Golf Putting Drills

Overview of Golf Putting Drills

2009-09-23T10:56:00.000-07:00

OBJECTIVE: Golf putting drills are to not only practice the proper putting fundamentals but to develop your sense of feel and touch. Your ultimate goal is to master distance, accuracy, consistency and tempo. Like any sport in order to improve it takes practice.

Putting is the most vital aspect within the game of golf and no professional has ever won a major tournament putting poorly. There is nothing more frustrating than playing a decent round of golf only to end the day with a lousy score because of the number of missed putts.

Make the most of your time on the practice green or at home and develop a routine with a purpose. Each golf putting drill you practice will be designed to help you with various aspects of your game. Although it is been said many times that putting accounts for most of the strokes in a game, average golfers will usually spend far less time practicing on their putting.

Once you begin a putting practice routine you will soon develop confidence in your putting stroke which is absolutely critical. Learning to trust your putting stroke comes with hours of practice and patients. Being able to visualize a successful putt and eliminating negative thoughts will have you mastering what some consider a game within a game.

TYPES OF DRILLS: Each of the golf putting drills explained here will focus on different aspects of improving your putting.

Cage, Tunnel and Gate Drill: These three golf putting drills are designed to help you control your distance and improve your accuracy.

Circle and Row Drill: The primary benefits here are to help establish your rhythm and consistency and help you quickly gain confidence.

Stroke Length Drill: This golf putting drill is for controlling your distance. The amount of speed applied to the ball and therefore distance is determined by varying the length of your stroke.

Wrist Control Drill: The main benefit of this golf putting drill is to help you keep your wrists from turning during your putting stoke. If the wrists flex during your stoke it is very difficult to hit the ball square.

The Two Ball Drill: The purpose of this drill is to determine it your striking the ball with a square putter head.

Eyes Closed Drill: Also for practicing distance but in addition this golf putting drill will help you develop the ability to visualize a putt in your mind and significantly improve your self confidence.

FUNDAMENTALS: Before starting your golf putting drills it is good to double check your putting fundamentals to be sure they are sound. Although there is a lot to learn in order to master the putter, there are certain basics that each golfer should follow. Below are the fifteen most important putting basics that I believe every golfer should incorporate into their game. If you would like more detail on putting fundamentals visit Golf-How-To-Putt where you will find in depth lessons on all aspects of putting.

Golf Putting Fundamentals

(1) Putt more with your shoulders and arms and not your wrist. Form a "V" shape with your shoulders and arms. Power for your putt should come from your shoulders. Point your elbows out away from the club shaft and do not keep your arms straight. This will force you to putt with your shoulders and arms and not your wrists.

(2) Always aim to roll the ball past the hole. Never up, never in is a common saying but is very true.

(3)Take practice strokes to decide on how long a stroke you are going to take for distance. Then commit to this and do not question yourself when you take your real putt. Second guessing yourself during your putt is a sure fire means of dubbing your putt.

(4) Think positively and relax and take the pressure off yourself. Remember, the world will not come to and end if you miss this putt.

(5) Lighten your grip. Tension and tight muscles reduce your ability to feel the stroke and get in the zone. You are less inclined to pull or push your putt.

(6) Keep your head still. Do not look up to see if the ball went in and keep completely focused on the back of the ball. Never look up until well after you have stuck the ball and completely finished your follow through.

(7) Use masking tape on the toe and heel of your putter club head to mark the sweet spot. Then take practice putts and avoid hitting the tape, this will help improve hitting the ball square and straight.

(8) Keep your body still by locking your legs. This will help prevent you from swaying.

(9) Use a small blade of grass a few feet in front of the ball to mark your target line. Then align the club head to your target line and also check that your shoulders, feet and hips are parallel to that line.

(10) The left hand leads and guides the stroke while the right hand controls the position of the club head, keeping it square at impact. Keep your wrists from flexing, they need to be flat at impact.

(11) The back swing distance should be about half of the follow through distance. For example, if you take the putter back twelve inches, your follow through distance after impact should about two feet.

(12) Control the speed with your stroke distance. Do not try to hit a 30 foot putt by taking the club back a few inches and then swinging hard. Control how hard you want to hit the ball based on the length of your stoke. Concentrate on keeping the speed of your stroke consistent, whether your making a short or a long putt.

