Geoff Mangum has spent nearly twenty years researching and reading everything there is to read about putting. His resulting 15,000-plus records organized in an electronic database of putting research is used by the World Scientific Congress on Golf in St. Andrews, Scotland, and is over ten times larger than the biggest bibliography in all of golf. He says the existing putting instruction is infected with vagueness, contradiction, and repetition, and he set about to organize and improve the lore.
 The inadequacy of traditional putting instruction inspired him to seek answers outside the golf literature, and this in turn led him to study neuroscience of brain-body control. He is recognized as an expert in how the brain and vision works when targeting and making movements in putting. Mangum’s unique approach combines traditional lore with modern science for a comprehensive examination of all aspects of putting: anatomy, biomechanics, kinesthetics, neuroscience, sports psychology, teaching and learning psychology, putter manufacturing, greens agronomy, physics, statistics, and instructional technology.
 Mangum spends his time designing techniques for reading, aiming, and stroking putts for optimal performance in ways that respect and enhance innate brain-body processes. Over the past two years, he has authored more than 75 formal articles about putting based on this rich combination of brain science and putting traditions. In addition, he has written over 750 detailed studies of various aspects of putting science and performance over the course of five years on his world-reknowned Flatstick Forum, visited by10,000 golfers monthly from over 50 countries.
 Mangum’s knowledge of the science of putting gets high marks. Dr. Selwyn Super, an avid golfer from South Africa and National Director of Research for the Neuro-Optometric Rehabilitation Association (the top national science group for optometrists), frequently finds his Internet research into visual neuroscience pointing him to Mangum's website for precise information instead of to the traditional academic sites. He was so impressed he sent Mangum a $4,000 piece of diagnostic equipment for assessing golfer's visual processes.
Dr. Bob Christina is the Dean Emeritus of the UNCG School of Health and Human Performance and is a national expert in motor skills learning for golf and a leading golf scientist affiliated with the Pinehurst Golf Institute and former USGA equipment science guru Frank Thomas. Christina says flatly that Mangum "knows his stuff" and has lots of useful ideas for teachers and players.
The PuttingZone teachings of Geoff Mangum offer the most comprehensive techniques for all aspects of putting: reading putts, aiming, stroke, distance control, motor learning, and performance psychology. Putting instruction for the new century: If you want to be a BETTER GOLFER, be a BETTER PUTTER. | | Applying his extensive knowledge, studies, observations, and experiments, Geoff Mangum prepared his teaching during ten years of isolated work before publicly offering instruction. Beginning in 2000, Mangum has offered his “Mechanics of Instincts” putting instruction to playing professionals, veteran golf teachers, and elite amateurs.  Mangum's first student on one of golf's mini-tours -- Blake Adams of Savannah -- after an evening's lesson, fired a personal best 62 the next morning, set the course record, and won his tournament going away. By comparison, Jack Nicklaus' personal best in competition has been 63. Another of his students, Meadowlands Golf Course young amateur Travis Lethco, fired a 63 there and holds the course record and went on later as a collegiate freshman golfer to finish 8th in the NCAA finals. Mangum's first Nationwide Tour student, Sean Murphy of Scottsdale, AZ, fired consecutive rounds with only 24 putts the next event, when 29-30 putts is the norm.
 Even more impressive, Mangum's first PGA Tour student, Shaun Micheel of Memphis, TN, went on two months after a single lesson to win his first PGA Tour event -- and a "major" to boot -- the 2003 PGA Championship on the strength of his putting. Micheel, known as an excellent ball striker but a lackluster putter, contacted Mangum in May 2003 during the Wachovia Championship in Charlotte to get help with his putting, as he then ranked 130th in the field. In July, Micheel ranked 16th in the field in putting with the win at Oak Hill in the PGA. Micheel said, “Everyone remembers my seven iron, but my putter won me the PGA Championship.” Micheel recently finished the 2006 PGA Championship as runner-up to Tiger Woods. Crediting his 2006 PGA performance again to putting, Micheel said: "I putted outstanding when I won in '03, and that's what ultimately wins these championships. This year, I made a lot of great putts. I made every single putt that I needed to make all week. I'm not sure I missed one putt inside of about eight feet. It was very similar to how I played in 2003."
In June 2004, Mangum visited the Republic of Ireland for two weeks to present a series of putting clinics at a dozen marquee courses around the country. In mid-September 2005, he visited Yorkshire, England, and Hamburg, Germany, and met with European PGA teachers interested in participating in his PuttingZone Academies, currently being established in major cities throughout Europe. Later that month, Mangum traveled to Munich, Germany, where he was invited by the European PGA to lecture 1,000 European pros at their annual teaching summit as the featured speaker on putting, sharing the stage with Hank Haney, Randy Smith, Denis Pugh, Ralph Mann, Beverly Lewis, and other top teachers. Mangum’s presentation received an excellent reception and has led to widespread contacts throughout European golf.
Mangum has also impressed the top teaching professionals locally and nationally. His glowing testimonials read like a Who's Who in golf. After meeting Jim McLean at last year's Vantage Classic in Winton-Salem, McLean advised one of his top Master Instructors, Jason Carbone, to see Mangum about a vision problem in putting. Carbone, who is also a pro at Jack Nicklaus’ Muirfield Village, visited Mangum for two days to get putting help.
The top junior golf academy in the world is the David Leadbetter Golf Academy in Bradenton, FL. Students and alums include Michele Wie, David Gossett, Peter Uhlein, Ty Tryon, Naree Song Wongluekiet and twin sister Aree, Chanin (Top) Puntawong, Paula Creamer, Ben Leong, and many others. Mangum was invited there 2003 to present a half-day clinic to the entire instructional staff. Tim Sheredy, a Senior Instructor there, says: "Geoff knows more about putting that any one I know. His knowledge and dedication to studying putting are second to none." Sheredy has recently opened his own Champions Junior Golf Academy at The Founders Club in Sarasota Florida.
Mangum is fast becoming known as one of a very few top putting instructors in the world. He has a dozen regular clients on the mini-tours, and he's starting to break into the very competitive PGA Tour market since his successes this year. Mangum says, "I love teaching putting to help golfers at any level, but my real passion is pushing the envelope at the highest level of golf. My goal is to be recognized around the world as the top teacher of putting for the next thirty years." |
About Geoff Mangum 
