Written by John VanDerLaan and Michael VanDerLaan
*We may earn revenue from the products available on this site and participate in affiliate programs.
Everyone who plays golf, whether competitively or casually, wants to be a better putter. Starting putts on line consistently with the proper speed is the way to making more putts and 3 putting less. But how can you work on that? Our review of the Dave Pelz Putting Tutor explains why this is the putting aid you want to be using to make it happen.
Our player experts John and Michael both began using the Pelz Putting Tutor in college, and they went on to win back to back NCAA National Championships. We’re not saying that this putting aid will turn you into a Tour player, but we can guarantee that consistent use will take strokes off your game. Now we are going to detail why this is the best putting aid that we have found, and how it’s going to help your golf game by improving your putting stroke and even helping with your green reading.
What Is The Pelz Putting Tutor?
The Pelz Putting Tutor is a flat plastic plate shaped like a triangle with the tip cut off. You set it up as the starting point for putting practice. It features a solid white line representing the start line of the putt, 2 smaller lines next to the ball that help you with your eye line, and 6 indents at the narrow end of the plate. These indents are anchor points for ball bearings that act as a gate for immediate feedback. Those ball bearings are included in the case provided with the Pelz for easy storage and transportation.
That sounds like a lot, so here’s the shorthand - the Pelz Putting Tutor is an all in one putting trainer that will help you lower your scores.
How Does The Dave Pelz Putting Tutor Help With Putting?
There are a number of components to putting that the Pelz Putting Tutor will teach you. Putting well is a combination of line and speed, which you can improve with a few basic mechanics.
The beauty of the putting aid is that you can become a consistent, great putter using any stroke, any putting grip style, and any type of putter you prefer. The only thing required is an understanding of how to get started!
RELATED: 11 Most Forgiving Putters - With Reviews
Start Line
Our favorite part about the Dave Pelz Putting Tutor is its ability to train you to start putts on line.
It doesn’t matter what your putting stroke looks like, if you can hit your line every time you are going to be a good putter.
The Putting Tutor has a white line to help you visualize your aim line, as well as three different width gate drills created by the ball bearings included with the set. Your goal should be to hit a certain number of putts in a row (that number is your choice) through the gates without knocking a ball bearing out of the anchor. This is a great aid for working on putter face alignment during the stroke. The more consistently you can do this, the more putts you will make.
RELATED: Best Counterbalanced Putters And Grips With Reviews
Eye Line
Why is eye line important? It changes the way your eyes - and by extension your brain - see your starting line. If your eyes are too far inside the golf ball, your brain perceives your line to be further right than it is. This will cause your body to produce a push once every few putts. The opposite is true if you are standing too close to the golf ball and your eyes are too far over the ball. So how does the Pelz help you train eye line?
While the Pelz Putting Tutor does not have any sort of reflective surface, it has a mechanism to help you get your eyes over the ball. On either side of the spot where the ball rests, there are lines about an inch and a half long. When you set up to a putt on the Pelz, your goal is to be able to see both lines without either being hidden by the ball. This indicates that your eyes are over the ball properly.
RELATED: Scotty Cameron Newport vs Newport 2
Putter Face Angle
It goes without saying that setting up with the putter face square to your start line gives you the best chance to hit a good putt.
The Pelz has a very simple way of teaching this. Since the plate is black, the edge stands very defined from the putting surface. Simply line the face of the putter up parallel to the edge of the plate, and your putter is square at address. Check this before you hit each putt to start building a simple but effective habit.
RELATED: Best Putters For High Handicappers With Reviews
Greens Reading
This one is a bit more nuanced. You can improve your greens reading by using the Pelz on putts with a significant amount of break. If you hit a breaking putt through the gate, you can determine based on the result of the putt whether you read it correctly.
Identify why you missed the putt, and you can start to learn how to adjust your reads to be more precise. If you missed low, did you read too little break or hit the putt too slowly? On a high miss, did you jam it through the break or just read too much into it? Over time and reps, you will make more putts just by being aware of these questions and thinking about them!
Getting Started With The Pelz Putting Tutor
The Pelz Putting Tutor is effective, even on freshly aerated greens!
The best part of the Pelz Putting Tutor is the ease of use. Anyone can use it effectively and there is no complicated setup. Follow the process below and you will no doubt become a better putter.