(13) The position of the ball in your stance should be consistent. The ball should be placed at the very moment of the upswing of your putter and this will result in giving you a true roll.

(14) The putting stroke should flow at an even pace with a sense of rhythm. The swing should not have a jerky burst of speed or a sudden long pause. Putter club head should move along the target line.

(15) Feet, knees, hips, shoulders and eyes are all parallel to the target line. Eyes need to be directly over the ball.

(16) Visualize the putt in your head. Trusting yourself and being able to see the putt in your mind will go a long way in developing a consistent rhythm.

(17) Spend time practicing with your eyes closed. After a period of time you will be amazed at how your feel for striking the ball and tempo will improve.

PRACTICE: On the average roughly one third of the strokes in a round of golf are with your putter. In addition, the average golfer has thirteen other clubs in his bag. It would stand to reason then that we should allocate one third of our practice time to the putter and the remaining two thirds to the rest of the clubs. Therefore, if you want to lower your handicap then improving your putting game is essential. With a positive attitude and practicing these fifteen tips along with these golf putting drills your putting and score will significantly improve.

Continue to First Lesson Warm Up Golf Putting Drill

Distance Control Golf Putting Drill

2009-09-22T13:10:00.000-07:00

Overview: The main benefit of this golf putting drill is to enable you to get the correct distance in your putts by controlling the length of your putting stroke. The length of your backstroke should be about the same distance as your follow through length. In our earlier lesson we learned it is important to regulate our distance by changing the length of our stroke. We do not want to apply any sudden burst of power with our hands.

If we want to make a 30 foot putt we should not take the club back only a few inches and then suddenly try to hit it hard to make the hole. With this drill we want to practice on controlling the correct length of our backswing and follow through swing.

Please note the length of the backstroke is an area where some pro trainers recommend different advice. Some advocate the 1/3 - 2/3 rule. That is, take the putter back 1/3 the length and the follow through should be 2/3 of the total length. However, the one thing that is agreed upon is do not have your backstroke greater than your follow through. Secondly, your controlling distance by varying the length of your stoke.

To Begin this Drill:

Use four balls for this drill.
Three balls will be used as your guide and will form a row.
The back ball will mark off how far back you want your back stoke length, the center ball is where you will be putting from and the forward ball is how far you want your follow through length to be.
Place another ball, this is the ball you will be putting, a few inches away from the center ball and parallel to the row.
Now practice taking a putt with the objective of taking back your putter head no farther back than the back ball as your guide and no more forward than the front ball as your guide.

For practicing shorter putts move the guide balls closer, for medium putts a little farther apart and even farther apart for long putts.

Many average golfers have a problem of too short of a follow through length. They do not complete the stroke because they are to anxious to look up to quickly.

Practicing this drill will help you control the length of your putting stroke.

For shorter putts spread out your guide balls closer together.

The white and red line above represents the entire length of the stoke for a shorter putt.
Practice hitting about 10 balls from this spot.

If your stoke length is consistent and your rhythm is the same then all the putts should travel the same distance.
Now repeat the same practice from the outside guide balls for a longer putt. Again, the goal is for all the balls to go the distance.

Remember the goal of this golf putting drill is to control the length of your stoke because this is the main element that should determine the distance of your putt.

Maintain a smooth rhythm and tempo to all of your strokes and try not to swing harder for longer putts and softer for shorter putts

Keep practicing this golf putting drill until you can consistently achieve the same distance with varying lengths of your putting stoke

If you change the speed of the putter by swinging slow then fast or fast to slow you will not be able to consistently control your distance. You goal is to have a smooth and flowing tempo through out your entire swing.

PUTTING TIP: As mentioned earlier, Many average golfers have a problem of too short of a follow through length. The reason for this is because they look up too soon. They do not complete the stroke because they are to anxious to see where the ball went. This results is their shoulders will turn too soon and the putter clubface will not be square to the target line.

If this is a problem for you, try counting to two in your mind before looking up. You want to form a habit that is second nature of staying down well after the follow through of your stoke is finished.

The next golf putting drill lesson will help you become more consistent with your putts and also help improve on controlling your distance.

Continue to Next Lesson Consistency Golf Putting Drill

Long Putt Golf Putting Drill

2009-09-22T13:09:00.000-07:00

Overview: The benefits of this golf putting drill is similiar to the circle drill in which it helps your tempo and rhythm but also works on your feel for distance.

