The secret behind J.T. Poston’s unorthodox putting method

Drive for show, sure, but certainly don’t putt for it.

At least, that’s J.T. Poston’s approach to life around the greens. The 29-year-old PGA Tour journeyman has earned a reputation over the course of his pro career for his putting style, which is as wonky as it is effective. Despite a stroke that often appears intentionally misaligned, Poston has ranked in the top 50 on the PGA Tour (and as high as 2nd) in Strokes Gained: Putting in each of the last five years.

So, how does he do it? On this week’s episode of GOLF’s Subpar, he gave the answer.

“I don’t know if I have an answer for why everyone wants putting to be so linear and perfect and whatnot,” Poston told hosts Colt Knost and Drew Stoltz. “But I would say my philosophy and my method is that I’m a feel player, even in my golf swing, and how I play the game, it’s very feel-based. I just know what feels do what.”

Ah yes, the dreaded feel player. What can you, the aspiring 15-handicapper, learn from a feel player? As it turns out, a tremendous amount.

“With my putting, my biggest thing is that I don’t want to have any tension,” Poston said. “I want to feel as comfortable as I possibly can over the ball. From there, it’s just reps. I hit a lot of reps even as a kid. I never saw a putting green I didn’t like. I would just go out there and putt for hours. It just got to the point where I was comfortable.”

There is no substitute for practice, but for those hoping to see some improvement around the greens without the sweat equity Poston committed to his craft, his advice is simple: focus on freedom.

“I know when I set up to it wherever my putter is pointing is not where the ball is going to start, but I know where the ball is going to start,” he said. “It’s just a feel thing. It’s hard to teach. I’ve sat there and tried to offer my advice, but my philosophy is that I’m just going to get comfortable over it and I know where the ball’s going to start, and I’m going to brush it in. It’s as simple as that. I’m not going to try to start it on the perfect line, I’m not going to try to get it set up dead perfect, I’m just going to get as comfortable as I possibly can over it.”

To hear the rest of Poston’s Subpar interview, check out the link below.

James Colgan

Golf.com Editor

James Colgan is an assistant editor at GOLF, contributing stories for the website and magazine. He writes the Hot Mic, GOLF’s weekly media column, and utilizes his broadcast experience across the brand’s social media and video platforms. A 2019 graduate of Syracuse University, James — and evidently, his golf game — is still defrosting from four years in the snow. Prior to joining GOLF, James was a caddie scholarship recipient (and astute looper) on Long Island, where he is from. He can be reached at james.colgan@golf.com.