The Short Putt

photo credit: OCVA   There is nothing more embarrassing than to miss a 3 foot putt after hitting a 285 yard drive and sticking your approach shot to within 3 feet of the cup for a birdie try.  On top of all that,  your opponents are there watching intently.  A missed 3 footer can sometimes demoralize a golfer and literally wreck their round if they allow it to.

There are several reasons for missing short putts:  stress, trying to steer the ball, the jitters (yips), hitting the ball off of the toe or heel of the putter and many others.  Try the following:  (1)  Take time to study the putt.  (2)  Make a very smooth stroke.  (3)  Make a shorter backstoke.  (4)   Hit the putt squarely on the sweet spot of the putter.

Playing the Break

photo credit: star5112   Putting Essentials:  1)  Direction  2)  length  3)  head steadiness.  If, and only if, you abide by those three prerequisites can you begin to devote your attention to “the roll of the green.” 

One of the most important things to remember, when playing a breaking putt, is to miss on the high side.”  If the putt breaks from left to right, make plenty of allowance for the break.  As the ball approaches the hole and slows, if it’s played high enough, it just may dribble into the hole.  If you don’t play enough break the ball misses the hole on the right with no chance of dropping.

One of the biggest problems on every breaking putt is not playing enough break.

Plumb-Bob Your Putt

photo credit: star5112   A.  Determine which is your dominant eye.  Don’t assume that it’s the same as your dominant hand.  B.  Stand behind your ball,  looking directly toward the hole.  C.  Hold your putter loosely from the top so that it hangs freely and the line of the shaft runs through the middle of your ball (or ball marker).  D.  Look at the shaft and the hole with your dominant eye.  If the hole appears to the right of the shaft, the putt breaks right;  if it appears to the left, the putt breaks left.

Dominant Eye:  Outstretch arms and form a triangle with your thumbs and forefingers.  Look through the triangle at a distant object.  Without moving your hands, close each eye alternately.  The eye that keeps the object in the triangle is your dominant eye.

Rules of Putting

photo credit: nsaplayer   In the game of golf, there are certain rules that govern the set-up and swing.  Breaking any of these rules results in flaws that can have detrimental effects on the golfer’s ability to play the game well.  When it comes to putting, an entirely separate segment of the game, there are no governing rules, you might say “anything goes.”

Throughout golf’s history, there has never been one putting style that dominated the game.  From Arnold Palmer’s pigeon toed stance to Fuzzy Zoeller’s wide open set-up.  Sam Snead started the side-step style (eventually banned), which resembled paddling a canoe.  As of late, the belly putter has become popular along with the ”long John,” sternum putters.

When putting,  what matters is to get the ball in the hole in as few strokes as possible.

Putting Positive

photo credit: Kevitivity   Nowhere on the course is positive thinking more important, than on the putting surface.  You’ve got to “believe” you can make any putt you’re faced with.  The greatest putters in the history of the game,  have all used the power of positive thought.

The key to positive thinking is to stay focused, which is the key to good putting.  Focus gives you the ability to concentrate on a certain aspect of the putt.  Concentrate on specifics, such as, the line of the putt, the back of the ball, making a smooth stroke, squaring the clubface, counting “one, two” for tempo, not looking up etc. . . there are all sorts of details you can focus on which will help you achieve a positive attitude.

Solid Putting Stroke

photo credit: tienvijftien   There are several important factors involved if you intend to be a successful putter.  You need a stroke that delivers the putter to the back of the ball on the correct line.  The putter-face has to be square and it has to be traveling at the right speed. 

A good putting stroke is a shoulder-controlled movement and what that means is that the shoulders rock to and fro while the hands and arms remain very passive.  The putter is an extension of the triangular shape of the shoulders and arms.

There is some question as to the correct ball placement, however.  Many fine putters believe in hitting the ball on the upstroke (playing it further left of center), while others feel that hitting on the downstroke is more productive.  You decide?

Judging the Speed

photo credit: jlastras   Putting is the easiest part of the game to practice, where improvement can occur the quickest with the least amount of effort.  Judging speed is the secret to good putting.  Speed is the determining factor as to the read and break of all putts.

The first step in reading a putt is judging how hard you need to hit the ball because the speed will determine the line.  When faced with a breaking putt, hitting the ball harder takes break out.  If softer contact is made, more break will occur.  The process of determining the speed of a putt, creates a mental picture with a set goal in mind; to make the putt. 

Make sure your practice swing/s replicate the actual stroke you are about to make.

Speed or Break?

photo credit: idovermani   Which is more important, the speed of a putt or the amount of break it has?  The answer is both !  How much a putt breaks depends on how fast the ball is traveling on it’s way to the cup.  Calculating both speed and break can be quite complicated especially when all of the other variables are added such as, grain direction, green firmness, time of day, dampness etc.

Well over 50% of all breaking putts are missed on the low side which usually happens because the putt was not hit hard enough or the break was not read properly.

A breaking putt should be planned to die in the hole.  In order to take some of the break out of a short putts, however, ”charging” the hole may be the answer.

Putt vs. Chip

photo credit: Elite PhotoArt   Some players feel compelled to chip the ball even when their ball is on the green’s fringe.  Putting from the fringe, if you’ve got a clean lie, is always a surer bet than chipping.  The reasons:  1)  Too many things can go wrong when using an iron.  2)  There is a possibility of “chunking” the shot with a lofted club.  3)  With a pitch shot, the ball will be in flight which can be unpredictable at times.

In almost every case, using a putter when off the green is a sure bet.  Putting is all about feel, its much easier to “feel” the distance your ball needs to travel by putting it.  Stroking the ball with an iron can have serious consequences.  Putting puts the odds in your favor !

Smooth Your Stroke

photo credit: mscaprikell   Fast greens can be a real nightmare and they can ruin your day on the course, if you let them.  Next time your confronted with lightning fast greens try the following:

1) Light Grip Pressure – To control the pace of your putt, you must certainly control the speed at which your putterhead moves.  A tight grip will not allow you to do that.  With a tight grip, the tendency is to over-control the club which results in an erratic stroke.

2)  Make a Smooth Stoke -  Focus on making your stroke as smooth as possible.  The follow-through has to be longer than the backstroke because it is important that your clubhead accelerate throught the ball.  On shorter putts (6 feet or less), a shorter backstroke becomes even more important.  Spend more time on the practice green !

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