Five Tips for Better Putting

Five Tips for Better Putting

Every golfer, from the most experienced pro, to beginners, could benefit from becoming a more accurate, more consistent putter. Taking time to focus on putting can take strokes off your score very quickly.

1. Develop a technique you are comfortable with
 
The first thing someone who wants to improve their putting needs to do, is determine what putting technique fits them best. No putting technique is going to suit every golfer. Putting techniques vary as widely as the golfers who are trying to perfect them. The technique that suits any particular golfer will depend on their body type, height, size, natural stance and stroke, as well as the force with which they are comfortable striking the ball. The key here is to find the technique that is perfect for you.
 
The only way to do that is to experiment with several different techniques. This may mean experimenting with a belly putter as opposed to a traditional putter. Or, feeling out the difference between a closed stance as opposed to a more open one. This does not mean hitting a couple of putts each way and seeing which ones go in.
 
This means spending significant time trying each technique and seeing which one, over an entire practice session, yields the best results for you. Once you have determined which technique seems to fit you best, focus only on that technique and work towards perfecting it.
 
2. Refine your mental approach

Perhaps the most important aspect of becoming a consistent putter, after technique, is working on your mental approach to putting. Putting may be the most mentally stressful part of the game of golf. It seems odd that the shortest shots can be the most mentally challenging, but it is true. When you are facing a short putt that everyone expects you to make easily, this is especially true.
 
One technique you can work on to minimize the mental stress of putting is to practice your putting in a noisy environment. Force yourself to focus on the putt and nothing else. Also, visualize every single putt hitting the bottom of the cup. Before you take any putt, you should see it going in in your mind.

3.  Practice putting drills as often as you can
 
Practice drills are obviously a key successful putting. There are literally hundreds of drills you can do to polish your putting skills. The key is to find a couple that work well for you and practice them until they become second nature.
 
4. Practice reading your putts on the greens

Reading greens may be the most challenging part of successful putting. Again, the best advice for a golfer wanting to improve their putting is to hit hundreds of putts. Work on putting uphill, downhill, left breaks and right breaks. Read the putt, see where it should go in your mind, and if it does not follow the line you envisioned, reset the ball, re-read the green and hit it again. The only way to get to the point where you can truly trust your reads, is by looking at a putt that you have hid hundreds of times in practice. 
 
5. Structure your practice drills to cover different types of putts

In short, the best advice for someone who is focused on becoming a better putter is practice, practice, practice. However, you must practice with a purpose. Do not just walk on to the putting green, drop some balls and begin putting them in. Approach each practice session with a specific goal in mind. One session may focus on mental toughness and putting through distractions, while the next session may focus on reading greens. If you are serious about improving your putting, you must be willing to put in the practice time.

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