Professional putter fitting with SAM PuttLab

Reliable data based diagnosis instead of pure testing

Marco Burger, managing director of HIO Fitting, explains:

“At the beginning there is always a short conversation, in which it is clarified how the customer rates his own performance on the putting green, what his typical mistakes are and how much confidence he has in his putting under pressure.” This gives Marco Burger a first impression of the relationship between the player and his putter, which has an influence on the further procedure.

The actual fitting process is then based on SAM PuttLab analysis on a computer. 

“It is hardly possible to do a fitting by trial and error because there are endless possibilities to configure a putter” Burger says, “but the fitting module of SAM PuttLab makes it easier and, above all, the results are very accurate”. Each relevant putter aspect is diagnosed in an interactive step by step process. “This ingenious putt analysis system provides a professional interpretation of the measured data and it gives you exact information about the ideal putter dimensions and technical deficiencies of the player.”

Complete fit on grip, length, loft/lie, balance & weight

After measuring a few putts with your own putter, the results on swing path, face rotation, rhythm, impact or repeatability are analysed. “The repeatability (or ‘Consistency’) is the most important factor. Even the best players in the world often have no movement right out of the textbook, but are able to reproduce their swing and rely on a constant putting stroke” Burger says.

During the fitting process the putter length, head type, head balance, loft, lie and grip type are adjusted. The HIO-Fitting workshop offers a variety of options and models with different shapes and weights that can be matched to the needs of the golfer to increase his performance on the putting green.

Link to Website – HIO Fitting

As a representative for Science & Motion Sports, Preston Combs is an expert with SAM PuttLab technology:

“Having SAM PuttLab allows me to provide a world class putting experience for a wide variety of golfers ranging from new players up to the game’s elite performers. The engaging and meaningful visuals in addition to customizable and detailed reports help me coach much more effectively.”

Preston uses SAM PuttLab for analysis, teaching, training and fitting in his new facility in Santa Barbara, California: 

“As a world class facility, I need to offer golfers feedback and tangible proof of improvement. SAM PuttLab accelerates that learning process at Preston’s Putting. Rather than guess about changes relying solely on video, they can create, develop, and own their putting with confidence. Players can see the results and changes taking hold. That experience is second to none and makes SAM PuttLab one of my most valuable teaching tools.”

Preston is a Class A PGA Member with great experience under some of the most successful instructors in the country. His background specializes in putting and he has studied under David Orr, coach of Justin Rose and Hunter Mahan. Preston is a certified SAM PuttLab instructor at the highest level.

Link to Website – Preston’s Putting

EvenPAR is hosting this high-tech Infrastructure since 2006 at different locations in Switzerland.

Tom Ritsch, Manager of the Putt Competence Center:

“Since 2015 we are at this location to help Amateurs and Professional players throughout their Putting. The Putt Competence Center uses the following main Tools for analysis:

• SAM PuttLab
• GASP Lab with Cameras from different Angles
• ZEN Green Stage

… and many different Tools for putting.” 

On Top of this, the Putt Competence Center runs it’s own Workshop to fit the Putters of their Customers based on the measure results.

Tom Ritsch is certified SAM PuttLab Instructor and Level 2 accredited Putting Instructor by Harrold Swash Academy. He was analyzing more than 1000 putting strokes over the years and is an editor of several publications about putting. Tom is working with most of the professional players in Switzerland, the National Squad and some of the national Team Players of Austria. He ist part of the Swiss-PGA Education and was working for 5 years on the Ladies European Tour in Putting.

Link to Website – Putt Competence Center in Switzerland

Golf trainer Rémy Bedu uses SAM PuttLab for analysis, training and fitting in his Putting Academy at the Mont Griffon Golf Club.

“After questioning my student to know his expectations and needs I use the SAM PuttLab to make the diagnosis. ‘Why try to guess what you can measure with a modern tool like SAM PuttLab'” he believes.

“With easy-to-understand visuals, I explain to my student how we improve his putting” Rémy said. “We put in place appropriate solutions to structure his training. We often use training mode which allows immediate feedback to check the relevance of technical changes. If the student has already come, I like to compare pre / post reports to measure progress. At the end of the one hour session, I send, by email, the report in PDF and a report of my recommendations. In partnership with the proshop, I organize fittings to help customers choose their putters.”

Rémy Bedu has been a certified golf instructor since 1991. In 2012 he made his club coaching diploma. To complete his skills, he is trained in the use of modern tools, such as the SAM PuttLab for putting. He considers that each student is unique and that his role is to adapt his teaching to each of them.