To begin with line up seven to eight balls in a row.

Start with the closest ball to hole and putt.
Keep moving father out until you have putted all of the balls.
Your target line will be the same for each putt so the only variable is distance.
As you make each putt you will begin to develop a feel for how long of stoke you need to make.

Line up your balls all in a row and start with the ball closest to the hole.
Continue putting each ball until you have come to the end of the row. Keeping your body aligned to the target line and adding a little extra stroke length to each putt.

Remember that you want to control distance based on the length of your stroke and not by any wrist action.

Next Make Two Rows with the first row spacing the balls four feet apart. Now make the second row also spacing the balls four apart but start this row two foot closer to the hole.

Start with the first row and the ball closest to the hole. Then go to the second row and the first ball closest to the hole. Then rotate back and forth between the rows.

What we are adding to the drill is a different target line between the rows. Again we are working on distance but also developing sense of pace and rhythm.

Golf lessons with Denis Pugh PGA Master Professional
Putting Lesson on Pace and Rhythm

Eyes Closed Drill: Now repeat the entire putting drill with your eyes closed just like in the circle drill. It is extremely important to ingrain the feeling of each different distance in your subconscious. The goal is make this second nature so you know exactly how hard to hit the ball for the distance you want to achieve.

MENTAL TIPS

- Start your routine by hitting short putts to gain confidence.

- See the putt in your mind first.

- Trust in your natural instincts and hours of practice.

- Focus on positive results.

- Stop taking "gimme putt" because they develop negative mind set.

- The more relax you are the more likely you will be able to avoid the "putting yips".

The nest golf putting drill lesson well help you with conrolling your distance by means of developing the correct length in your stroke.

Continue to Next Lesson Distance Control Putting Drill

Warm Up Golf Putting Drill

2009-09-22T13:08:00.000-07:00

Circle Drill:
This is a golf putting drill the professionals will practice over and over again, both at the start of their routine and at the end.

The benefit is to help establish your rhythm and consistency and help you quickly gain confidence.

The Circle Drill will get your rhythm and confidence going quickly. If you only have a few minutes before a game use this time by hitting a series of short putts to build confidence.

To Begin this Drill:

Start by setting six to seven golf balls in a circle around the hole each a clubs length away about three feet.
Then begin by putting each one and continue until you can get the entire circle in with out missing.
Repeating this will help you quickly gain confidence and develop your tempo and rhythm.

Once your able to get the entire circle in without missing, then start another circle but this time place every other ball five feet away. Now you will be hitting a three foot putt then a five foot putt.

This will help you develop a feel for distance along with tempo and rhythm.

Eyes Closed Drill: Now repeat the entire putting drill with your eyes closed. Just before hitting the ball close your eyes. You have already gotten the feel from the first round, so now you want to ingrain that feeling in your subconscious.

There is no better drill for practicing distance control then practicing with your eyes closed. The ability to visualize a putt in your mind will significantly improve your speed, distance and to trust your stoke.

Here expert Hill Mark demonstates the circle drill using a three foot distance.

Remember to keep checking your setup and posture. Your feet, shoulders and eyes should all be parallel to the target line. In addition, your back stroke length should not be more than your follow thru length.

The next golf putting drill well help you with developing your pace and tempo on longer putts.

Continue to Next Lesson Long Putt Golf Drill

Wrist Control Golf Putting Drill

2009-09-21T18:34:00.000-07:00

Overview: The main benefit of this golf putting drill is to help you keep your wrists from turning during your putting stoke. If the wrists flex during your stoke it is very difficult to hit the ball square.

This drill also teaches rhythm and flow and gives both hands an equal role and helps prevent either hand from becoming to dominating.

To Begin This Drill:

- Hold a club in both your right and left hand and hold them so they are about four inches apart.

- Now swing the clubs back and forth as if your putting.

- The goal is keep the clubs parallel and 4" apart as you swing.

- You do not want the clubs touch as you swing.

- At a first glance this may look fairly easy but actually it is quite difficult.

- It requires a lot of hand and eye coordination to keep the clubs from touching and also to keep them exactly 4" apart.

