Eliminate the 3 Putt with a Better Putting Routine
The area everyone can always get better at is putting. It is the area of the game that is practiced the least and has the largest affect on the final score. Putting itself is a difficult game to master. As one of the most important areas of scoring we need to focus more in getting the ball into the hole. Statistics show that the best putters in the world make less than 10% of their putts from greater than 20ft. However, those very same putters only three putt once in every 54 holes they play. Their Ability to avoid 3 putts is remarkable, especially in comparison to the average golfer who three putts on average of 6 times per round. So what can we do to correct this problem? My best advice, and the advice I give to a lot of my students is to utilize a feature of their body which is their primary resource for gauging distance. Their Eyes. The human eye is a remarkable tool for not only gauging distance, but also informing the body of how hard or soft to strike an object to get it where you want it to go. For Instance, when a top level hockey player wants to make a pass to a team mate, he simply looks at his team mate and passes him the puck. He doesn’t go through a thought process, he simply looks and reacts. If you watch a number of the top golfers in the world, including Brandt Snedeker, his routine for putting is to look at the hole and make several quick practice strokes while maintaining eye contact with the hole. He then simply steps into the ball, looks at the hole, looks back and strikes. He does it very quickly, and it works extremely well for him because he is reacting. Putting practice is very important to lowering scores. When I help students I always spend more time by building in a routine that helps them react to their target, than I do to fix a technique error. If you are looking to lower your scores, I recommend you try this the next time you are out at a golf course and have time to practice some putting. Start by placing a few golf balls approximately 25 feet from a hole. Then stand off to the side of your fist ball, and look only at your target. While maintaining eye contact with your target, take a couple of practice swings. You should try and feel how hard the putter head is swinging, and visualize how far the ball will roll and on what line. Ideally you should take 2 – 4 practice strokes until you think you have the perfect speed, then step into the ball, take one last look at the hole and putt. You should keep the time between your last practice stroke and putt to less than 8 seconds. That way when you hit the putt the putting stroke will be the same as the practice stroke. The next time you watch a PGA player on TV putting, don’t watch their technique, look at their eyes and where their eyes are during their practice strokes. The best in the world become fixated with the hole and almost will the ball in with their focus on the hole. If it works for them, it’ll work for you. http://www.heatherglengolf.com
Cam Latimer, PGA of Canada Assistant Golf Professional HeatherGlen Golf Course