Forty-three percent of golf shots are putting strokes yet very few golfers actually practice putting except for a few short minutes (if they’re lucky and get to the course in enough time) just before a game. If you can find 30-45 minutes, the following routines will improve your putting dramatically and drop your scores as dramatically.
The biggest problem most golfers have is not line but getting the right distance. We will show you a putting drill that will absolutely nail the distances you roll your putts. All that will be required is that you make a small correction for the conditions of the green on the day that you play – whether fast or slow greens, it won’t matter.
The various routines emphasize the most important aspects of becoming a good putter and are simple to execute. The basic mechanics of putting, coupled with having a better 'feel' for distance, will improve your performance on the greens.
Putting Mechanics
The goal of a good putting stroke is to consistently strike the ball solidly in the direction the putter is aligned with the proper pace. This is the essence of putting. There are three key areas to focus on for putting mechanics:
- Set-up and alignment
- Always align the logo of your ball to the proper putting line. This will make aligning your putter very simple.
- Make sure your arms hang freely
- Your eyes need to be directly over the ball when you set-up to putt. If you don’t have a putter that supports this alignment then you don’t have the right putter – get one that sets you up in your normal stance with your eyes looking down directly at the ball
- Shoulders are square to the target
- Body Stability
- Stability is imperative for a consistent stroke
- Any motion in your body will cause your putter path to be inconsistent which makes solid contact almost impossible
- Try this to keep your body still and head down until after you’ve stroked the ball
- Imagine a small coin under the ball
- Don’t look up until you can identify the denomination of the coin
- Keeping your eyes focused on the impact area will greatly limit any tendency to move your body
- Arm Swing
- In a good putting stroke the arms move freely from the shoulders with no wrist activity
- A good tool to check arm swing is to place a tee in the end of your grip
- With a good motion, the golf tee, arms and the putter head will move together to the target
Now, to focus on how to develop a ‘feel’ for putting to be able to roll the ball the distance you want every time, no matter what the conditions. This drill develops a better understanding of how far the ball rolls for a given stroke length. Here’s the drill:
- Place some tape at the center of a yard stick at the 18 inch mark.
- Then, place a piece of tape every four inches from the center mark in both directions
- Take some practice strokes from the center mark, back to the first mark on the backstroke and then up to the first mark on the forward stroke using your normal rhythm and tempo
- Practice to some of the other marks
- Next, place a ball adjacent to the center mark and make your four-inch backstroke and four inch forward stroke.
- Hit several putts and average the distance the ball rolls
- Repeat this drill for each length of backstroke noting the average distance the ball travels
- Remember these distances and if you want you can even tape them to your putter so you always have them
- Knowing what distance the ball travels given a certain stroke length (and consistent putting rhythm and tempo) will give you a great edge, on the green in every situation, by just knowing (rather than guessing) how long your stroke needs to be to roll the ball a certain distance
While green conditions obviously change, whether fast or slow, wet or dry, up-hill or downhill etc, adjustments can be made confidently by knowing exactly how far you roll the ball given a particular stroke length
Here are four drills to help develop your touch and build confidence in your stroke.
Safety-Zone Drill:
- Mark a semi-circle (with tees) around the back edge of the hole using the length of your putter as a guide
- From different distances, practice putting until you can get 10 putts in a row either in the hole or inside the semi-circle safety-zone
Closest-to-the-Hole Test:
- With a partner, play a putting match in which you get points for being closest to the hole.
- Award 5-points for sinking a putt 2-points for lagging it inside a putter length
- A bonus point for being closest to the hole Deduct a point for ‘missing’ the safety-zone
- Play to a pre-set match-total
Short Putt Drill:
- The best putters have an uncanny ability to read the green, judge distance correctly, solid alignment, rhythm and mechanics but that is all for naught if they lack confidence.
- The best way to build confidence is to sink putts – particularly short putts.
Finish off your practice with this simple drill that builds incredible confidence in your putting stroke:
- See how many putts you can sink in a row from a distance of 3-4 feet
- Place the bPlace the balls around the hole on different angles to the hole Imagine that each one is for the win at the Masters Try for 10-15 in a row but see how far you can really take it
With proper putting mechanics and a consistent rhythm and tempo you will be able to develop a stroke that allows you to strike the ball solidly every time.