Tips for Putting -- Golf Tip Page 2

by Steve Fontaine
Valley Golf
Saginaw, MI
copyright 2003
All rights reserved
FREE Full Printable Version of "The Best in Golf" Golf Tips

Developing golfing skills through training: Tips for Putting

Putting, the game within a game

Putting is different, in that, you need three main skills. First, you must have the ability to putt a ball down a straight line. Imitate the strokes of several good putters until you find one you like. Putt balls down a straight line regularly, even after you have the ability to keep the ball on the line stroke after stroke. If you can't putt a ball down the line, you will never become a good putter. Occasionally, you should putt to a target without a line. The next skill is distance.

While you are putting balls down the line, you should also be working on distance. To start, 15 feet is a good distance. Figure out what would be the equivalent of 15 feet on a real green and putt to that distance. A stimp meter is the preferred method to determine this. Once you have a reliable 15-foot stroke, you can use your sense of half and double to cover a broad range of distances accurately. If you waste a lot of time putting 5 feet and then have a 30 foot putt, the 30 footer is 6 times the 5 footer you've been practicing. Double of something is easy. Six times something is difficult for the best of us. You can add to your skill by finding a green with about a 4 degree slope and putting 15 feet uphill and 15 feet downhill. This will expand your control over distance.

Short putts play tricks on many golfer's eyes. You can prepare for this by drawing a hole at 3 feet and 6 feet on your line. You will then see an accurate image of the ball rolling thru the center of the cup every time you stroke your 15-foot putt.

Hit the breaks.

The final skill for putting is the 12 basic breaks. The difficult part to achieving this skill is in finding a place to develop it. If you can find a green that's flat with about a 4 degree slope, place a tee in the center of the flat area. Place tees around this tee at locations corresponding to the numbers on a clock, each tee approximately 15 feet from the center tee. Place a ball between the 6 O'clock tee and the center tee and putt straight uphill to the center tee.

Then move to the 5 or 7 and continue to putt your way around the clock. At each number, putt until you have learned the break for that putt. After a few sessions, these breaks will become memory. In real play, you can determine which number on the clock your closest too. Then look to see if the slope and speed are more or less than the green you practiced on. Adjust your line accordingly. This way, you are always working from something you know for sure. There is no rule in golf that says you have to guess.

 

Tips for Chipping - Page 1	Tips for Putting- Page 2	Golf Swing Impact Drill Training- Page 3
Golf Swing Turn Training - Page 4	Swing Turning Drill- Page 5	Smooth Golf Swing- Page 6
Back Swing Set Position Drill- Page 7	Golf Club Grip-Page 8	Final Golf Training Tips- Page 9

Left-handed version of "The Best in Golf" -- Golf tips for training