The Ominous 3 Foot Putt

photo credit: Kevitivity   When faced with a 3-foot putt do you look for imaginary slopes, hit it softly and try to “baby” your putt into the cup?  If you do, you are not alone.  The short putt can intimidate even the best putters.  Doug Sanders, lost the British Open by one shot by missing a 2 footer.  Ben Hogan missed a 3 foot putt to lose the 1946 U.S. National Open.

Unfortunately, there are no magic formulas, every golfer should develop a method to deactivate the nervousness that accompanies short putts.  Practice this exercise:  Place 4 balls, two feet from the cup, on each side of the hole.  If you miss one start all over until you make all 4 putts.  Do the same at 3, 4 and 5 feet.

Don’t be Long or Short

photo credit: TheTruthAbout…   Missing your putts left or right, is far less destructive to your score than missing putts by being too long or too short..  Every golfer, from amateur to professional,  has the same problem,  the majority of putts are missed because the ball is hit too long or it is left too short.  What this tells us is that “touch,” is the key to good putting.

Always work on your “feel” before beginning your round.  What follows is a good exercise:  pick a spot about 30 ft. away, where the green meets the fringe.  Putt the ball and try to get it to stop just as it reaches the fringe.  Don’t aim for a hole because this is not an exercise for accuracy it’s an exercise for feel.

Reading Putts

photo credit: ppival   To many players, reading a long breaking putt can sometimes be a daunting task.  Judging a putt’s break is more of an art than a science.  It takes more than just practice, it take intuition which is something you obviously cannot practice.

TIPS:  Always read a putt from the exact same distance behind the ball, in that way, your  perspective will always remain the same.  Walk along the entire length of the putt paying special attention to the last few feet.  Many times, subtle breaks will be seen that cannot be seen behind the ball.  Stick to your original line and don’t second guess yourself.  Watch the putt closely, especially if it runs past the hole.  It will give you a line on the break on the return putt.

Putting Pre-shot Routine

photo credit: danperry.com   Every golfer, amateur or Pro, needs a pre-shot putting routine.  There is one word that describes good putting, “consistency.”  A pre-shot routine develops good consistency.  Once you are ready to confront your putt you should begin the same pre-shot procedure

Tips:  A)  Line-up each putt from about six feet behind the ball and from the same height.  B)  Walk to the ball keeping your eye on the line of the putt.  C)  Take your stance and line up your putter to the side of the ball.  D)  Take two practice strokes (or one).  E)  Address the ball, take one final look and strike the ball. . .  Using a count of ”one” (back-stroke), “two” (forward-stroke) can be of great help in developing good tempo.

Keep Your Head Still

photo credit: Kelowna09   When putting, it is imperative to keep your eyes on the ball at all times.  Head movement of any kind, no matter how slight, is enough to through your putting stroke out of sync.  One of the best ways to help keep you eyes on the ball (to prevent head movement) is to place the ball on the green so that you can use the company logo on the ball as a target.  This will allow you to concentrate on one specific location, the logo. 

Another way to help you to keep your eye on the ball is to mark your ball in your own manner.  Most players do this by using a single straight heavy line.  Most use a magic marker for this purpose.  Keep you head still, eyes on the preferred ball mark and your putting will improve dramatically.

Belly Putting

photo credit: star5112   If you are having serious problems with your putting, perhaps using a belly putter may be the answer.  Most putting problems occur when the putting stroke becomes too wristy.  When the right hand rolls over the left, the face of the putter will slice across the ball.  The belly putter takes the wrists out of the putting stroke which eliminates the manipulation by the wrists.

With the belly putter, you can concentrate on using the arms and shoulders as one unit.  It also forces you to stay very still over the ball. 

When choosing a belly putter, it is critical that you get one that is the right length for you.  It should rest in your sternum and should be comfortable when addressing the ball.

“Avoid Three-Putts” by Jack Nicklaus

photo credit: ClatieK   Here’s a great tip from Jack Nicklaus:  “To avoid three-putting when you are faced with a long putt, pick a spot three feet short of the hole and putt aggressively to that spot.  You will rarely be short by more than three feet because you “charged” to that short target.  If you do hit the putt too hard it can roll five feet farther than your target and you’ll have only two feet coming back.”

Use any mark on the green’s surface for your target and aim for that spot. Being aggressive will be of no consequence, since you will either end up 3 feet short (if you land on your target), or you will be two feet long ( if you land 5 feet past your target).

Solid Putting

photo credit: ppival   Lee Trevino, one of the great players in the 1960′s and 70′s, stresses the use of the left arm in the following way:  “I feel that a firm-wrist-ed stroke, with my arms swinging like a pendulum, is  more consistent than a stroke that relies  largely on wrist action.  I try to swing the grip end of my putter back and forward so that my arms create the stroke.  I try to accelerate my left hand and arm forward on all strokes so that my right hand doesn’t take over and flip the putter-head upward or off line.”  Trevino was a great putter, proven by his outstanding record.

A simple exercise on the practice green:  Use your left hand only to stroke your putts.

Making a Solid Stroke

photo credit: Dru Bloomfield – At Home in Scottsdale   To make a solid putting stroke, rule number one is to keep your body and head perfectly still.  Looking up too soon, can kill solid ball contact.  Step No. 1 – Keep your head and body motionless until after the stroke is made.  Step No. 2 – Don’t allow your lead wrist to break down (the putter head never goes past the lead hand).  Step No. 3 – Swing the putter low on the backstroke (do not pick it up when starting back).  Step No. 4 – Keep your eyes directly over the target line.  Eyes inside or outside the target line cannot read the correct line.  (set up in the address position and drop a weighted string from your eye-line.  It should fall right over the ball).

Cross-Handed Putting

photo credit: eMaringolo   Padraig Harrington and Jim Furyk are two examples of PGA Pro’s that use the cross-handed technique.  They are two of the best putter on tour.  With all of the different putting styles that have been developed, the cross-handed style seems to be the most successful. 

With the cross-handed style, the shoulders are perfectly level during the address and swing itself.  Keeping the shoulders level makes great sense because the arms will swing from a level platform (the shoulders).  With the standard technique, the right shoulder is held lower than the left (right handers). 

To putt cross handed: the left hand is placed on the grip below the right, with the thumb on the side of the grip facing the target and the fingernails facing upward.  The right hand is in it’s normal position with the thumb held straight down.

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