Winter is a great time to practice the fundamentals of putting. It's when I recalibrate with putter in hand, honing in on my setup, alignment and stroke ahead of a busy year on the golf course. I don't like to overcomplicate putting - the last thing I want standing over a six-foot putt for par is my brain moving at 100mph, so I tend to keep things simple. Pleasingly, this new training aid helps me do that.
Say hello PuttAIM. To summarize, it's a mounted laser, and that's about it. It doesn't sound too exciting, but it can prove as useful to your game as any of the best training aids.
The first impressions out of the box are very positive. The carry case is high quality and that extends to the rest of the product. Nestled inside the case are all the components of the laser and the accompanying stand which took only two minutes to successfully set up.
The laser sits atop a sturdy stand that also gives users a cup-sized aiming target. I must mention that like many of the best putting mats, my go-to mat already has alignment aids on it and thus it means the laser is less useful than if I was putting on a plain mat or surface, but that doesn't mean I didn't benefit from using it. You're met with a strong green laser that's very easy to see and gives you a nice visual aid that you want your ball rolling end over end on.
I mainly focused on practicing short putts with the laser - I hit four-footer after four-footer, focusing on hitting straight putts out of the center of the putter face and keeping the ball on the green line for as long as possible. A great feature as part of this package are the putting drills available online by scanning the QR code included in the carry case. Not only will these show you how to use the laser correctly, but they can give you further ideas for drills to work on.
As part of my testing, I brought in my assistant reviewer (my mother) to give it a go. As a 13 handicapper who struggles with short putts, she found the laser a great aiming assist to help hit purer putts from short distance. I feel of all the things this aid will help you with, confidence with short putts is top of the list.
Whether you're putting on a specific putting mat or simply the carpet in your living room, you can get some quick, easy putter practice in with this laser. You can aim to hit the ball into the regulation-size cup underneath the laser itself, but if you already have a putting map with a hole you can put the laser behind the ball to focus on bringing your putter back in-line on your back stroke.
The laser is best used inside, particularly in darker, shaded areas, but I did get some use out of it on the main practice putting green at Royal County Down, albeit on a gloomy December day - I think on brighter, sunnier days it would struggle, but this is the case with all laser-based products, like the SkyTrak launch monitor.
It's a fairly inexpensive device, coming in around £129.99/$149.99, and I can see myself using a lot going forward given the simplicity of both setup and when physically using it. It's certainly worth a try if you struggle with aim or starting putts on your intended line.
