Putter with alignment system

1. A method of aligning a putter, comprising the steps of:

providing a putter having a head, a heel, a toe, a top surface, and a planar striking face comprising a removable reflecting surface for receiving and reflecting incident light, the top surface comprising at least one first reference line oriented substantially parallel to the striking face and a plurality of second reference lines oriented substantially perpendicular to the striking face;

providing a light source separate from the putter head;

directing light from the light source towards the reflecting surface such that the reflective surface is illuminated with and reflects a portion of the light towards a reference device;

detecting the reflected light with a reference device, wherein the reference device is a photosensitive array and the reflected light incident upon the photosensitive array generates a signal capable of being transferred to an output device visible to a golfer;

determining the location of the reflected beam on the reference device relative to a central point prior to the golfer making a putting stroke;

correcting the orientation of the putter so that the reflected beam is directed at the center of the reference device; and

using the reference lines to provide a visual reference point to the golfer indicative of putter orientation.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the light source is a laser.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the reflecting surface is a mirrored surface, highly-polished fused silica, highly-polished glass, or a beam splitter.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the photosensitive array comprises a photomultiplier tube, an avalanche photodiode, or a charge-coupled device.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein the light is collimated, focused, or both.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the planar striking face has a loft of between about 2 degrees and about 7 degrees.

7. The method of claim 6 , wherein the loft is about 4 degrees.

8. The method of claim 1 , wherein a spacer or a shim is disposed between the planar striking face and the reflecting surface.

9. The method of claim 1 , wherein the reflecting surface is a beam splitter oriented such that a first fraction of the light is reflected towards the reference device and a second fraction of the light is redirected perpendicular the incident light.

10. The method of claim 9 , wherein the redirected light strikes the ground below the striking face such that the golfer may align a putting stroke path.

11. The method of claim 1 , wherein the output device comprises a personal computer, a monitor, an oscilloscope, or a personal data assistant.

12. The method of claim 1 , further comprising the step of;

providing a second reference device located below the putter head.

13. A method of aligning a putter, comprising the steps of:

providing a putter having a head, a heel, a toe, a top surface, and a planar striking face having a loft of about 4 degrees and comprising a reflecting surface for receiving and reflecting incident light, the reflecting surface being oriented vertically by a shim or a spacer, and the top surface comprising at least one first reference line oriented substantially parallel to the striking face and a plurality of second reference lines oriented substantially perpendicular to the striking face;

providing a light source separate from the putter head;

directing light from the light source towards the reflecting surface such that the reflective surface is illuminated with and reflects a portion of the light;

detecting the reflected light with a reference device;

comparing the reflected light to a central location on the reference device so that a golfer may determine the orientation of the putter head; and

using the reference lines to provide a visual reference point to the golfer indicative of putter orientation.