Expert Putting: The science behind the stroke

’Putting mechanics aren’t a problem - controlling the mechanics is’.

The putting stroke is the one of the simplest, smallest movements in sport, but it causes golfers endless anguish and frustration. Expert Putting explains why this is the case, and describes the scientific route to relieving the anguish and easing the pain.

Using a scientific review of over half a century of research, author Chris Riddoch – a county golfer, and one of the UK’s leading sports scientists – explains how treating the putting stroke as a rigid pendulum stifles our innate muscular control systems.

Expert Putting approaches the putting stroke not as a rigid pendulum, but as a subtle motor skill, requiring judgement, vision, imagery, and thought control skills, as well as sound mechanical fundamentals. This book is the first to bring these diverse skills together, and combine them into a simple, scientific putting method. The skills are simple, so there is no barrier to anyone becoming an expert putter.

All golfers, from beginners to tournament professionals, will benefit from reading this book.

Professor Chris Riddoch is a sport scientist who has been a teacher, coach, and researcher for more than 30 years. He has worked at the universities of Bath, Bristol, Middlesex, and Queen's (Belfast) and has degrees in both Physical Education and Sports Science. He has a PhD in Sport Physiology. Over his career he has published more than 200 research articles on sport and exercise science.

Chris has top-level competitive experience in amateur golf, having achieved a scratch handicap at the age of 17. He represented his county (Cheshire) at junior and senior levels, and took part in two international trials (unfairly 'overlooked' both times, he explains!). He is a trained Physical Educator specialising in motor skill development, a qualified coach specialising in coaching children, and a researcher in the field of children and exercise.

He is now retired from academic life and writes sport performance books to help players of all abilities to achieve their full potential. He lives in the beautiful city of Stockholm, Sweden, with his wife Maya.