Link to Website – Putting Academy at Mont Griffon

MIA Sports Technology has completed the opening of two state of the art teaching academy bays at the Leeds Golf Centre, West Yorkshire, United Kingdom.

The official opening was conducted by a trio of Yorkshire sporting talent including Leeds Rhino Danny McGuire, European Tour Professionals Danny Willet and John Parry.

The new studio is one of the most advanced anywhere in Europe and deploys FlightScope, hi speed V1 PRO video analysis software, SAM PuttLab, SAM BalanceLab and E6 Simulation technologies integrated within two purpose built rooms.

Simon Keast, Academy Solutions Specialist for MIA Sports Technology commented:

“What separates Leeds from the crowd is the level of technology deployed and the attention to detail. Every aspect has been considered from the high frequency fluorescent lighting, cabling infrastructure, flooring and the multi tee positions allowing a full outdoor experience to combine with a full indoor option, including golf course simulation.”

Link to Website – Leeds Golf Centre

Link to Website – Perfectstroke Training Centre

Link to PuttLab Accessoires – Perfectstroke Putting Aid

The Perfectstroke Golf Training Centre on the Gold Coast in Queensland (Australia) has a purpose built putting studio featuring the SAM Puttlab system, video analysis software as well as an electrically adjustable putting platform.

This enables not only high variability in length of putt and break amounts for practice but also analysis can be undertaken on the Puttlab on breaking putts.

Perfectstroke Golf Training Centre owner and Managing Director Mark Officer believes this is very important in helping to analyse tendencies with better players. “I have been a user of Puttlab since 2006 and have always liked the way the analysis is done, providing facts about what is actually happening in the aim and stroke and then the coaches opinions about steps needed for the player to improve can be implemented and proven. I quickly saw the need for being able to measure and analyse what elite level players were doing on all kind of putts” Officer said. “So to be able to do a measurement firstly on a perfectly straight putt and then breaking left to right and right to left provides incredible insight into a players ability to maintain stroke mechanics, aim etc. To be able to identify weaknesses and tendencies and go into the Puttlab’s training mode to work on particularly areas has been very valuable in the development of the players that I have taught over the years”.

The Perfectstroke Golf Training Centre also has a full swing bay complete with other technologies and an adjustable hitting platform enabling high level training with feedback on the full swing as well as in putting instruction.

Perfectstroke owner Mark Officer has been an Australian PGA member since 1986 having spent over 10 years playing on various tours around the world and the last 20 years involved with instruction as well as designing and manufacturing the Perfectstroke Putting Aid in since 2003.

“Best experience for our clients”

Club Champion offer custom fitting and building process. Throughout the United States 11 store locations are equipped with SAM PuttLab.

Nick Sherburne, Dean of Club Champion University:

“At Club Champion we evaluate all new technology to make sure we provide the very best experience for our clients. Putting also being 40% of the game we take very seriously to help our clients shoot lower scores.

After testing or owning about all of the major putting analysis tools we came to the conclusion that SAM not only gave the best most well rounded data but also put it in a simple interface allowing the customer to understand the data.”

“Since standardizing on SAM we have seen our putter fittings really take off. The client not only understands what the fitter is saying but also gets to see the results easily displayed on the screen. Allowing for the client to really feel like they have found the right fit because they can see the data right in front of them.”

“Since standardizing on SAM we have seen our putter fittings really take off. The client not only understands what the fitter is saying but also gets to see the results easily displayed on the screen. Allowing for the client to really feel like they have found the right fit because they can see the data right in front of them.”

Nick Sherburne continues:

“The best part of SAM though is simply the results. The recommendations and information SAM gives our fitters allows them to make an immediate impact on a player’s game. As our Golf Digest study proved 8 out 9 players improved as much as 6 strokes with our fittings and SAM played a big part in that improvement.”

About Club Champion

At Club Champion we make the best golf clubs even better through our proven custom fitting and building process. We offer 15.000 hittable, interchangeable head and shaft combinations; all the top brands and the best trained master fitters and club builders in the country.

As the first golf club in turkey Carya Golf Club integrates the advanced technology of Science and Motion Sports.

In combination with their 3D camera system and their launch monitors they are able to give a high-end fitting experience to their customers. Golfers from all over the world can visit Carya Golf Club to get a completely fitted putter or to improve their balance in the full swing.

Link to Website – Carya Golf Club

In his own world class performance golf lab Chris Brook has installed the very best analysis equipment available and recently added a SAM BalanceLab to go with his SAM PuttLab system, TrackMan, K-Vest 6D, GASP Lab with high speed cameras and 30ft All Weather Premium Huxley Green.

