The Zen Golf Challenge: We're trying to cover the greatest putts ever made

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Ever wanted to test yourself with the greatest putts ever made?

Two years ago at the 150th Open at St Andrews, the Zen Golf Green Stage let you
to do that in the Zen Famous Putts Challenge.

And it's back at this week's AIG Women's Open with five of the biggest putts in women's golf.

The challenge is a great way to highlight the amazing possibilities of this new technology that is changing the skills of golfers around the world.
the world.

You may have seen the Green Stage on Sky Sports coverage of the Open. In layman's terms it's a moving deck, but in technical terms it's a dynamic terrain technology that instantly transforms a flat carpeted area into a true indoor golf experience that's focused on life, recreating almost any outdoor putting green imaginable.

Gradients of all kinds – up, down, right to left, left to right, double breakers,
three breakers, you name them – they can appear before your eyes and under you
the feet.

The world's best experts and trainers are already fans, as is TV, and of course
is increasingly open to golfers of all abilities.

Earlier this year there was the Zen Famous Putts Challenge at the Staysure Seniors PGA
The championship hosted by Colin Montgomerie at Trump International Golf Links and there will be another (for the third year running) Alfred Dunhill Links Championship, returning to St Andrews in October 2024.

“After these very successful trials, the Zen Green Stage will now be part of the audience at many touring events in the future,” said Zen founder Nick Middleton.

“And it's not just about recreating history: while the competitors are there hitting putts in the tournament, you can be in the tented village hitting the same putts on the same day.”

The Green Stage moves to create precise arcs for each putt using a quick touch screen controller. This functionality is also set to revolutionize putting courses, golf instructors can pre-plan putting tests and challenges during coaching and custom conditioning sessions.

Middleton went on to say: “It's very exciting, and unique to Zen, to have this level = truth. By recreating these famous putts we not only provided a way to celebrate some of the most historic moments in the women's game, but also created a high-quality green that can be adjusted so golfers can improve their putting skills – and feel like their golf heroes. felt when faced with these straight putts. “

Golf365 took up the challenge. Here's how we did it and what we learned from the experience.

Error 1

Lorena Ochoa's 20-foot putt on the 17th hole on the Old Course when she won the 2007 Women's British Open.

Our attempt at this double breaker team came close but missed the hole and hit the back wall which counted as three putts in the challenge. It was harsh because briefly it looked like I was going in!

Error 2

Annika Sorenstam's 8-foot birdie putt to win the play-off at the 2006 US Women's Open. Downhill left to right. Fearing the three-putt rule our effort was weak and timid. There is no victory for us. Two putts.

Error 3

Inbee Park's 14-foot putt to win the 2013 US Women's Open and with it he won three straight points. Another downhill attempt but right to left. When we felt the earth move, so to speak, we felt we knew what to do but the putt slipped on the high side. Two putts. 0-out of 3.

Error 4

Suzann Pettersen's 7-hole breaker to win the 2019 Solheim Cup. An explosive memory but boy did we suffer. Pettersen stood tall. Pettersen hit a good speed. Pettersen won the Solheim Cup and retired from professional golf within minutes. Our attempt ended. It's sad. Two putts. 0-of-4.

Error 5

Juli Inkster's 15-foot putt to extend a late lead to win the 2022 US Women's Open. In descending, it starts from right to left, then it creeps from left to right. We nailed it. Finally! 1-in-5.

What did we learn?

Simply put, we cannot change history.

But here's the thing. Feeling the low movement helped us appreciate Aimpoint, a method apparently used by almost half of the professional golf world.

You really felt where your feet were pointing. It's a neat change in how strangers look.

The second big revelation was how a small change in the slope had a big impact on the loan amount. You don't need to take out a loan to make big changes. It's worth remembering.

And the third big learning curve was the importance of knowing whether the putt was going up or down.

That weak 7-foot putt? Everything was based on that subtle change. It was the only uphill putt and I was totally blown away by it.

If you can't make it to this year's AIG Women's Open weekend or the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship, Zen Green Stages may be at a golf tournament near you soon.

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