Putting Woes!

[Hank Hill]

Any good putting advice from the putting gurus out there?

I'm putting like a dog at the moment (40+ putts per round). Missing long, short, left, right. I have no feel what-so-ever on the green now. Before I was not too bad and would often play a whole round without 3 putting.

I have improved my game from tee to green but i'm still getting the same scores because of my atrocious putting (and occasional duffs).

Any tips?

[4jag]

I'm anything but a guru but having gone through some bad putting stretches I feel your pain.

For me the key is change. Etiher switch putters or putting style. I went to the claw grip 2 years ago and it go me back on track. When it started to go sour this year, I switched back to a conventional stroke but with a new 2-ball putter and immediately started putting better.

I think it is purely mental but when you make a major change it takes the pressure off and lowers expectations which allows you to perform.

[EDSGOLF]

Obvious answer, but practice, practice, practice and more practice. Switch putters like 4 jag said.

[Hank Hill]

Obvious answer, but practice, practice, practice and more practice. Switch putters like 4 jag said.

Could my ball choice also be a factor? I seem to recall that my putting woes started when I switched from a pinnacle gold to a dunlop loco bite.

Look at me blaming the ball now, when it's probably my stroke that is a fault

[lgrankin]

I started the season putting extremely well. I had spent the winter working on a "claw-style" grip and for a while it seemed like I couldn't miss. Half way through the summer I completely lost my feel and started 3 putting way too much... I had stopped practicing as well... a coincidence?

I took to the practice green and started putting with only my left hand on the grip (I'm right handed). I went back to my conventional grip and am rolling the rock better than ever. You have to find a comfort zone, stick with it and continue to practice. Only make a change if it gets really bad.

LR

PS: Did I mention that I have about 7 putters in my basement...

[mberube]

Buy my putting track and practice 10 min a day all winter and you will be a putting god next year.

http://forum.ottawagolf.com/showthread.php?t=5901

[Andru]

SHAMELESS PLUG mberude

[Kilroy]

Shameless indeed, but timely.

I'd recommend reading Dave Peltz's putting bible. My putting is much improved. It is amazing what you think you know and what Dave's research proves.

[NoBack]

IMO, the only thing I would add is, keep your head still.
Think of a 4-5 ft putt. Try keeping your head down until you hear it fall in the cup. Practice on the puting green before your round for 10-15 minutes. Aftre making a few short putts, move further from the hole and do the same thing, keeping your head down for the first 4-5 feet before moving it . I beleive this will help you follow through on the line you picked. Rge feel will come.

Otherwise buy the contraption mberube is selling.

[mberube]

SHAMELESS PLUG mberude

Not bad a!!!

[BC MIST]

Reality: Most short putts are missed because the golfer moves the upper body in an attempt to see if the ball goes in the hole. As SK says, keep the head still, AND, wait until the putter has stopped moving, before looking up.

What you are thinking about while you actually stroke the putt has an effect on where the ball goes. If your mind is on mechanics, you will not putt consistenly well. If your mind is on the importance of the putt, them missing is virtualy guaranteed. If your mind is on "target," then this is future or results orientated, anxiety is heightened, and less than ideal results occur.

On the putting green, try repeating some non-golf related saying, "Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers," for example, while you actually make the stroke. If no-one is around, say this out loud, otherwise they will think you are looney. By doing this you are allowing your subconscious(automatic) mind to stroke the putt for you instead of your conscious (manual) mind. Sounds bizarre and there is a logic too lengthy to explain here, but you will be a better putter/player, if you think this way. One thing that is guaranteed, your subconscious is a much better player than you are.
Let it control your swing.

Giving up conscious control can be intimidating, however, better results will occur. Can you name many sports where you think about how you are physically moving, while you move? Right. So why do we do it while putting, or playing the rest of the shots?

[mberube]

Reality: Most short putts are missed because the golfer moves the upper body in an attempt to see if the ball goes in the hole. As SK says, keep the head still, AND, wait until the putter has stopped moving, before looking up.

What you are thinking about while you actually stroke the putt has an effect on where the ball goes. If your mind is on mechanics, you will not putt consistenly well. If your mind is on the importance of the putt, them missing is virtualy guaranteed. If your mind is on "target," then this is future or results orientated, anxiety is heightened, and less than ideal results occur.

On the putting green, try repeating some non-golf related saying, "Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers," for example, while you actually make the stroke. If no-one is around, say this out loud, otherwise they will think you are looney. By doing this you are allowing your subconscious(automatic) mind to stroke the putt for you instead of your conscious (manual) mind. Sounds bizarre and there is a logic too lengthy to explain here, but you will be a better putter/player, if you think this way. One thing that is guaranteed, your subconscious is a much better player than you are.
Let it control your swing.

