Simple Putting Question

[TheDiablo]

I'm hoping that for such a simple question, someone will be able to help with a simple answer/drill!

Firstly, I'm new to golf - still less than 10 rounds of a full 18 hole course.

Whilst my putting is improving, both in terms of the quality of roll and distance of putt, I still miss far too many putts between 2 and 8 foot. At least 80% of time it's right edge. I'm confident this has more to do with stroke then it does my aim/read. It's the execution of the putt that is hurting me.

What simple things can I work on in drills, and then how can I transfer this to to the course? I'm hoping to start getting in some quality time on the practice greens as daylight hours extend, so I want to ensure I'm working on good habits from the start rather than ingraining a potentially damaging flaw to my stroke.

Thanks in advance.

 

[bobmac]

It may be your grip isn't quite right. Try turning your hands clockwise a fraction and see if that helps.

 

[Foxholer]

Whilst Bob is meaning the grip of your hands, it's also important to ensure that the putter's grip is not affecting you either - at least if it's one with a flat section. Make sure that the flat bit is actually at a right angle to the putter face.

It might be worthwhile using a line on the ball to help you line up your putter too, at least for a while. I eventually found that a little distracting, but it certainly made me line up the line on the ball with the one on the putter. A Pro should be able to spot what you are doing wrong very quickly though. There are quite a few possibilities!

 

[the_coach]

could be a bunch of things to do with set up. may well be an easy hold on the handle fix as already mentioned.
often times it can be to do with the shoulder line.

common for folks to have their shoulders aligned so they're pointing more towards the hole, or at least the left edge - as good chest/shoulder parallel left alignment can often times lead to folks feeling they are too 'open' in their chest/shoulder alignment when they are 'square' to the line, so they close them a tad.
stroke can then still be a decent one but because of the shoulder line the path is slightly from inside to out.
path only has to be out a real small amount, face angle square to path & the putt will always start a little ways to the right of the correct line, might get away with it on a 2' putt, but as the putt lengthens 3',4' ball will start out towards the right lip, 5',6' & more can miss the right edge completely.

could be the ball position, quarter, half a ball back too much, contact then too soon in the forward stroke so putt can get pushed right.

common too even though the golfer thinks they are stock still through the stroke, is to come up & out of the putt little ways just before contact, path then goes little ways to the right so does the ball.
best check (after professional help) get a holder for the smart cell & take face on & dtl vids of your set up & stroke. you'll then see whether you move some before contact, or at or after.

sometimes if you are an 'arc' putter that you're simply holding off the face through impact so ball starts right. the hold off can happen by slowing down or stopping the left shoulders movement through the stroke. so the putter head can't release naturally.
often times this brought about simply by thinking the blade should be still square to the hole for the whole of the follow through after the strike.

if an arc stroke, the putter head goes back on a slight arc so would look a little open to the line in the takeback, then blade returns to square at contact (providing all the golfer moves are the shoulders & the arm triangle) but then the face angle doesn't continue on square in the direction of the hole, but returns again slightly inside on the arc - so few inches after contact the blade will appear closed to the line. - something TW had help from Stricker about some time past.

best practice aid is a putting mirror, alignment sticks, & some tees. 'eyeline' mirror is a good one the version with the 'channel' in the middle to place the ball in. (around $35 - $40 here)

with the mirror you can check where the eyes are, as well as the shoulder line. putter face alignment etc.

best practice drill would say would be to find a straight flat 4'/5' putt.
place one tee in the ground back of the hole center, place an alignment rod tip center of front of hole back aimed at tee.
take second alignment rod put down exactly parallel left of the first on your foot line couple inches off the toes - you then can use this to check your shoulder line.

ball at the end of the rod then place putter head back of ball exactly square to alignment rod on the direct putting line.
then put one tee in ground off the toe, one tee off the heel which leaves you 'just' enough room for the putter head to swing through.
take first alignment rod away.

set up now with the back of the ball at equator just on the line of the cups of the tees. then set up & make stroke - if the path is off for any reason given your common miss right you'll hit the inside tee. if you get a mirror you can do the drill the same as there's holes already in it for the tees either side of the putter head.

 

[HomerJSimpson]

Boring answer but get a putting lesson. A pro will check your set up and grip and how you swing and I bet within ten minues will have you making a bunch of those 2-6 footers. Cheap and effective fix that will help you going forward

 

[Marc Cools]

General for golf, a good technique will give you more constance in results, lots of practice makes that sharp. So make sure your technique is good and the pro will help you with that.

The putting drills I do are :
"cirkel' : I play from the north, south, east and west from the hole a ball to the cup. First at 1 step (about 70 cm), then 4 more from 2 steps, 3 steps and 4 steps. That's my scoring putts. I have a little notebook and write the number of putts made down.
"Pull back" : I play on the practice green from flag to flag. For the next stroke, I first pull the ball about a step (70cm) away from the hole. I repeat until the ball is holed. The first time I did this drill I had like 6-puts. So don't worry about that. I write down how much holes I can 1 or 2 put.

This I like : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5xhyKr_l4W8&list=PL7E3CE6B9C86A4941

 

[TheDiablo]

Thanks guys, some great advice. I'm going to be getting sort game lessons when the daylight extends so I can take them after work. In the meantime, will get working on some of the drills you've mentioned. Thanks again!

 

[FairwayDodger]

Don't over think it - most important thing is to get the putter face square at impact. Concentrate on that in practice for a while - how you get it there isn't as vital.

For taking it on the course you need to build some pressure in practice so try drills where you have to, say, hole all putts from a number of locations around the hole and start again if you miss one or hole a set number of putts in a row before you can move on.

 

[bigslice]

buy one of them putting machines that return the ball, practise in house from those distances. it will help