Some quick tips on reading the grain... (April 2006)
With Roger Gunn , So.Cal PGA Teacher of the Year
Reading the grain of the grass can be done in a very simple way around the hole, and that is to see how the hole is cut. That's right, if you look when you cut a hole, it basically cuts down through the root structure of the grass, so the grass that's growing in this direction is actually going to have its roots cut and it's going to die. Basically what happens pretty quickly is that you'll see a little dead spot on one side of the hole. Whatever side of the hole that dead spot is, that's the way the grass is growing. You can actually look around the hole and get a really good indication as to what the ball's going to do.
Another tip is to go ahead and look towards the sun, if you can, and try of look
at what's happening in terms of if the green is shiny or if it's not shiny. If it's shiny, that means those blades of grass are lying away from you, and that's the direction that the grain is going. If it's not shiny at all, if it has a dull look, then that means that the grass is growing towards you, you're seeing basically the tops of those blades of grass, there's nothing to shine off of, and so that's the grain coming into you. That's also an excellent way to take a look at the grain, to see which way it's going and you can factor it in to see how it might influence your putt.
