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Putter practice drills

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Quetico

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Can anyone recommend good putter practice drills for a new player? I have a quality putter, and I recently got it fitted at Golf Galaxy, so I can't blame the stick.

I go to the practice green and putt around, but it doesn't seem to be translating to my game. I'm still three-putting way too many holes to post a decent score. It's so frustrating as a new player to reach a green in 2-3 shots, and then 3 putt every single time. :angry:
 
1. Put an alignment stick down aiming at your target hole. place your ball on the far side of it and set up like you would putt to the hole that the stick is aiming at. This encourages A.) better natural alignment over time and B.) it shows you whether you are leaving your putter face open or shut at impact (you can tell based on the stick and the angle of the putter face.)

2. To work on longer putts (getting them close to not 3 putt) place a towel 18-24 inches behind your target hole. Then, simply putt. The goal here is to simply get speed right. You want to leave all your putts inside the hole and the towel (leaving short is ok too, just not too short). Speed drill there.

3. To see if you are standing in the right spot, stand over your ball as you would normally address it and then take another ball and roll it off the bridge of your nose and allow it to fall to the ground. The ball should land (if you are in the correct position over the ball) directly on top of the ball that is being addressed. If it lands inside the ball, then you should move closer to the ball, if outside the ball, then move away. Let me know if these help at all. Good luck with the putting!

BulldogsGolf :nike:
 
I should also ask, what putter do you have?
 
New putter...hmmm....I would work on your speed and distance control. Work on 3,5 & 10ft putts. A good drill is to lay a club down 18" behind your intended hole. Each missed putt should finish past the hole but short of the club behind the hole. Some say a good putt finishes 18" behind the hole.



Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
BulldogsGolf said:
I should also ask, what putter do you have?
Click to expand...

I have an Odyssey White Hot XG #7. I've had it for about a year since I first picked up the game, but I only got it fitted about 4 weeks ago. The fitting definitely helped.

I will use the distance drill that you guys mentioned. The thought of finishing 18" behind the hole is good too - I need better first putts so that my second shots aren't so long. If anything, I tend to leave the first putt way too short.

Thanks for the comments!
 
BulldogsGolf said:
1. Put an alignment stick down aiming at your target hole. place your ball on the far side of it and set up like you would putt to the hole that the stick is aiming at. This encourages A.) better natural alignment over time and B.) it shows you whether you are leaving your putter face open or shut at impact (you can tell based on the stick and the angle of the putter face.)

2. To work on longer putts (getting them close to not 3 putt) place a towel 18-24 inches behind your target hole. Then, simply putt. The goal here is to simply get speed right. You want to leave all your putts inside the hole and the towel (leaving short is ok too, just not too short). Speed drill there.

3. To see if you are standing in the right spot, stand over your ball as you would normally address it and then take another ball and roll it off the bridge of your nose and allow it to fall to the ground. The ball should land (if you are in the correct position over the ball) directly on top of the ball that is being addressed. If it lands inside the ball, then you should move closer to the ball, if outside the ball, then move away. Let me know if these help at all. Good luck with the putting!

BulldogsGolf :nike:
Click to expand...

These are three great drills. Another is place your putter in the hole and put a tee where the butt ends up. Go from that spot length of the putter four more times. Place a towel or club behind the hole. Go from each tee and the ball must go in or between the hole and the towel, if not you have to start from the first tee again. Hope you understand this. If not let me know.


Tapatalk... Loved by me hated by the wife.
 
Quetico said:
I have an Odyssey White Hot XG #7. I've had it for about a year since I first picked up the game, but I only got it fitted about 4 weeks ago. The fitting definitely helped.

I will use the distance drill that you guys mentioned. The thought of finishing 18" behind the hole is good too - I need better first putts so that my second shots aren't so long. If anything, I tend to leave the first putt way too short.

Thanks for the comments!
Click to expand...

Good putter. That insert is very soft, and I hope my drills that I suggested help you. Good Luck Quetico!
 
BulldogsGolf said:
1. Put an alignment stick down aiming at your target hole. place your ball on the far side of it and set up like you would putt to the hole that the stick is aiming at. This encourages A.) better natural alignment over time and B.) it shows you whether you are leaving your putter face open or shut at impact (you can tell based on the stick and the angle of the putter face.)

2. To work on longer putts (getting them close to not 3 putt) place a towel 18-24 inches behind your target hole. Then, simply putt. The goal here is to simply get speed right. You want to leave all your putts inside the hole and the towel (leaving short is ok too, just not too short). Speed drill there.

3. To see if you are standing in the right spot, stand over your ball as you would normally address it and then take another ball and roll it off the bridge of your nose and allow it to fall to the ground. The ball should land (if you are in the correct position over the ball) directly on top of the ball that is being addressed. If it lands inside the ball, then you should move closer to the ball, if outside the ball, then move away. Let me know if these help at all. Good luck with the putting!

BulldogsGolf :nike:
Click to expand...

Great suggestions. Glad your practicing something we should probably all spend more time practicing


Tap tap taparoo
 
Great suggestions so far, if you are three putting then speed is really a concern. I use a drill that I was taught years ago that is similar to those already mentioned, I start with three balls....I take the length of my putter grip and place a tee on the high and low side of the hole, then hit 3 10 footers trying to leave it in that circle...when I have done that 10 times in a row, I move the tees out to putter length and then hit 20 foot putts. I try to putt from several angles and slopes during this drill.

Another really good drill is to find yourself a pretty good right to left breaker( for right handers) then take your putter cover and close off the low side of the hole and then try to make all of you putts fall in the high side...the theory on this is when you miss on the low side you have more chance for the ball to "run out" leaving you a longer putt. Misses on the high side tend to die close to the hole for easy tap ins.
 
I personally like the Push Drill which is a drill in which you take your normal address position and WITHOUT TAKING ANY BACKSWING you push the ball towards the target. This teaches acceleration and extension and mimics the way the putter and your swing should feel after impact. In my opinion, deceleration is THE biggest problem in putting and this drill addresses that.

Here's a tip I live by to go with the drill: "If your backswing is longer than your followthrough, you're headed for trouble" (BTW, this is an old golf axiom and it applies to all of your clubs, not just your putter)
 
JWLI said:
I personally like the Push Drill which is a drill in which you take your normal address position and WITHOUT TAKING ANY BACKSWING you push the ball towards the target. This teaches acceleration and extension and mimics the way the putter and your swing should feel after impact. In my opinion, deceleration is THE biggest problem in putting and this drill addresses that.

Here's a tip I live by to go with the drill: "If your backswing is longer than your followthrough, you're headed for trouble" (BTW, this is an old golf axiom and it applies to all of your clubs, not just your putter)
Click to expand...

This is a great drill and one I practice quite a bit


Tap tap taparoo
 
Years back I decided to work on all aspects of putting and finding the correct putter... so I built a "perfectly level" 10 foot surface in the basement...so I could putt at any time for as long as I wanted...

When working on a set up and grip and getting to the point of hitting the line you choose I determined it was best to putt on a perfectly level surface to develop all the parts of the stroke....It worked....I now have worked out the grip...the stroke....the putter...so when I play I just go to the practice green to get a feel for distance...Jim
 
Maybe try the old "Phill" drill. Place a circle of balls around the hole at about 4 or 5 feet. Then just fire away one after the other. It will get you in a bit of a rythem, but mostly it builds confidence in making shorter putts. If you feel comfortable from 5 feet in, it will probably eleminate a lot of 3 putts.
 
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