7 Tips On How To Putt Better
Putting is a game within a game and can account for a vey high percentage of our score. Being a good and consistent putter will radically lower your scores.
Here are some Tips on How To Putt Better
When we look at the different putting styles of not only the pros but guys we play with, it is surprising how many of them work really well. This huge variety of putting styles proves that putting is by far the most individual part of the game.
Although there are a number of basic fundamentals which you should include in your own individual method, never hesitate to add your own personal touch by trusting your instincts so that you always feel comfortable and confident about your putting.
A Good Set Up
To be comfortable over your putts, don't hesitate to make minor adjustments to you set up. If the putter feels long in your hands on any particular day, grip down a bit. If getting comfortable means moving the ball back in your stance a bit or standing up a bit straighter, do not hesitate to make these minor adjustments. If you are not comfortable over the ball, you won't be confident of holing the putt.
Two Key Principles
The first must to becoming a better putter is to have a stable body position.
It may be that you stand tall to the ball with your weight evenly over your heels or you may lean well over with most of your weight on the left foot or you may stand pidgeon-toed.
The most important thing is that you must learn to stay still in your body throughout the stroke by building stability into your setup. Any golfer with sway or motion in his body will not putt well. Stability is the key.
The second key principle is the positioning of the head so that you set your dominant eye directly over the ball. Some time on the practice green will tell you which position is most comfortable for you to both see the line to the hole and to be able to align the putterface squarely to the line.
Grip Pressure
A light grip on the putter gives you a much better feel in both the hands and the wrists, whilst a firm grip conversely deadens this feel.
If you are a wristy putter hold the club lightly. If you are an arms and shoulder putter you should grip the putter quite firmly.
Sweetspot
Most putters on the market have a dot or line that marks the sweetspot and doubles as an aligment aid. Always try to contact the ball at this point as it produces the sweetest roll of the ball.
Stroke Geometry
Contrary to popular belief the putting stroke should not be straight back and straight through, but should move straight back along the target line for a very short distance before going naturally to the inside like any other swing. If you were to try and force the putter straight back all along the target line, this would cause tension in you hands and arms. It will also cause the blade to rise up, causing a downward blow on the ball and a mishit. Allow the putter to move naturally inside the target line to develop both a solid stroke and a pure roll of the golf ball.
Cure Wrist Hinge
One of the biggest faults with an amateur's putting is that they allow the left wrist to hinge or collapse towards the target through impact. This causes the clubface to close and you will pull the ball left, which is very common on short must make putts.
To help cure your wrists breaking, splint your forearm and wrist with a 6 inch ruler and rubber bands. Practice putting from various distances without bending the ruler. You will ingrain a firm wrist feeling and make more of those must make putts.
Plumb-bobbing
If you are struggling to determine the way a putt is going to break, use this method.
Stand perpendicular to the horizon holding your putter at arms length with your thumb and forefinger at the top of the grip to ensure the putter hangs vertically.
Cover the ball with the lower part of the shaft and close your dominant eye.
If the shaft now appears to also cover the hole, the puttis straight. If the shaft appears to the left the break is left to right and if the shaft is to the right, break is reight to left.
(Dominant eye test)
1. Take a toilet-paper tube and fix it over the ball so that both eyes can see it in the center of the tube.
2. Close your left eye. If the ball remains in the center of the tube, you're right-eye dominant. If the ball jumps out of the tube and out of your line of sight, you're left-eye dominant.
I hope that you find these tips on how to putt better useful and you have success with them both on the practice putting green and on the course. Remember that putts account for a high percentage of your score and lowering your putts per round will improve you score without hitting the ball any better.
Here are some Tips on How To Putt Better
When we look at the different putting styles of not only the pros but guys we play with, it is surprising how many of them work really well. This huge variety of putting styles proves that putting is by far the most individual part of the game.
Although there are a number of basic fundamentals which you should include in your own individual method, never hesitate to add your own personal touch by trusting your instincts so that you always feel comfortable and confident about your putting.
A Good Set Up
To be comfortable over your putts, don't hesitate to make minor adjustments to you set up. If the putter feels long in your hands on any particular day, grip down a bit. If getting comfortable means moving the ball back in your stance a bit or standing up a bit straighter, do not hesitate to make these minor adjustments. If you are not comfortable over the ball, you won't be confident of holing the putt.
Two Key Principles
The first must to becoming a better putter is to have a stable body position.
It may be that you stand tall to the ball with your weight evenly over your heels or you may lean well over with most of your weight on the left foot or you may stand pidgeon-toed.
The most important thing is that you must learn to stay still in your body throughout the stroke by building stability into your setup. Any golfer with sway or motion in his body will not putt well. Stability is the key.
The second key principle is the positioning of the head so that you set your dominant eye directly over the ball. Some time on the practice green will tell you which position is most comfortable for you to both see the line to the hole and to be able to align the putterface squarely to the line.
Grip Pressure
A light grip on the putter gives you a much better feel in both the hands and the wrists, whilst a firm grip conversely deadens this feel.
If you are a wristy putter hold the club lightly. If you are an arms and shoulder putter you should grip the putter quite firmly.
Sweetspot
Most putters on the market have a dot or line that marks the sweetspot and doubles as an aligment aid. Always try to contact the ball at this point as it produces the sweetest roll of the ball.
Stroke Geometry
Contrary to popular belief the putting stroke should not be straight back and straight through, but should move straight back along the target line for a very short distance before going naturally to the inside like any other swing. If you were to try and force the putter straight back all along the target line, this would cause tension in you hands and arms. It will also cause the blade to rise up, causing a downward blow on the ball and a mishit. Allow the putter to move naturally inside the target line to develop both a solid stroke and a pure roll of the golf ball.
Cure Wrist Hinge
One of the biggest faults with an amateur's putting is that they allow the left wrist to hinge or collapse towards the target through impact. This causes the clubface to close and you will pull the ball left, which is very common on short must make putts.
To help cure your wrists breaking, splint your forearm and wrist with a 6 inch ruler and rubber bands. Practice putting from various distances without bending the ruler. You will ingrain a firm wrist feeling and make more of those must make putts.
Plumb-bobbing
If you are struggling to determine the way a putt is going to break, use this method.
Stand perpendicular to the horizon holding your putter at arms length with your thumb and forefinger at the top of the grip to ensure the putter hangs vertically.
Cover the ball with the lower part of the shaft and close your dominant eye.
If the shaft now appears to also cover the hole, the puttis straight. If the shaft appears to the left the break is left to right and if the shaft is to the right, break is reight to left.
(Dominant eye test)
1. Take a toilet-paper tube and fix it over the ball so that both eyes can see it in the center of the tube.
2. Close your left eye. If the ball remains in the center of the tube, you're right-eye dominant. If the ball jumps out of the tube and out of your line of sight, you're left-eye dominant.
I hope that you find these tips on how to putt better useful and you have success with them both on the practice putting green and on the course. Remember that putts account for a high percentage of your score and lowering your putts per round will improve you score without hitting the ball any better.