Putting
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Putting Drills to Improve Confidence  Putting drills are something you can practice just about anywhere. You don't need a lot of room, and basically just a smooth surface with a true roll. We've already covered some other putting drills in past articles, however below are several that will definitely improve your confidence on the green. Once you start becoming a better putter, it really becomes addictive and instead of being unsure about a putt, you'll soon start enjoying the challenge of putting and approach each shot with anticipation instead of uncertainty.
The Wall Drill
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Eye Position Key for Putting Success  One of the main ingredients to a successful putt is proper alignment. Your feet must be aligned properly, your hands and clubface need to be aligned properly, and your eyes also need to be properly aligned. Proper eye setup is a key fundamental in your aim.
I know of two different "schools of thought" when it comes to eye alignment and putting. One, which I believe most golfers concentrate on, is to keep your eyes positioned directly above the ball in your stance. Keeping your eyes directly over the ball promotes a "straight line" approach, that is everything is on the exact same straight line from your eyes to the ball to your clubface, backwards and forwards. Keeping your eyes aligned over the ball will promote a straight back-and-forth swing, and should help most golfers follow ...Read entire article |
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Putting Accuracy - Imagine Multiple Holes  There are two main aspects to putting; accuracy and distance. Getting the right distance down pat is a matter of reading the green and adjusting your swing speed accordingly. Accuracy, on the other hand, is a matter of proper alignment and aim.
Ask any golfer what the toughest types of putts are and they will most likely say the "6-footer". This type of putt is difficult because it's close to the hole, so it seems like an easy shot, but just far enough away to shake your confidence and really make you think about your aim. It's true that these shots should be made more consistently, but because of poor accuracy, these shots are often missed and could potentially add 2 or 3 to 5 or 6 strokes onto your score. The first step to proper accuracy is proper aim. It all starts in the s...Read entire article |
 How much time do you actually spend practicing golf? I mean, I definitely consider some of the rounds I play "practice" rounds where I'm not so tough on myself to perform. But, what about outside of practice rounds and when you are on the course, how often do you go to the range and hit balls, or practice chipping in your backyard, or use the putting green at your local course?
I find that no matter how much I practice with my driver, woods, and irons, more often than not it results in more confidence, rather than a more technically-sound swing. The result is that when I get on the course, because of the conditions such as my lie, whether or not I have a clear path to my target, etc. it is difficult to reproduce that "perfect lie" at the range. However, whenever I practice putting,...Read entire article |
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Putting Practice to Judge Distance  The two keys to successful putting are distance and accuracy. I would say that accuracy is slightly easier to practice and improve as the direction your putter face is pointing will directly dictate where the ball goes. After you are consistently hitting the ball straight, changing the direction the ball goes is simply a matter of rotating your body. Reading greens however, which has a major impact on accuracy, is a different story. But, the fact remains that you can be the most accurate putter in the world, but without a good judgement of distance, it will go to waste. Think about it, how many times per round when you're putting do you hit the ball and it stops at the EXACT distance of the cup, but it's just off left or right by a few inches? Probably not very often... Most o...Read entire article |
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Putting Tip - The Pendulum Effect  Everyone has heard of the saying "the shortest distance between two points is a straight line". The same holds true in golf, especially for putting. The shortest distance for your putter head to travel during your putting swing is back-and-forth along a striaght line. Doing so will also keep your putter face square to the ball and will result in a put that should start off perpendicular to the putter face and on the intended line. Swinging back-and-forth along a straight line will help eliminate "pushes" or "pulls" which result from an in-to-out or out-to-in swing which is usually tough to spot, especially from your own eye as you putt. A quick drill to help stay along the intended line is to putt against a section of wall. You want the wall to be parallel with your fe...Read entire article |
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Accurate Putting - Keeping Your Hands and Wrists Straight  This golf putting tip is probably something that you've heard over and over again, however it is often one of the most over-looked aspects of putting. Keeping your wrists and hands straight and stiff while putting is imperative to success. Your putter should act as an extension of your arms. I would go as far as to say you should think of your arms as the shaft of your putter and the palm of your bottom hand as your putter face. Now put the putter in your hands and imagine it as an extension of your arms. This being the case, the putter shaft and head should remain perfectly straight through your backswing and follow-through. The reason you do not want your wrists to bend or your hands to rotate is that your putter face will move out of position and it will be that muc...Read entire article |
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Tips for Reading Greens and Better Putts  Every golfer is going to encounter a number of different putts while playing a round. We have the three-footers, the ten-footers, and then the way-back-footers to contend with. Even if you have a brilliant short game you are undoubtedly going to be faced with more than just a tap-in or "gimme" on the green. Following are some tips to help you improve your green-reading ability and to shave a few extra strokes off your putting game: - Practice greens make perfect! While maybe not entirely true, it is crucial to take some putts on the course's practice green before you start your round. If anything it will help prepare you mentally for your real putts, but it also lets you see how the course maintains and grooms its greens. Depending on the time of day you play the greens may st...Read entire article |
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Putting - An Alternative Mental Approach  Putting is one of the most over-looked areas of the game of golf, especially for beginners. With such an emphasis on driving the ball farther and all aspects of the game that help golfers arrive closer to the green or pin, golfers often put putting on the wayside of their practice time. However, because the ball is so close to the pin, and because fewer factors determine the path of the ball (don't have to worry about arc, trajectory, lie, etc.), putting should be one of the main areas of focus for improving your golf game and taking precious strokes off your total score. Putters themselves seem to be one of the more technical-looking clubs available. I've seen everything from flat-face putters, to belly-putters, to literally hundreds of different putter heads. I think such an...Read entire article |
