Drop-Ball Test Fixes Putting Aim by Correcting Eye Position

A simple pre-stroke check can reveal why putts miss their line before the putter ever moves, according to GOLF Top 100 Teacher Stephen Sweeney.

What causes a mis-aimed putt?

Golfers who struggle to start putts on line often set up with their eyes inside the ball — closer to their feet than to the ball itself. "If players' eyes are inside the ball line, they tend to look out to the right," Sweeney said. That flawed eye position makes the target appear farther right than it is, so the putter face often gets manipulated or pulled back across the line during the stroke to compensate.

How do you check your eye position?

Sweeney uses a drop test with the tour players he coaches: at address, drop a ball from eye level and watch where it lands relative to the ball already on the ground. If the dropped ball lands inside that ball, the eyes are sitting too far from directly above it. His rule of thumb is roughly two putter-head-widths of space between the ball and the toe line at setup, with enough forward bend at the hips to bring the eyes over the ball. "Then we go into forward bend at the hip until we get the eyes over the golf ball," Sweeney said.

Once a dropped ball lands on top of the ball already in place, the setup is square and the aim line stops being guesswork. Golfers can run the test with any spare ball before a practice session, no lesson required.