Giving up conscious control can be intimidating, however, better results will occur. Can you name many sports where you think about how you are physically moving, while you move? Right. So why do we do it while putting, or playing the rest of the shots?

Very interesting. I’ll try that!

I putt well when I think of (what do I need to get there). During my two practice strokes looking at the hole I say to myself “What do I need to get there” feeling the speed of my practice stroke. It takes my mind of mechanics.

I’ll start reciting, “how much wood can a woodchuck chuck….” when stroking the ball.

Mike

[Kilroy]

I'd guess that a rhyme with a slower tempo might be better.
"How much wood can a woodchuck chuck"... bam... off the back of the green!

Three things I have found really help.

1. Short putts never go in. Get it to the hole.
2. Distance is far more important than line. If you have the right distance and miss-read the line you have a putt of not more than 2 feet with a really bad read. If your line is good and you blow it by, you could face much longer putt than that coming back.
3. If you are unsure how hard to hit it take one practice swing you know is too hard, and one you know is too soft. Suddenly you have a feel for how hard it should be hit. It really works far better than it soulds like it would.

[mberube]

I'd guess that a rhyme with a slower tempo might be better.
"How much wood can a woodchuck chuck"... bam... off the back of the green!

"Howwwwww muchhhhh wooooood cannnnn a wooooooodchuck chuck"

[Hank Hill]

Thanks for all the suggestions fellas!

It's definately a confidence thing and when the confidence is low, one tends to look up too quick or try and steer the ball.

Also I think I was too set on fixing my full swing that the putting has been neglected.

Cheers

Hank

mberube: your putting track looks nice but alas I am broke at the moment.

[BC MIST]

For those who have read either of Pelz putting books, you may remember that hitting the ball on the centre of the clubface is more important that club head path and face angle.

If you have any impact tape, or something that will leave a mark on the face after contact is made, see where the ball is making contact. If off-centre, work on solid contact first.

Another mechanical thing that I work on is hitting through the ball. Frankly, most golfers that I see, hit AT the ball versus THROUGH the ball. The right hand takes over and the right wrist bends forward and a tap stroke is made. Most of the time, the putt is pulled, this way. Trying to get the feeling that the hands are always kept ahead of the ball, particularly at impact, will get you on the right track(along with Mike's putting track)

Another thing that I just did was to video my putterhead as it moved through the stroke. I drew a line on the carpet in my workshop and placed the camera directly over the line, but about 5 feet towards the target, and then again, directly over the line and the ball position at address. The slow motion replays become very revealing. The camera never lies.

[BC MIST]

Three things I have found really help.
Short putts never go in. Get it to the hole.
Distance is far more important than line. If you have the right distance and miss-read the line you have a putt of not more than 2 feet with a really bad read. If your line is good and you blow it by, you could face much longer putt than that coming back.
If you are unsure how hard to hit it take one practice swing you know is too hard, and one you know is too soft. Suddenly you have a feel for how hard it should be hit. It really works far better than it soulds like it would.

Pelz determined that to maximize the making of a putt that its weight should be strong enough for the ball to go 17" past the hole, if the hole were not there. Many putts are missed by foot prints around the hole(Lumpy donut syndrome), so firm putts increase the odds of the putt being made, inspite of the fact that we have all had putts with dead weight go in from the side of the hole. They are the exception.

Learning to hit the putt too far(17" past the hole) is done in practice, along with working on the line, your stroke, etc.. I still say that when you are actually playing on the course that you weigh all the relevant factors as part of your pre-shot or manual routine, however, when you set up and stroke the putt, your conscious thoughts should not be on any of these factors. A mind clear of mechanics and results(automatic) will help one become a better putter.

[Thom Panikorn]

