Puuting - Distance over accuracy

[kinhell]

I read recently some comments from Annika Sorenstam who said that amateurs always make the mistake of putting accuracy before distance control when putting. She said that distance control should come first as going 10 foot past the flag is going to cost you a hell of a lot more than being pin high with a short put.
There's me trying to get it into the hole every time ! Doh !!

 

[G1BB0]

shouldnt we be doing both though

 

[kinhell]

I'd say yes. What I think she was trying to say was get the weight of the putt right first and don't just concentrate on accuracy.

 

[bladeplayer]

I read recently some comments from Annika Sorenstam who said that amateurs always make the mistake of putting accuracy before distance control when putting. She said that distance control should come first as going 10 foot past the flag is going to cost you a hell of a lot more than being pin high with a short put.
There's me trying to get it into the hole every time ! Doh !!

i do agree that distance control is good as it would or should do away with 3 putting, but one is no good without the other, an inaccurate putt will never go in where as a fast putt on line might hit the hole & go in .. its geting the happy medium to give it a chance but leave the return makeable aswell is the trick

 

[G1BB0]

yeah, you can have the line right but if the distance control is wrong (especially with slopes) then it wont be on line either due to lack of or too much pace

 

[RGDave]

I agree. If you can always get the distance right, unless you are playing on silly sloping greens, you can waive goodbye to 3 putts.

On my course, on long putts, I just line the ball up and try to get the pace right. If I get the distance correct, the worst I'll be is 1-2 foot right or left...oooh, scary...not.

 

[HawkeyeMS]

I make her right, ask yourself this...

How many times do you three putt because you missed the hole by 4-5 ft right or left?

How many times do you 3 putt because you hit it 4-5 ft long or short?

If you could always get the pace right but you were only allowed to look at your putt when you address the ball and weren't allowed to crouch behind it, walk round it and look from the other side of the hole I guarantee most amateurs would have fewer putts - I know I would. You simply do not misread slope that badly even if you can only look from one angle.

 

[SatchFan]

From personal experience I totally agree. Up until the last week or so most putts I was hitting from over 30 feet were upwards of 10 feet short or too long. It really was that bad. I guess if your course has very undulating greens then the balance might be towards accuracy but given that the greens on my course are all very gently sloped if my distance control is bang on then all I would need to do is aim directly at the hole and I would probably never be more than 4 feet away.

 

[Fyldewhite]

Absolutely agree. Distance control is the fundamental skill in putting.

Unless you have a dead straight putt then if you get the speed wrong for the line you pick then no matter how well you strike it down that line it won't go in. You will hit it "through the break" or leave it needing a "bit more pace", phrases you hear time and time again on the course.
It therefore follows that until you can get the distance control right you will hole very few longer putts and those that you do are probably just lucky combinations of wrong line and wrong pace. You will also 3 putt quite often.

 

[HomerJSimpson]

Distance control is something I try and work on. I have a target circle http://www.gamolagolf.co.uk/acatalog/Eyeline_Golf_Target_Circle.html and from 20-30 feet I'm trying to get it as close to the yellow circle as I can. I tend to use the bigger circle for chipping from a similar distance.

I tend to be able to read the lines pretty well and so it is getting it to the hole and not too far beyond that is the issue. I find working on this and then really working on holing the 3 footers makes a huge difference to my overall putting

 

[Region3]

This will probably sound like mumbo jumbo to a lot of people, but I've started reading the putt from the side to see the uphill/downhill changes as well as the break from behind the ball.

I don't do anything with the information, just say in my head something like "It's uphill for the first half then flattens out".

The way I see it, that gives my brain the information then I don't worry about it any more, just let my brain figure out how far to swing the putter.

It sounds weird but try it. My distance control has been much better since I started doing it.

 

[palindromicbob]

Not a bad bit of advice. I used to always leave myself with a lot of work to do on a long putt due to my distance control being off. I worried a lot about my direction but didn't put nearly as much thought into my distance. I was usually left with a 4-5 footer on any putt outside 15ft. Then I started to work more on distance control. Usually aiming for a 2 foot semi circle on the far side of the hole. I started on an average of 2.8 putts per hole and got that down to 1.75. Hopefully now I've improved my distance control my green reading can now catch up and get me down on putting average.

 

[Swinger]

I agree with her comment.

I'm much happier to see a 30 footer hole high 3 foot away as opposed to brushing the hole then roll on 6 foot.

Unless the putt has a extraordinary amount of break, long putts should always be more about pace than line. In the instances of extreme break then both are generally equally important.

She used to be a good golfer you know!!