Once you practice this drill you will quickly see that any flexing of the wrists will make the putters touch. Also, by trying to keep the clubs a constant distance apart it really makes the two arms and hands work as one unit.

Continue practicing this drill until your able to do it six times in a row correctly. Keep practicing a few times a week until your able to preform it every time. This is also a great warm up routine on the practice green before a round.

The Two Ball Drill: The main purpose of this drill is to determine it your striking the ball with a square putter head. To begin with take two balls and lay them on the green together.

Go ahead and take your putting stoke and hit both balls at the same time.
If the balls move together in a straight line then your club head was square at impact.
Line up two balls and hit them at the same time.

If one of the balls moved sooner then you know that part of your club head got their sooner.

If the inside ball goes farther then the heel of the putter got there first at impact. This means your clubface was open at impact.

If the outer ball goes farther then the opposite happen and your clubface was closed at impact.

The first image is an example of a open clubface, the next is a square club face and the last is a closed club face at impact.

Practice this drill until you are able to hit twenty balls and have them all move at the same time and go the same distance.

You may have to review several fundamentals of your putting stoke to pin point your problem if you are not hitting the balls at the same time.

Revisit your set up, grip, posture, alignment and that your head and lower body are remaining still.

Remember, if your able to pass this test consistently you will be well on your way better putting and lowering your score.

Your next objective is to implement these golf putting drills into a regular practice routine.

Continue to 8-Week Putting Practice Routine

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To Really Learn the Fundamentals of Putting

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The instructions are easy to follow and you can devour a lot of information in a short period of time, and then instantly (as in right now) go out and follow the step-by-step instruction and start putting better immediately.

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Accuracy Golf Putting Drill

2009-09-21T18:00:00.000-07:00

The Tunnel Drill: The main benefit of this golf putting drill is to help you with keeping the putter club face square to the target line and improving your accuracy. It also helps with practicing your setup routine.

To start the tunnel drill find a practice area that is relatively flat.

- Use the width of your putter head to put 2 tees into the ground about the width of the putter club head.

- Place these 2 tees roughly 6 feet from the hole.

- Place 2 additional tees close to the front of the hole.

- The putter club head width will be used as your guide for your opening.

- You have created an imaginary tunnel as your putting stroke guide.

- Next tie a string connecting the tees forming an imaginary tunnel. You will have 2 sets of tees tied about 6 feet.

- An alternative to using string is using 2 clubs to make your tunnel. Also, you can make your tunnel with a few more sets of tees.

- It is best to visualize this as a set of railroad tracks.

- Next place a ball about 8 inches inside the tunnel that the end that is away from the hole.

- Align your club head so it is square to the target line.

The goal here is to use the guide strings for aligning your eyes, hips, shoulders and feet so they are all parallel to the target line.

Start by taking practice putts and keeping your club face aiming straight down the target line using the railroad tracks as your guide.

Contiue practicing until you can consistently keep the ball inside the tunnel.

If your ball goes outside the the guide strings you should be able to easyly correct it by noticing your putter head not staying parallel to the target line.

This drill is also good for shorter putts that do not need a lot of swing length. In addition, it will help your longer putts because you will have improved on keeping you body properly aligned and your putter square to the target line.

GATE DRILL: Once you become consistent with keeping your ball straight with the tunnel drill you can now start on the Gate Drill. This only requires two tees spread apart the width of your putter.

- Walk back about 6 feet and practice getting the balls through the two openings.

- Continue practicing this drill with the same stoke length with ten balls.

- Your objective is to get each putt through the gate and also touching each other once they get to the other side.

Being able to master the Gate Drill you will see Huge Improvements in the Accuracy of your putts. This results because you are fine tuning your set up and keeping your stoke path correctly along the target line.

In putting it is critical that your club head is square and keeps parallel to the target line. An important key point to putting straight is having your shoulders, arms and putter act as one unit. The stroke shoul be a smooth one piece upper body motion with almost no body rotation. The shoulders will rotate as you swing while your head and lower body remains stationary.

A Putting Course Tip: On most greens you can find an area where the edge of the green is straight for about 2 to 3 feet. Where the edge of a green meets the fairway there is a clear distinction because of the greens grass cut is shorter and is much thicker.

While your waiting for your turn to putt or before a game you can use this edge to check to see if your putter stoke is nice and parallel.

