Putting can be one of the most frustrating and at the same time most rewarding parts of the game of golf. With distance no longer a problem, precision and accuracy now come into play. However, the cut of the grass and the slope of the green may conspire to keep your ball out of the hole and cost you more strokes. Putting machines give you the ability to practice this nerve-wracking part of the game 24 hours a day.
Instant Reward for Success
Putting machines are designed to kick the ball back to you--if you make it! If you don't, you have to go up to the machine and get your ball back. The target has a sensor that your ball will trip if your putt hits it, and this sensor will cause a lever to pop up, or out, and send the ball back in your direction.
Changes in Putting Machines Over Time
The earliest putting machines just featured mechanized targets you could set across the room from yourself, and a mat made of AstroTurf that you could put down if you wanted to simulate a green. The downside, of course, is that the surface would be perfectly flat, and no greens are perfectly flat. Now the most up-to-date putting machines have adjustable slopes, so that you can program in an entire 18-hole course into the machine, so that you have that many different challenges ahead of you. Other features include computerized scoring so that you can play an entire game of "putt-putt" without leaving your game room--or your office, if your boss isn't around.
