News

Putting Aid Presents for Christmas

Published

17 years ago

Dec 15, 2008

‘Tis the season of goodwill and and bad presents. When someone finds out that you are a golfer, you can almost see the little light go on in their head as they think ‘I know just what to get him for Christmas’. This of course means grinning fixedly at the boxes of cheap balls, spare 6 irons and ill-fitting and bizarrely patterned jumpers that your nearest and dearest will inflict on you.

Bag Chatter has had a dig through some of the putting aids for some ideas of what you might want to find in your stocking on Christmas morning

Triangulator

This little device looks at your alignment and can be used two ways. Firstly, you can set yourself up for a straight putt and then align the Triangulator to see if you are aiming in the right direction and secondly you can line the aid up prior to set up and get used to aiming directly at the hole. The Triangulator also has a piece of nylon cord attached so that if you are having difficulty lining up the device you can stretch out the cord and make exactly sure of your alignment.

Misalignment is one of the most common mistakes, especially for higher handicappers and a simple aid like this allows you to make sure that you are aiming your putts where you think you are.

For more info, see www.seemore.com or www.seemoreputter.co.uk

Absolute Reader

Green reading is a bugbear for almost every golfer. Informal studies show that amateurs golfers regularly underestimate the amout of break by about 50%. The Absolute Reader allows you to putt a ball on a repeatable line allowing you to match the amount of break to the slope. Setting this up on a slope not only allows you to see how much break a particular putt but also the importance of speed. Faster putts take less break and go high while slower putts take more break and go low. All very simple but a mistake almost all of us make and practising it can be difficult as putting on a repeatable line without any sort of guide is almost impossible as your body subconsciously tries to help you get the ball in the hole.

The Absolute Reader is very easy to use and you only need to be able to putt the ball down the slotted piece of aluminum. The ‘walls’ of the reader are low at the putting area minimising any chance of you damaging your expensive flatstick, and they slowly rise and tighten which forces the ball out of the Reader and on a consistant path. Practise with this aid is actually very fun, especially on sharply breaking greens, and putting competitions with others on the green are faily common as you set up the Reader so that the ball must die in the hole to go in. Because of its ease of use, the Absolute Reader is suitable for any age.

For more info, see www.esotericgolf.com

Pure Ball Striker

You might wonder why something that was designed to improve your full swing can help your putting stroke. Unlike the other aids here, the Pure Ball Striker is not designed to help the technical side of your stroke but the feel side. What the PBS does is make you more aware of the feedback during any golf stroke.

The PBS is a small hemisphere of orange rubber that fits on the bottom end of the grip thanks to a channel cut into the underside. It sits underneath the trigger finger of the bottom hand (with a standard grip) and the enhanced feedback allows you to become aware of how smooth or jabby your stroke is and at what pace you accelerate and decelerate during your stroke. While it sounds simple (and it is incredibly simple) the PBS is surprisingly effective at highlighting any tendency to jab or poke at the ball and instead make you focus on making the sort of smooth and positive putting stoke that gives the ball the least amount of backspin to produce the straightest and most consistent putts. With a good putt, you don’t even notice it but break the wrists or decelerate and you feel as though you are holding a small rock in your hand.

For more info, see www.pureballstriker.com

Path Finder

This is a training device that allows you to groove a repeatable putting stroke and hopefully one that is straighter and more consistent. It consists of a flat base plate on which you can stick 6 small carbon fibre posts via magnets at various locations on the base plate. These 6 posts create 3 gates which the putter has to pass through and are variable enough be able to use virtually any putter. The location of the posts can be altered to let you swing either straight back straight through or on a gated stroke and the width is wide enough for beginners to use. The better you get, the closer you can set the pins and the more demanding the aid becomes. The base plate also has a small mirrored section so that you can check where your eye-line is in relation to the ball. It also comes with a useful (if slightly cheesy) DVD and a booklet that features the lessons from the DVD as well as a smaller version of an alignment device called the Square Triangle.

While the Path Finder is a bit fiddly, it makes you think about your stroke more than any other putting aid I’ve tried and regular practice with this will see you reap rewards on the green.

