Coming up waaay short on long putts?

[Beezerk]

Seems to be a common theme with me, specially in the winter where I come up woefully short if I'm at the far end of the green from the hole.
Can anyone suggest some decent drills for distance putts?

 

[CMAC]

Seems to be a common theme with me, specially in the winter where I come up woefully short if I'm at the far end of the green from the hole.
Can anyone suggest some decent drills for distance putts?

been there done that. Key was too long a backswing and decelerating through swing. Keep your tempo but shorten the backswing to ensure an accelerating through swing.

Sounds like you might be caught up in the 'smooth pendulum' swing thoughts and forgetting that in order to move the ball from A to B takes an actual hit :thup:

 

[bobmac]

On the other hand, your backswing could be too short.
Try making the backswing longer and keep a smooth tempo to the stroke. The ball will then travel further.

 

[Darren24]

Seems to be a common theme with me, specially in the winter where I come up woefully short if I'm at the far end of the green from the hole.
Can anyone suggest some decent drills for distance putts?

Oh am i in the same boat as you but i don't think i have ever got a long put correct as length terms summer or winter. I am now practicing at home a short backswing to promote the acceleration and it seams to be working on my putting mat

 

[Deleted Member 1156]

Take more club

 

[Deleted member 15344]

Hit it harder ?

 

[Darren24]

Thanks for the tips guys, knew i could count on you

 

[tsped83]

Hit it harder ?

You might have something there...

 

[HomerJSimpson]

It's tricky at this time of year on slow winter greens, especially if your course has relatively large putting surfaces. If you are facing these putts on a regular basis then perhaps you need to be looking at your club selection. I'd think about one more club, not only as the ball doesn't go so far in winter, but even if you don't hit it 100% it should still get you towards the middle section of the green.

If this isn't the issue, practice and developing feel for these long putts is the only real way. Accept that sometimes you will three putt from this range. I'm not a fan of the "dustbin lid" mentality as it sets you up to leave a tricky 3-6 footer at best. Hope you get it sorted though

 

[Beezerk]

Thanks for the replies, did the same again yesterday a couple of times, long birdie putts turned into 3 putt bogies!
To be honest it's not all the time maybe a couple of times a round max. The mother in law is up this weekend so I'll be off to the practice area for most of today :thup:

 

[Odvan]

Thanks for the replies, did the same again yesterday a couple of times, long birdie putts turned into 3 putt bogies!
To be honest it's not all the time maybe a couple of times a round max. The mother in law is up this weekend so I'll be off to the practice area for most of today :thup:

Handy that, having a mother-in-law that's also a putting coach....:smirk:

 

[the_coach]

Seems to be a common theme with me, specially in the winter where I come up woefully short if I'm at the far end of the green from the hole.
Can anyone suggest some decent drills for distance putts?

wondering first off where you check out the putt from to gauge the distance so pace needed?
how many practice strokes you make each time before putting the stroke on the ball?
when you make your practice strokes what are you looking at?

 

[Beezerk]

wondering first off where you check out the putt from to gauge the distance so pace needed?
how many practice strokes you make each time before putting the stroke on the ball?
when you make your practice strokes what are you looking at?

Just from behind the ball.
2 or 3 I reckon.
Area where ball would be in my stance.

 

[Piece]

Just from behind the ball.
2 or 3 I reckon.
Area where ball would be in my stance.

My answers would be:

Behind the ball
One and only one
The hole (or occasionally the breakpoint if its a snakey one...)

 

[the_coach]

Just from behind the ball.
2 or 3 I reckon.
Area where ball would be in my stance.

could be that there's a set up, hold on the handle in position or pressure, ball position, or technical issue with the stroke that's feeding into an issue with strike location on the putter, stroke path &/or tempo is a little ways too inconsistent putt to putt. you'd have to get that checked out.

but to get a feeling for distance good to walk on the low side of the putt to center distance between hole/ball, you can get a better handle on the distance. if you're putting from distance only looking from behind the ball at 30/35 feet & above easy to get a ways foreshortened idea of the distance.

although it often times get a bad press on the forum definitely better to have a good psr that repeats & takes the same amount of time each time. so whether it's one, two, three rehearsal swings folks have it's a ways better to always do the same thing.
doesn't have to be an untimely operation that slows the game down.

for long putts particularly good to have that rehearsal swing/s (with whatever that personal psr is) while looking at the hole. (tilting the head to look so posture isn't lost as it would be if the head upper body lifted to look) brain then can react to the image it's seeing so better react to distance. practice looking local only at the ground there's no input of distance in the rehearsal strokes.

'quiet eye' research has shown from the last look at the hole when over the ball prior to the actual stroke (tilting head not lifting up) that when the eyes return to back of ball, if you use that as the trigger for the stroke to start you get more consistent results, rather than returning the eyes & pausing for any length of time over the ball.

tempo hugely important good to practice with a count 0ne at the end of the backstroke to Two through the ball, keep the tempo the same whatever length & you'll keep a positive stroke through the ball.

on the greens you usually play set up a station with either a yard rule, or just some tees. put one tee say 4 inches back from your right little toe another tee 4 inches target side of left little toe, then hit some balls, arm triangle moved by the shoulders, left & right wrist maintaining angles. the putter on the backstroke moves to be level with the tee, but so the putter head on the through stroke passes the front tee marker (that way you get a positive strike through the ball) do this to your tempo count & you should find these balls will pretty much travel the same distance, whatever that distance is, you'll then have a handle on what distance on a level-ish putt this length of stroke gives, so you have something to work from.

for a drill take 3 balls give yourself say a 35' putt. do your distance read from low side center.
then make your rehearsal stroke/s looking at the hole.
stand to ball make first stroke but while still looking at the hole not the ball.
second putt make the stroke with your eyes closes trying to repeat the first feel if it was good for distance, or by adjusting distance feel if first putt was short or long.

then last ball make rehearsal looking at hole, then make stroke as you would if playing - preferably during the drill on this putt use the eyes coming back to ball to trigger the stroke.

also you can do the 'ladder putt drills' from 25/30/35/40' say two balls from each distance putt to a tee & putt an alignment rod or club at 90º to line of putt 18" behind the tee. each ball has to finish between the tee & the rod/club. do it often enough & you'll have less that are short or too long with too much pace that travel over the rod/club.