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Tom's Featured Tip: Flagstick In or Out? This Research Changed My Mind
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Flagstick In or Out? This Research Changed My Mind
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Flagstick In or Out? This Research Changed My Mind
For simplicity, all advice on actual swings or drills is provided from a right handed perspective.
Thanks To Lynn O. for sending me a link to some research on this subject that I had not seen before.
In 2019, the USGA decided to allow leaving the flagstick in the hole when putting if the player opted for that. At the time, I read a lot of research on the subject, and the vast majority of it pointed to leaving the pin in all the time as the best option.
Thanks to Lynn, I read an article entitled "The science behind why the flagstick should be pulled 99.9 percent of the time", an updated version of a report that originally appeared in Golf Digest in 2019.
I like to follow the science in golf, and the science in this report was enough to make me reconsider the advice I give my students and the advice that I follow myself re: leaving the pin in for every putt. I'm switching gears to taking it out for every putt now, except for very long putts where I will have the flagstick attended.
Among the findings were:
- Except for putts that hit the exact center of the flagstick , which is a very tiny percentage of all putts, a putt that
strikes the flagstick off-center is twice as likely to go in with the flagstick out as it is with the flagstick in.
- Leaving the flagstick in may have some benefits, depth perception being one. But from a physics standpoint, there is zero
evidence to suggest that the flagstick helps in any but the rarest of situations. What the flagstick may do is occasionally reduce
the length of a second putt and therefore possibly help reduce three-putts. Of course, it also will clearly and substantially
reduce the number of one-putts.
- It’s also clear from our research that the fiberglass type of flagstick is the least detrimental
(but still nowhere near as good as taking the flagstick out).
- Finally, there is some evidence that tour players putting on
really fast greens may benefit slightly because the ball may be rolling slower as it comes in contact with the pin.
This benefit however remains miniscule compared to the benefit of pulling out the flagstick completely.
- Perhaps the best benefits to leaving the flagstick in are the optics and distance perception. Several sports vision experts we contacted suggested there would be such benefits especially from longer distances. There is research that suggests that players read greens better because the flagstick acts as a plumb line. So the obvious solution might be to do what was done before the rule was changed - have the flagstick attended.
Here's a link to the full article with more detailed information and statistics: The science behind why the flagstick should be pulled 99.9 percent of the time.
Try it, you'll like it.
Email Comments: to TomTuckerGolf@gmail.com
Mike Bennett and Andy Plummer, The Stack and Tilt Swing
Love your practice, own your swing, own your health, and remember that golf is a game of discovery. Dont be afraid to experiment when you practice, it's good for your golfing brain.
Tom
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All the best,
Tom Tucker
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Cell: (716) 474-3005
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