For more info, see www.yesgolf.co.uk and www.esotericgolf.com

Tour Photo Galleries

Photos from the 2026 Memorial Tournament

Published

1 day ago

Jun 1, 2026

Ben A

GolfWRX is on site this week at the Memorial Tournament, with both Alistair Cameron and Tour Photographer Greg Moore on the ground in Dublin, Ohio, where a strong field is assembled to pay homage to the Golden Bear.

In addition to WITB galleries, we’ve already been treated to an in-hand look at Tommy Fleetwood’s new TaylorMade Spider putters.

Check out links to all our photos below.

General Albums

WITB Albums

Pullout Albums

News

Tour Tech Rundown: Heroic Henley

Published

2 days ago

Jun 1, 2026

Ronald Montesano

Around the world, the golf wheel spun this final week in May of 2026. From New Jersey to Austria, with stops in Korea, Texas, and North Carolina (don’t let me route your next trip) the world’s finest put their golf games on display. There were three playoffs, some known commodities and some new talent. It was the sort of week that we hope to have at this point in the seasons. June and July afford double-digit major events, and perhaps, one of this week’s champions will use this success as a springboard to new heights. Time to run it all down, tech style, in this week’s Tour Tech Rundown.

Thanks to WITBHub, Today’s Golfer, GolfWRX, and Inside Tour Golf for initial research into equipment.

PGA Tour @ Charles Schwab Challenge: Heroic Henley denies Cole

Eric Cole did nearly everything that a fellow can do, to secure a first PGA Tour title. He stayed one shot clear of Ryder Cup player Ben Griffin. He kept US Open champion Gary Woodland and wunderkind Michael Brennan two shots distant. He posted 70 on day four to reach twelve under par. And then, Russell Henley revealed his Dr. Strange cloak. Henley made 47 feet of birdie putts on holes 16, 17, and 18, to jump from minus-nine to twelve-deep, and secured a spot in a playoff with Cole. The duo returned to the final tee, and put on a stripe show.

Both golfers found the fairway off the tee, and Henley improved on his regulation play with an approach to four feet. Cole did himself proud, tucking an iron to a dozen feet, but he was unable to convert the putt for three. Henley is one of the best putters on tour, and he proved it once more by draining a putt for a fourth consecutive birdie, and a sixth PGA Tour title. For Eric Cole, that first victory should come, and soon. He has done everything necessary to earn the chalice lift.

Henley’s Suitcase

Driver: Titleist TSi3 at 10 degrees. Shaft: Project X HZRDUS Smoke Black 70g 6.5 TX
Metal: Titleist TS3 at 16.5 degrees. Shaft: Project X HZRDUS Smoke Black 80 TX
Hybrid: Titleist TSi2 at 21 degrees. Shaft: Mitsubishi MMT hybrid 100 TX
Iron: Titleist T250 4-iron. Shaft: True Temper Dynamic Golf AMT Tour White X100
Irons: Titleist T100 5-6 irons. Shaft: True Temper Dynamic Golf AMT Tour White X100
Irons: Titleist T100 7-9 irons. Shaft: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue X100
Wedges: Titleist Vokey Design SM11 at 48 and 50 degrees. Shaft: True Temper Dynamic Golf Tour Issue X100
Wedges: Titleist Vokey Design SM11 at 54 and 60 degrees. Shaft: rue Temper Dynamic Golf Tour Issue S400
Putter: Titleist Scotty Cameron T5 Tour Prototype

LPGA @ Shoprite LPGA: Welcome back, Celine!

Soo Bin Joo had her eyes on a maiden LPGA title. She held the lead after two rounds, then hit a red light at the intersection of can-I and how-To. Joo posted plus-two on day three in New Jersey, and dropped to a T4 finish, which was still a career-best for the young Korean golfer. Instead of a new face, a familiar face returned to the top of the podium.

Celine Boutier was the It Girl in 2023. She collected four victories, including a major title at Evian. Boutier reached world number one status, then simply faded into the background. No wins came her way over the next 30 months. On Sunday, she collected LPGA victory number seven, at the same trace as LPGA victory number two.

