Start Line & Rise Angle Putting Drill

Hops and skids almost always come from a descending blow at impact — the putter striking slightly downward into the ball rather than catching it on a slight upward stroke. A downward hit compresses the ball into the turf, which creates a brief bounce before forward roll begins. David Potts' rise angle drill trains the putter to finish just above the pathpal placed 6–7 inches in front of the ball, enforcing the upward strike angle that produces immediate, true forward roll from the first inch of the putt.

Place the pathpal on the putting green with a gap just wide enough for the ball to pass through, positioned approximately 6–7 inches in front of the ball. The gap trains your start line — if your face is open or closed, the ball clips the edge instead of rolling cleanly through. The rod height trains your rise angle — the putter should finish just above the rod on the follow-through. If you clip the rod coming through, you're punching down on the ball rather than stroking through and up.

Clubface angle at impact is the dominant factor controlling where a putt starts — research from SAM Putt Lab and launch monitor data consistently shows that roughly 75–85% of a putt's starting direction is determined by face angle, with path playing a secondary role. David Potts is a SAM Putt Lab Certified Instructor and builds his putting instruction around this principle: get the face square and the ball starts where you aimed. The pathpal gate makes face control a pass/fail test on every single rep.

Rise angle is the upward angle of the putter's path at the moment of impact — essentially, whether the putter is still descending, level, or slightly ascending when it contacts the ball. A slight positive rise angle (ascending) is ideal because it catches the ball above its equator, imparting immediate topspin and producing a smooth, skid-free roll. A negative rise angle (descending) punches the ball into the turf and creates that characteristic hop that throws off distance control. David uses the pathpal rod as a rise angle checkpoint — clearing it on the follow-through confirms an upward strike.

David Potts places the pathpal approximately 6–7 inches in front of the ball — close enough to give meaningful rise angle feedback but far enough that it only catches a genuinely descending stroke rather than penalizing a flat one. This placement also serves as a start line gate, so ball width matters: the gap should be just wide enough for the ball to pass cleanly through on a square-face stroke. A ball that clips either edge tells you your face was open or closed at impact.