Putting

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Chalky139

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Hello

I have been struggling for a long time with putting, especially the dreaded 6 footers. Whilst the rest of my game has improved, putting has not.

Can anyone recommend a good book/resource to read on the fundamentals of putting technique i.e. stance, grip, stroke etc. I have usually stayed clear of books as I find they all contradict one another but want to get back to the basics on putting because I cannot cope with ruining round after round with missed 6 footers!
 
In my experience, no book or video in the world can teach you to have an eye for a targeting line. That only ever comes through practice and experience. A book can't read the green for you either; only your eyes can do that.
 
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I have read David Pelz putting bible, it is very good with some useful ideas in the book. It is however very deep and in my opinion gives too much info but you can just take on board the bits you want to.

The best things I got were a boomerang putting ramp and a putting rail. These really helped my hit the ball consistently straight. In my opinion if you can be the best reader of putts in the world but if you cannot hit the ball straight it will not help much.

Reading of putts comes with experience. I find if you cannot see a break look at the cup that way you can see the high side / low side of the hole
 
Get yourself a putting rail and a V-Easy!

Key points for putting are:

Eyes over ball
Square through impact
Hit the middle of the face
Body still

A couple of putting lessons will always help, I think of myself as a good putter but I still use putting lessons to help me hole even more putts.

Even just working on hitting the middle of the face can make a huge difference, the solid roll will certainly help you hole more 6 footers as the ball will hold the line better. On those length shots I just worry about contact, I know the pace is not hard to judge as long as the ball comes off the middle with a square face. My record for holing 4 foot putts in a row is about 51 (IIRC)
 
One other thing worth thinking about, is your putter right for you?

If you have a straight through and back putting stroke you need a face balanced butter if you have an are you need a toe hang putter depending on how much of an arc depends how much toe hang you need.

Any descent pro will be able to help
 
Unless you are three putting 6 footers, maybe you need to readjust your expectations....

The current Traveller's PGA tour stop is showing around 25-30% for putts between 5 and 10 feet. And those guys are good...

I think from 6 foot they are barely over 50%.
 
Chalky139 said:
Hello

I have been struggling for a long time with putting, especially the dreaded 6 footers. Whilst the rest of my game has improved, putting has not.

Can anyone recommend a good book/resource to read on the fundamentals of putting technique i.e. stance, grip, stroke etc. I have usually stayed clear of books as I find they all contradict one another but want to get back to the basics on putting because I cannot cope with ruining round after round with missed 6 footers!
Click to expand...

Did you realise that PGA Pros only sink 50% of 6 footers (well 6'7")? And they are generally on perfect greens!

Seems like you are a candidate for having a Pro look at your technique, especially the setup! It's amazing how wrong something that feels 'comfortable' can be!

It's also worth noting how you miss the putts - right, left etc - and whether you are pushing/pulling etc them. If the Pro has a SAM Puttlab, then loads of stats (path, face angle, distance from sweet-spot etc) can also be provided that may help too!

@norfolkshaun...I don't think 'need' is the correct word to use - as there are too many who putt really well with 'the wrong sort' of putter. But there is definitely a tendency/likelihood for those styles of putting/putters to suit, so, indeed, worth checking out. Faced-balanced certainly suits my SBST-ish style. I flap Blades and Toe-Hang ones!
 
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Eyes over the ball? I didn't know that one. That would make my putter very toe bias. Ah crap looks like I need a putter fitting.
 
Get a putting mirror, one of the best training aids going. Been using mine this week and today it paid off as I only had 25 putts.
 
Thanks all for your advice.

Whilst I appreciate practice is the key to improvement, I guess that largely depends if you continually practice the wrong thing.

I have spent hours on the putting green and seen very little improvement. There must be something fundamentally wrong in my set up, stroke etc which if a pro was watching would probably spot immediately. Guess it's time to put my hand in my pocket and get some lessons....

When I had problems with my swing in the past it took changing something very comfortable into something which felt completely alien. I imagine the same will apply to my putting technique.

At present it feels very 'wristy' but by trying to take the wrists out of the stroke I find I tense up and grip the club too hard!
 
have you ever had a putting lesson, i got one at formby hall, it was excellent really got me thinking about all things putting also made me realise i had wrong style of putter for my swing, since i changed a few basic principles and moved to a mallet putter as recommended I'm 5 putts/shots better off per round :)
 
The 3 main problems in the putting stroke are
1. Lower body turning
2. Wrists flicking
3. Swing too long/short.

Do they ring any bells?
 
the v training aid is a good idea, however being a cheapo i just tape the ends of my alignment rods together does the same thing :)
 
@bobmac
1. Lower body ok.
2. Putter feels wobbly when coming back and going through.
3. Putting stroke always feels too long. Deliberately try and do what feels like a half back stroke but very often leaves putts short.

I think a lesson is required to set me on the right path.
 
My own putting is probably the strongest bit of my game and my approach is "don't over complicate it".

I think that feel is the real key, that and a degree of inherent ability to enable a player to assess line and length, something that I believe which cannot be really taught 100% I just can't imagine addressing any putt thinking about a load of technical stuff.

I put my own ability down to, when as a kid (10 year old), I would putt into a sunken baked bean tin in our lawn from 360 degrees. It ingrained my ability to be able to 'read' greens, breaks, pace and borrow.
 
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I get a lot of people are saying concentrate on your stroke, but I consider myself as a decent putter. Have always had blade style putters but I've just changed to a big old mallet style head. WHAT A DIFFERENCE! The head doesn't wander at all now and I now feel comfortable to stroke at the ball.
So I'd say firstly, find a putter that suits your stroke and eye. Then hit the practice putting green to engrain a good stroke.
 
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