A friend of mine was giving me some putting tips and he suggested I line up the putter by setting the head down on the green behind the ball, and adjust the face angle until it is exactly at the angle needed to send the ball in the correct direction. You do this as you are standing behind the putter while holding the grip in your left hand while facing toward the hole.

Once you're happy, you step around the club while holding it in the correct position. Without moving the putter now take your stance and grip then put being careful to keep the putter facing the right direction.

My question is this. Isn't this cheating? It sure seems like cheating to me. For one thing I thought you had to stay to one side of the ball. For another I thought you weren't allowed to touch the green with your putter -- something about not touching the line between the ball and the hole.