Just take a couple of practice stokes to determine if your putter club head is staying along the edge that is acting as your target line.

If you do notice a problem then only a few minor adjustments maybe all that is needed to get you back on track.

The next golf putting drill lesson well work on developing the proper wrist action in your putting stroke.

Continue to Next Lesson Wrist Control Drill

Consistency & Distance Golf Putting Drill

2009-09-21T17:57:00.000-07:00

Overview: The main benefit of this golf putting drill is to make sure that you get your ball either in the hole or just past it. This drill well help you with practicing your putting fundamentals and improve your ability to become more consistent and control distance.

A good habit is to closely inspect the conditions around the hole. When a putt losses it's speed it well follow any minor slope around the hole. Often times we see putts get to the hole but roll to the side and miss it by a few inches.

Your objective is to get in the habit of not coming up short. You should apply enough speed to the ball that if you do miss the putt you should ended up past the hole by eight to ten inches.

You will be able to sink more putts if you routinely get your ball just slightly past the hole.

To Practice This Drill:

Begin by laying 3 clubs around the hole so they form a opening and they are about a club lenght away from the hole.
The hole should be about way between the 2 clubs that are not touching.
Start to take roughly ten practice putts from ten feet from the hole.
Your goal is to get all the putts either in the hole or inside the cage but not touching any of the clubs.
Practicing this drill will help in your decision making when determining distance and get you in the habit of applying enough speed so you do not come up short.
Keep in mind that if you do miss you will be only left with a very short putt.
Your objective is to get all the putts in the hole or inside the cage but not touching any of the three clubs.

Next Practice from Farther Out: Repeat the entire putting drill by practicing farther away to say 20 feet. Continue practicing until you can get all 10 balls inside the cage. Your goal is to become more consistent at each distance level your practicing from.

Your distance should be controlled with the length of your stoke. Continue to maintain a smooth rhythm and tempo to your stroke with no quick burst of power.

By extending your distance you will be able to consistently get with in three feet of the hole on your long putts.

Practice with Your Eyes Closed: Repeat the entire the drill again but this time with your eyes closed. Prior to hitting the ball close your eyes. You have already gotten the feel from the first round, so now you want to ingrain that feeling in your subconscious.

There is no better drill for practicing distance control then practicing with your eyes closed. The ability to visualize a putt in your mind will significantly improve your speed, distance and to trust your stoke. We recommend practicing with your eyes closed on several of these putting drills because of the significant improvements it will make to your over all putting skills and judgment.

A PRACTICE GREEN TIP: Before a game you can take the small flag pole and set it behind a hole about eighteen to twenty four inches. Begin your practice putts to either go in the cup or end up between the flag pole and hole.

The next golf putting drill lesson well focus on developing accuracy.

Continue to Next Lesson Accuracy Golf Putting Drill

8-Week Putting Practice Routine

2009-09-19T15:09:00.000-07:00

Before starting a practice putting routine be sure to review the fundamentals of your stroke to make sure they are sound. Your goal is to be practicing the right putting fundamentals in order to become proficient at putting.

A discipline putting practice routine should cover improving your distance, accuracy, feel, rhythm and tempo. I have outline a 8 Week Routine that is fairly comprehensive and will provide positive results so long as you follow it through to completion.

Set aside about fifteen minutes a day for eight weeks. Use the time as a break from your normal schedule. It will also take your mind away from your regular work and personal schedule and is a great way to reduce stress.

By following this putting practice routine religiously for eight weeks you will dramatically improve your putting skills and self confidence. Commit yourself to improving your putting game and remember that it does take practice and patients.

Week 1 thru Week 4

Monday - 15 Minutes
Spend 5 minutes each on the Wrist Drill, then the Stroke Length Drill and then the Circle Drill in that order.

The wrist control drill will help improve your Putting Form and Feel of the club head.
For Consistency and Proper Form we next practice with the stroke length drill.
The circle drill will build Confidence and develop a Smooth Rhythm and tempo.

Tuesday - 15 Minutes
Spend 5 minutes each on the Two Ball Drill, then the Tunnel Drill and then the In the Row Drill, in that order.

The two ball drill will improve your Accuracy and Correct your Swing Path.
For Accuracy and Rhythm we next practice with the tunnel and gate drill drill.
The row drill will is for improving the correct Distance and to develop a smooth Rhythm and Tempo.