Hey Guys,

I am not a putting guru by any measure but i have lowered my putting average from 36+ per round to around 30. Yes, I read Dave Pelz's book and more. I changes a few things after reading Pelz's book..(1) putting left hand low..to take the power away from the right hand...(2) take more break when I putt..(3) hit it past the hole by 17". But here is the break through for me. I used to three putts all the time ( I remember playing in a friendly tournament and I shot 84 with 44 putts!).. I didn't know how hard to hit the putt. Pelz talks about 6', 12', 20'...etc.. We don't have time to measure how long the putt is when we play. If you play other sports you would agree with me on this. When you throw a football, or kick a soccer ball, to your team mate...you don't have time to measure how far..(yard, feet..) you just throw/kick and it ends up very close most of the time. After realizing that one day I went out to a putting green, make sure it's flat green, and I praticed putting to different holes whithout thinking how far they were..let your instinct figure them out. That's feel in golf..knowing how hard to hit the putt to get it there. The other part of putting is "touch" knowing what the putt will do, knowing the green, the break, the grain, the wind etc. The " feel" comes from practice but the "touch" comes from experience. If you play on fast green all the time, you will have a hard time on slow green and vice versa because your "feel" is srewed but after a few holes your "touch" would tell you to change the target when you putt.
The other point I picked up from Pelz's book is "accelerate" through impact for pitching, chipping and putting. One way ot garuntee that is to, for putting, keep the weight in the front foot (60%) and put the ball on your front heel. It will seem like your back stroke is shorter than your follow through but from the middle of your set up it is the same back and through.
As you may see, I am quite a mechanic person...i have to be convinced by "how" and "why" things work the way they do, thay's why I pay so much attention to picking the line of putt, the way I hold the putter, the pressure on my grip, the stance, the weight distribution, etc..One thing I don't do though is taking a practice stroke. I would go through all the elements mentioned earlier and then step up and pull the trigger. For me the practice stroke would just screw up my feel for the actual putt. If the set up is right, it should come out the way you expect it!
One lastthing, pay special attention to the best putter in your regular foursome and learn from them, that's how I learn most of my golf game. And if you are serious about improving your putting, your putter has to match your body type as well as your putting style, that is the first requirement. There are so many styles of puttting, pick one and stick with it. It takes a lot of time to create "feel",if you keep changing your putting style you won't have the feel.

That's it, I am out. Good luck!

TP

[skull]

What works best for me is to have a really sound routine and stick to it. (especially under pressure.) i go through my read and all that, but then i step up to the ball, look at the hole, line up my putter, set my feet, look at the hole one more time, look at the ball, then fire ! whole thing takes about 8 seconds every single time. It doesn't give you time to think, but it's not rushed either.

Hope it helps.

[Sakuraba]

This is very interesting. I'm definately looking for that pelz book this off season. I find putting very frustrating and have for a long time. I played in June this year, hit 15 gir and shot 81. I find that when I stand over a putt, I make a practice stroke, and my putter NEVER seems to go back and forth on the same line. I pull a lot of putts, and have more 3 (and !yikes!) 4 putts than anyone I play with. I used to laugh about it but it is really holding me back and angering me lately. This hitting through the ball, and letting go of all the mechanical talk is interesting.
The way I've been putting, it won't be "peter piper" or "how much wood" it will have to be "calm blue ocean, calm blue ocean" or "Serenity now!"

[skull]

Pelz also advocates practicing with a metronome to develop a repeatable stroke. You can get a cheap one at your local music store, or search online for a free one for your computer.

[faldo]

The way I've been putting, it won't be "peter piper" or "how much wood" it will have to be "calm blue ocean, calm blue ocean" or "Serenity now!"

$$$$$$$$$

I think "Serenity now" is intended to be said at the top of your voice?? Make sure you look around at all the nearby golfers before using it

Do you want a peice of me?? I could drop you loke a bag of dirt!!!

Wahh, I miss those guys :cryin

[Sakuraba]

I take a nice dose of "Curb Your Enthusiasm" to get my fix, in fact I think I like C.Y.E. better than Sienfeld.

Larry is devoted to golf too...

I saw that Pelz book on the weekend, but it was $50 and only available in hardcover. I guess I'll get it for Christmas. I'm definately thinking of changing putters now too. But I think I've taken putting too lightly these past few years. I'm going to devote the majority of my practice time to putting from now on.

[Hank Hill]

Lots of great suggestions there guys, Cheers.

I guess I should get off my butt, tidy the basement, and practice, practice, practice, over the winter!

[Agent99]

If poetry or music doesn’t readily come to mind as you play, I highly recommend turning your attention to counting. Count to yourself, ‘one, two, three... one, two, three... one, two, three…’ and breathe nice & easy. Not only does this give us calm (blue ocean) thoughts, recent studies show this tempo regulates our breathing and synchronizes both our heart and blood pressure rates.

It also happens to be the same tempo when we recite certain poetry (for ex: Greek epic poems in the hexameter format… so I hear), and when we administer life-saving CPR… or chant "BC Mist" (congratulations on a great year, BTW).

Could we put/putt ourselves “in the zone” as easy as one, two, three? I don’t know. You tell me.

Take it easy,
99

[Hank Hill]

Only 1 3-putt this weekend guys. Finished with 35 putts total. Only shoddy approach play spoiled my chances of beating my personal best.

I just lined up the putt and kept my head still while focussing on making a good stroke and only looking up when I heard the ball fall into the cup (on short putts) or after it was a good 6 feet away (on longer putts). My playing partners remarked on how aggressively I was putting and I dont think I missed anything inside 6 feet (which is good for me).