Applying this counterintuitive concept will make you a better putter

Some of the greatest putters of our era, when asked to describe their putting motion, say some variation of the following: “I try to create a lively putterhead.” To the average golfer, this can sound confusing. But let’s dive a little deeper to figure out why they’re describing what they do in that way and answer a more relevant question: How can we apply that to our own short game? A “lively” putterhead imitates an object we’d see in motion elsewhere in everyday life. Think of it as a pendulum and think of other versions of pendulums we see in day-to-day life, from the grandfather clock to the playground swing to the wrecking ball. In each example, the energy and tempo on both sides of the...