Chris told Science&Motion Sports “to be able to coach at the highest level it’s vital to invest in the best analysis equipment – and for putting and force plates I believe that Science&Motion provide the world’s best products”.

Chris goes onto to say “Technology like this has enabled me to precisely concentrate on the adjustments that really achieve the results I want to see with my players. The success I am having as a result of having the correct information using SAM products is proof that nurture is capable of competing with nature”.

Chris Brook says “I have been working with one of my tour players over the past year on his kinematic sequence to deliver more power to the ball. We discovered through SAM BalanceLab that not enough ground reaction force and pressure was not transferring onto the left heel and into the right toe as we expected during the early stage of his downswing. This was causing difficulties in stabilizing his pelvis and was leaking rotational speed.

With the SAM BalanceLab data we were able to quickly rectify this and produce tour optimum pelvis speed”.

Link to Website – Chris Brook Performance Golf

At James Harper Golf our aim is to bring the highest level of club-building and custom-fit to the North East of England. Being able to utilize the world leading technology of SAM PuttLab on our premium indoor putting surface, truly helps us towards achieving this aim.

James Harper (Golfsmith Advanced Clubfitter / Clubmaker):

Using the detailed reports to check for critical factors such as aim, path, rotation, timing, ball roll etc., we have been able to gain real insight into why people get particular problems or patterns of performance with their putting. Information we would never have been able to pick up using a video camera or the naked eye alone.

James continues:

We have also been using the technology to help re-educate people in sound putting fundamentals, the mechanics of a reliable putting stroke and the importance of properly fit putter. As a direct result of SAM PuttLab we have seen some dramatic improvements in clients putting performance, ultimately leading to lower scores on the golf course (and a few tournament wins!).

We see SAM PuttLab as an absolutely invaluable tool at our facility and look forward to helping many more golfers with their putters and putting strokes over the years to come.

Link to Website – James Harper Golf

Bronson Wright, Founder/President of ‘The Club Fix’: 

“I did a lot of research before I made a final decision on which putter fitting system I wanted to use in my putting lab. There are a few different choices out there and after doing the research it was really an easy decision. Sam PuttLab has been the starting point and the leader in technology as far as I was and am concerned.”

“There is no other software out there that gives you as much data and is also easy for the client to understand. I even had a custom putter designer come to my studio instead of using his because he is in the transition of changing his current software from the old system to a new Sam PuttLab system. He didn’t want the Touring professional to use his system anymore and made and extra hour drive to come and use my putting lab instead.

That right there shows you how incredible this unit really is. I’ve done tutorials and custom fittings for all different kinds of people and the results are always the same. The person leaves with a better putter!”

“We went from 2- 4 putter fittings a month to 25- 30 fittings per month since we installed our new Sam Puttlab fitting studio. There is no other machine or software I see us using ever in the future. You can’t find an easier to use comprehensive unit on the market and that is why I’m happy with the decision that I made in getting the Sam.”

Link to Putter Selection/Fitting Video with Bronson Wright

Link to Website – The Club Fix

Link to Website – Golfers Paradise

Golfers Paradise, the largest Swiss golf retailer has now incorporated the Science&Motion SAM PuttLab into seven of their stores.

The purpose is to support custom fitting of putters during the selling process. Inside each of these shops the Golfers Paradise staff have gone through a specially designed fitting and sales education presented by the Science&Motion Sports team.

This education has been designed to enable them to consult and properly fit their customers during the putter fitting with a holistic approach. During the session, The Sam PuttLab collects the data from the individual customers putting stroke and compares it with more than 100 PGA tour professional results. Within 10 minutes the customer gets a clear message as to which putter fits the individual players stroke. The results are automatically calculated, selected and presented to the shop staff and to the customer. SAM PuttLab is the only putting analysis system that gives a total overview of each putting stroke.

Markus Scherrer, Sales Manager of Golfers Paradise: “With the Science&Motion PuttLab we have increased our activities immensely. Our goal was to use the best technology and help our customers as much as possible. Our customers now have the opportunity to compare from more than 300 putters models to find their best personal fitted putter”.

Frank Honisch, Business Development Manager of SAM Sports: “With the new changes of SAM PuttLab for the retail environment we can now support the retailers during their putter sales and individual fitting process. It is now very convenient for the shop staff to run a perfect analysis and select or fit the best putter for a customer in minutes. For the consumer, it is always an exciting experience to get an overview of their putting stroke. Selecting the putter with the best performance for the player just isn’t possible without SAM PuttLab. Science&Motion Sports is now offering service oriented sales trainings and certifications for shop members including PuttLab as a highly professional sales tool. It is a turnkey solution for the retailers.”