We recommend you start out by hitting short putts with the Pelz - somewhere around 5 feet is a great place to start. Do your best to read the putt, and line the Putting Tutor up with the starting line. When you are first adjusting to practice with the Pelz, we encourage you to set the ball bearings on the widest of the three gate anchors. Once you’re set up, all that’s left to do is hit putts!
We have found that an effective practice session begins at the widest gate. HIt 10 putts through the gate in a row, without knocking out a ball bearing, and move the gate to the next hardest setting. Hit another 10 in a row through the gate and move on to the hardest setting. Stay on that setting until you are able to hit another 10 in a row through the gate. This should become harder each time you narrow the gate.
Over time, you will become proficient at hitting putts through the gate at the narrowest setting. That’s when it’s time to up the ante.
Move to a longer putt with enough break to start the ball outside the edge of the hole, and repeat the practice session. This time, a putt doesn’t count as successful unless it goes through the gate AND goes in the hole. What this does is train both your starting line and speed, as you have to hit the putt with proper speed in order for a breaking putt to go in the hole.
RELATED: Best Putters For The Money
My Results Using The Pelz Putting Tutor
I started using the Pelz during my junior year of college. To that point, I was a really good ball striker that didn’t make enough putts to compete. I had tried so many different putting drills and only had a limited amount of success.
This putting aid changed all of that. I started using the Pelz the same way we suggested that you do. First, a short, straight putt on a wide gate, eventually graduating to longer putts with more break on a narrow gate.
It takes time and repetition to, but I stuck with it because I wanted to be the best player I could be, and contribute to my team. What I noticed was that the short putts through the narrowest gate began to become routine. That translated to the golf course, too. I started seeing my lines better, and making tons of short putts. It also trained me to be more aggressive on uphill putts.
The long putts on the Pelz were a lot harder, and still are. But by being consistent in my practice, I built my confidence and my ability to read putts of all kinds.
I didn’t just improve my putting, I made it the strength of my game! At the end of my senior year, I won the NCAA D2 National Championship and parlayed that into the beginning of a professional golf career. To this day, I keep the Pelz Putting Tutor in my golf bag for daily use.
RELATED: Blade vs Mallet Putter
Pelz Putting Tutor Pros And Cons
What We Like
What We Don't Like
RELATED: Best Putter Grips
Frequently Asked Questions About The Dave Pelz Putting Tutor
Is the Pelz Putting Tutor worth it?
Yes, the Pelz Putting Tutor is definitely worth it.
It’s not very often that a training aid trains all of the most important skills associated with a part of the game of golf. The Pelz achieves it all in an easy to use, affordable package that you weighs less than a pound and fits into your golf bag.
Spending your money on this putting aid is a fast way to get better at golf without taking lessons. It's like having a putting coach in your golf bag at all times!
RELATED: Are Golf Lessons Worth It? - Are They Worth The Money?
Who is Dave Pelz?
Dave Pelz is a world renowned short game and putting coach who has been trusted by some of the best players in the world. He is most well known for writing the Putting Bible and the Short Game Bible. They are two books that contain an immense amount of wisdom and information around arguably the most important aspects of the game of golf.
Who uses the Pelz Putting Tutor on tour?
There are a large number of players on major tours around the world who use the Pelz Putting Tutor. Most notable among them is Phil Mickelson, although the list includes more than 50 others. Our very own John VanDerLaan brings his Pelz with him as he travels with the Korn Ferry and PGA Tours.
One of the great things about the putting aid is that it doesn't matter what putter you use. everything from Ping to Bettinardi to Scotty Cameron and beyond will work. All that matters is putting the ball through the gate consistently.
RELATED: Bettinardi vs Scotty Cameron Putters - Which Is Better And Why?
Final Thoughts
To sum it all up, the Pelz Putting Tutor is the best putting aid in golf. We love that it trains you to hit putts with your natural stroke rather than trying to change your motion. It can be used to train starting line, speed control, and greens reading. It’s lightweight and easy to transport with a convenient carrying case. It works great on a real putting green or even a Perfect Practice Putting Mat.
There is very little about the Pelz that we would change. It has proven to be an effective putting aid with players of all ages and at all levels of the game, and we truly feel that you will become a better putter by using one.
Now is the time to take control of your putting practice. Get your Pelz Putting Tutor and start making more putts in no time at all!
More Golf Training Aid Reviews:
