10 (highest score) - www.golf-newz.com

Golf-Newz.com conducted an independing putter testing on 5 putters including the Black Gunmetal mFGP2 CS.

It was very thorough testing of all our top competitors.  The tester was not familiar with SeeMore and says he did not want SeeMore to be best, but after extensive testing, the reviewer claims SeeMore is by far best putter on the market!!!!!!!  This is from the tester who believed up front he needed a heavy putter and was a lover of the "Dave Stockton" technique.  In the end, SeeMore's technology and simple, self-correcting benefit overcame all of that and led him to rave about our putter!

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Below is the start of the article.  Enjoy the read and let us know your thoughts.

TOP PUTTERS FOR 2012

The Best Putters for 2012 will ultimately be a very opinionated debate loaded with personal preference and many differing points of view. A survey was revealed last week that showed the average golfer owns almost 6 putters each.

I thought this was kind of foolish until I realized that I personally own 5 putters. Of course I had long forgotten about the first 4 however, I’m in the market for a 6th. I guess I’ll be quite average as soon as my search has ended.

Never the less, I am going to share my search for the best putter and maybe it will help you if you’re on the prowl for Number 4 or 5 or 6 or even 7…

See Link to Top Rated Putters in 2012 article - www.golf-newz.com to read more about the testing.

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Johnson (FGP blade) birdies No. 17 in Round 1 of Cadillac - www.pgatour.com

 

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Award Winning Black Gunmetal DB4 and mFGP CS - Instruction Tip - Natural Release of Putter

 

Black Gunmetal DB4 CS 

 

Exclusive and serialized, hand-crafted plumber's neck putter design. Features SeeMore's patented RifleScope Technology 2 alignment system on the top of the hosel which is a true reference point for perfect alignment and setup on every putt.Black Gunmetal DB4 is available in a 100% USA precision-milled 303 stainless steel or soft carbon steel plated gunmetal design. Featuring the optimum feel and balance with the offset design, it leads to consistency and confidence. All Black Gunmetal DB4 putters feature premium black chrome plated shafts, and the hosel may be bent for complete lie customization before or after purchase. 

 

Retail Price - $295

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Black Gunmetal mFGP2 CS

 

The Black Gunmetal mFGP2 CS is 100% precision milled carbon steel with a proprietary multi-layer black gunmetal finish for striking and lasting beauty. Milled in the USA, featuring SeeMore’s RST technology.

 

Retail Price - $295

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Instruction Tip - Natural Relase of the Putter

 

Much has been said lately about the release of the putter head. The majority of golfers, even TOUR players, can not accomplish this feeling.  Why? Because their ball position is always in a different spot, therefore leading to a different stroke and a different feel coming off the putter face. Therefore, they have many different putting strokes and postures during their round of golf.  They cannot get consistent. A SeeMore putter allows the player to have a consistent set-up throughout their round of golf. 

 

A SeeMore putter cures this by using RifleScope Technology RST, which involves "hiding the red dot and seeing the two white lines". When this happens, the ball will be in the same position for every single putt, ensuring the golfer of a "natural release the putter head" or "hit through the putt".  This is when a consistent feel is established.   

 

TOUR players work daily on making sure that their ball position is the same.  The better TOUR players spend hours on the putting green to make sure that it happens.  This has to be done on a weekly basis for them.  If a TOUR player has to spend this much time on making sure that he has the correct ball position, are you going to remember this?  You may barely have 10 minutes to warm up on the driving range and "look" at the putting green while you drive past it to the first tee.

 

You will be able to accomplish this “natural release” by simply "hiding the red dot and seeing the two white lines.”  Having the same ball position on every putt is just one of the many features of the SeeMore putter and RST.

 

Watch the Video of "Releasing the Putter Head / Finish the Putting Stroke"

 

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Practice Drills for "Release the Putter Head"

 

1. After you grip your SeeMore putter, take your thumbs off of the grip and just hold the putter in the strongest part of the fingers and heel pad.  This ensures neutral position of hands and forearms. Make 10-12 putts with this stroke.  You will "feel" the putter head wanting to release.  This will take the "pushes" out of the stroke.  If you feel this this during the stroke then you will know what a "push putt" feels like.

 

2. Make putts without using a backswing.  By doing this, you will "feel" what the putter head is supposed to do at impact and this should result with the optium follow through, that is consistent with a natural arc.

 

3. Get in a good, neutral set-up and close your eyes during the stroke. Hit 10-12 putts with your eyes closed.  By hiding the red dot, you will have the same posture and same ball position, ensuring a natural putting stroke.  By having your eyes closed during the putting stroke, you will begin to "feel" the putter head release.  Making the stroke will happen naturally.  Thoughts about “guiding the stroke” are eliminated.  The putter head just needs to flow back and forth.  Everything else is taken care of due to the RST.

 

4. Take your SeeMore putter to work to practice "hiding the red dot" and making putting strokes.

This little tip will also save you valuable time before your round of golf.  Practicing with RST establishes confidence with natural set-up, alignment, ball position and the release of putter head.  (Think of when you were practicing your free throw shots after basketball practice growing up.)

 

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If you have questions or need more information feel free to contact us at info@seemore.com and we will put you in touch with one of our worldwide SPi Instructors.  Tean SeeMore is committed to have the best customer service in the industry and we are glad that you are a Seemorean.  Have a great day!

 

Team SeeMore

800-985-8170

 

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