Day three saw Boutier manage the windswept Seaview Bay course with six birdies and a bogey. She was challenged in the end by Thailand’s Arpichaya Yubol, who signed for a 66 of her own. Yubol came up one shot shy of the top ladder rung. Finishing in third place at -7, two back of the winner, was Ireland’s Lauren Walsh.

Celine’s Suitcase

Driver: PXG 0311 Black Ops Tour-1 at 9 degrees. Shaft: Graphite Design AD IZ-5
Hybrid: PXG 0311 Black Ops at 19 and 22 degrees. Shaft: KBS Hybrid Prototype
Hybrid: PXG 0311 Gen5.
Iron: PXG 0311 P Gen 4 5-9 irons
Wedge: PXG 0311 T Gen 4 PW
Wedges: PXG 0311 Sugar Daddy II at 50, 54, 58 degrees
Putter: Bettinardi Studio Stock 3 DASS

DP World Tour @ Austrian Alpine: KK? KK!

Kota Kaneko has a rhythmic name. It has strong vowels and a run of voiceless stops in its crunchy K sounds. On Sunday in Austria, Kaneko put a stop to a challenge from Portugal’s Ricardo Gouveia and everyone else, and claimed a first-ever title on the DP World Tour. Gouveia did well to reach 16-under par over four days, but Kaneko held firm, two shots in the clear.

Davis Bryant of the USA also forged a strong challenge for the win. He ended in a tie with Gouveia for second place. Kaneko began and finished his final round in a bit of a malaise, but he caught fire midway through. Birdies at 10, 12, and 13 provided the necessary cushion to cruise to the finish line without breaking a serious sweat.

Kaneko’s Suitcase

Driver: Ping Max G440
Metals: TaylorMade Qi4D at 15, 16.5, 21, and 24 degrees
Irons: TaylorMade P760 5 and 6 irons
Irons: TaylorMade P7TW 7-9 irons
Wedges: Titleist Vokey Design at 46, 52, 56, and 60 degrees
Putter: Odyssey Ai-One Cruiser Arm Lock #7

Korn Ferry Tour @ UNC Health Championship: Improbably Alvaro

Alvaro Ortiz may have had a bit of scare on the outward nine on Sunday, but he came through in clutch fashion in the end. Ortiz began the day bogey-double, and added another double bogey at the 11th hole. He was mired in a downward trend, spiraling away from the top of the leader’s board. Ortiz found hope at the 14th, where his first birdie of the day tumbled home. Inspired, he closed with birdies and 17 and 18 to catch Ross Steelman at 10-under par, and the duo returned to the 18th deck for overtime.

The extra session concluded in brief time. Ortiz, buoyed by his newly-retrieved confidence, hit the fairway with driver, then approached to six feet and drained the putt. Gobsmacked, Steelman could do little more than smile and applaud, as his run at the top came to a close. The victory was the first for Ortiz on the KFT, and will implant him squarely in the chase for a PGA Tour promotion.

Alvaro’s Suitcase

Driver: Ping G430 MAX driver at 9 degrees loft
Metal: Ping G430 MAX 3W
Iron: Ping iDi Driving Iron
Irons: Ping Blueprint S irons
Wedges
Putter: Scottsdale TR Piper C

A party on the green!

Alvaro’s time comes in Raleigh with his first win @UNCHealthChamp ? pic.twitter.com/2dmtZdbSzk

— Korn Ferry Tour (@KornFerryTour) May 31, 2026

LIV @ Korea: Me llamo Joaquin

Chile’s Joaquin Niemann had been away from the LIV winner’s circle throughout all of 2026. This week in Korea, he reminded us that he is still a force to consider. Niemann chased down Taylor Gooch over the closing holes at Asiad Country Club, then claimed victory with a hole-one birdie in extra time. Bryson DeChambeau claimed solo third, one shot in arrears at minus-eleven. Dustin Johnson finished on fourth, one putt farther back.

Niemann’s Suitcase