Once good posture had been established in terms of the upper body position, it’s imperative that we create a stable base and stance.
In most cases stability is ensured by maintaining as close to a 50/50 balance from heel to toe and left foot to right foot. This ensures the centre of mass of the body is as close to the centre of the base of support, thus giving us the most stable base as possible.
A common fault pattern I see when using the forceplate, is excessive weight in the toes at set up. As a result the player’s weight will move back towards the heels during the stroke.
The width of the stance is also important. A wide stance will help increase stability and also reduce rotation in the hips. Rotation in the hips can influence path and create an artificial arc in the stroke.
This movement is often not repeated in the downswing, as the putting stroke change of direction isn’t as dynamic as that of the full- swing, which in turn makes it difficult for the club to work on an identical path back down and strike the ball out of the middle of the clubface.
If a golfer suffers from instability and hip rotation, a wider stance can be a useful solution to the problem.
All the great chippers on tour return the shaft to the same position at impact as it was at address. Most of the top players don’t have much forward lean, and even the ones who do definitely...
