I notice that when a glofer misses a putt he/she almost always picks up the ball and looks at it--why?

Question

If the putt is made nary a glance--why?

Answer 1

To see if the ball is cracked or damaged in any way, I guess. If it is, they take the ball to an official and they have a fellow competitor look at the ball, as well as the official, to check for any damage, and as to whether or not the ball is allowed to be replaced.

Or they just look at the ball and wonder "What on earth is wrong with you?" lol

Answer 2

If they miss a short putt, its probably to avoid looking at anyone else!  After every hole, a professional will make a determination whether a ball has been "damaged" during the course of play, and decide to replace it.  The odd thing is, they can do this once they are on the putting surface--they don't have to wait until they hole out.  But, sometimes a ball can be knocked "out of round" so that it won't roll "true", and the only way to tell is by putting it.

From what I read, most pros replace their ball every two holes or so, whether they feel the ball is damaged or not.  Free swag makes this decision easier, I suppose.

Answer 3

the only thing to be blamed because the 'ball' itself didn't go. after all we invest so much of time, money and effort just to put that 'tiny thing' in that hole! who is to be blamed then ? we put in the pocked and pinch it so that nobody watches it. after all 'rights' of all kind.........aha haa

Answer 4

What everybody else said is true.

In addition, sometimes they just want to take a moment to compose themselves. A lot of people just rush up to the ball and try to tap in the next putt, and end up missing the tap-in. This gives them a moment to settle down.

Also, some players like to line up the ball in a certain position when they putt. You'll see a lot of players with a line drawn on the ball. They want ot position the ball so it will roll on that line.

Answer 5

To see if has mud on it so they don't miss the next putt.

Answer 6

They are looking for some reason to blame the miss on rather then themselves.  The proverbial bug or cut / nick, despite the fact they have already picked it up, and wiped it off before replacing it to the ground.

We golfers spend so much time practicing the line of the putt and reading the break.  However, we mostly miss putts due to a poor judge of distance and speed.  Almost like how we practice hitting drives far more then our short game. Putts are nearly half the game yet we wouldn't dream of hitting 100 practice putts.

Answer 7

They check if it is damaged. They also look for little pieces of grass on the ball that can affect the roll. Just little things like that.