A retired PGA Tour pro has backed a fan’s frustration over one of the most heated debates in the golf world. Greg, a golf fan, wrote that he has a massive problem with AimPoint, and wants it to be banned. Mark Allen, the retired Australian golfer, expressed that he agrees with everything that Greg said.

“It’s the most incredibly selfish way to line up three-footers. His aim point. It’s horribly selfish. It looks terrible. You’re stepping all over the three-foot circle around the hole. Just please, USGA, R&A, put your heads together and ban this garbage. It’s absolute garbage,” said Mark Allen on the Talk Birdie To Me podcast.

The AimPoint putting technique allows golfers to feel the green slopes with their feet. They then use fingers to gauge break percentage based on slope and speed. Many golfers, including Keegan Bradley, Dustin Johnson, Tommy Fleetwood, Collin Morikawa and Max Homa, use it. Notably, it’s not popular just in the men’s division. Rose Zhang, Lydia Ko, Stacy Lewis, Christina Kim, and others on the LPGA Tour use it as well.

Although some golfers believe that it is extremely effective and helps increase putting accuracy, many professionals, golf analysts, and viewers appeal for it to be banned.

A golfer has to keep stepping between the ball and the hole to gauge the slope. Notably, almost every golfer puts in all the effort not to step on their playing partners’ lines. But what about the next group’s line? Put simply, AimPoint leaves a large number of footprints on the green, which in turn, affects the upcoming group’s lines.

Therefore, Mark Allen agreed with the fan’s views and requested the USGA and the R&A to ban the controversial putting technique. The organizations had clarified in 2018 that golfers using the technique should stand with their feet shoulder-width or wider apart. While this helps prevent the breach of the line of the current playing group, it still does not address the issue for those playing the hole next.

It’s not the first time Mark Allen has talked about slapping a ban on AimPoint. Recently, Lou Stagner shared an X post featuring Keegan Bradley using the AimPoint putting to putt from around three or four feet. He wrote that instead of banning the technique, golf pros and fans should encourage it. Allen replied to the post, saying he disagreed completely.

“Golf is slow enough for most rounds played around the world 🌍 My vote – get rid of this total garbage now,” Mark Allen wrote in his comment. The Australian star also tagged the USGA and R&A, urging them to make a decision. Nick O’Hern agreed, suggesting a ban on straddling the line, as it forces users onto a slightly different read if avoided.

Notably, it’s not just Mark Allen who disagrees with this putting method. It is a heated debate with many professionals, retired tour pros, and golf analysts against it.

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Calls mount for banning the AimPoint putting method

There are many besides Mark Allen who want this technique to be banned. Lucas Grover leads the call for its ban. He argued on his SiriusXM PGA Tour Radio show in February 2025 that it slows play. Grover also calls it rude since golfers have to straddle lines near the hole. The 2009 U.S. Open champion listed it among solutions to the PGA Tour’s pace issues.

CBS broadcaster, Jim Nantz, also hates the whole idea of AimPoint. He voiced frustration, saying, “I can’t stand looking at it.” Nantz has repeatedly called for a ban on the AimPoint during his commentary. Another to join Mark Allen, Lucas Grover, and Jim Nantz is the LPGA pro turned influencer, Paige Spiranac. Spiranac admits that the technique can slow the game. She also said that it’s not the technique but the golfer who uses it that makes it slow. Therefore, if the golfer doesn’t know how to use it properly, they probably should not.

The discussion around AimPoint isn’t fading, and voices from across professional golf continue to push governing bodies to revisit the rules. Whether the method survives or not, the pressure on the USGA and R&A to address growing concerns is stronger than ever.