Wednesday - 15 Minutes
Spend 5 minutes on the stroke length drill, then 10 minutes on the cage drill.

Again will practice with the stroke length drill for Consistency and Proper Form.
The cage drill will add to our improving our control of Distance

Thursday - 15 Minutes
         Repeat Monday
Friday - 15 Minutes
        Repeat Tuesday
Saturday - 15 Minutes
       Repeat Wednesday
Sunday OFF

Week 5 thru Week 8

Monday - 15 Minutes
Spend 5 minutes total on the Wrist Drill and the Stroke Length Drill. Then spend 5 minutes on the Circle Drill with your eyes open and then another 5 minutes with your eyes closed.

The drills for monday are the same but we will spend more time with the circle drill and also practice with our Eyes Closed.
There is no better drill for practicing Distance control and improving your Rhythm and Tempo then practicing with your eyes closed. The ability to visualize a putt in your mind will significantly improve your speed, distance and to trust your stoke.

Tuesday - 15 Minutes
Spend 5 minutes total on the Two Ball Drill and the Tunnel Drill. Then spend 5 minutes on the In the Row Drill with your eyes open and then another 5 minutes with your eyes closed.

The two ball drill and tunnel drill will improve your Accuracy, Correct your Swing Path and develop Rhythm.
Again we are adding 5 minutes practice with our Eyes Closed with the row drill.

Wednesday - 15 Minutes
Spend 5 minutes on the stroke length drill then spend 5 minutes on the In the Cage Drill with your eyes open and then another 5 minutes with your eyes closed.

Thursday - 15 Minutes
Repeat Monday
Friday - 15 Minutes
Repeat Tuesday
Saturday - 15 Minutes
Repeat Wednesday
Sunday OFF

As you can see from our outline each drill concentrates on different aspects of your putting game. By the end of each week you have practiced on improving your Distance, Accuracy, Rhythm and Tempo. But what else you will improve on is your Self Confidence. As you get better you will gain a lot more confidence in your abilities which is a major ingredient to great putting.

Stick with your putting practice routine. Through out your practice eliminate any negative thoughts and Visualize a Successful Putt. Remember that putting is a game within the game of golf and can be mastered with patients and practice. The time spent practicing your putting game will pay off big dividends with your handicap.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

To Really Learn the Fundamentals of Putting

we Recommend the PurePoint Putting DVD

PurePoint Performance Putting DVD
by Bobby Eldridge Head Teaching Golf Professional

These lessons are jam-packed with all the information you need to gain a consistent, repeatable putting stroke, accurately control your distances and get a straight-as-an-arrow putting stroke.

Putting Under Pressure Video Tip

2009-09-03T08:04:00.000-07:00

by Glenn Whittle

This Golf Putting Drill Video from the Whittle Golf Tips Series gives ideas on how to simulate pressure in practice. Practicing under pressure and simulating comp conditions is essential to a player's success. Drills such as this one where you can be rewarded and punished for performance are excellent at putting pressure on a player.

Improve Your Putting With This Drill

2009-09-02T15:33:00.000-07:00

Improve Your Putting With This Practice Drill
By James Steele

Your short game on the golf course will be one of the biggest contributing factors to your final score. Take a look at this practice drill to improve your putting swing and find out how you can increase your chances of sinking those 6 foot and closer putts. These can be the most frustrating and elusive shots because they are so close it seems like they should be easy.

You'll want to start off with grabbing 10 to 20 golf balls to make sure that you have enough to practice your swing several times in a row before having to retrieve and start over. Also, make sure that you find a nice flat area of the putting green to practice on. In the future you can worry about bends and breaks on the green, but for right now we simply want to make sure you have a consistent smooth swing when you putt.
Now you want to make sure that you are about three or 4 feet away from the cup. This will be far enough away to add a degree of difficulty to be shot, as well as be good practice on the distance that will come up quite often in your golf game.

The first step to this practice drill is to work on the simple mechanics of the swing. This means that every time you begin your swing your putter head is going straight back from the ball in a perfect line from the putter head to the ball to the hole. This sounds very simple and obvious, but if you take a moment to concentrate on your swing you will probably notice some slight deviation from that straight-line which will consistently throw your putts off by a few inches. Practice swinging straight back and threw the ball in a slow consistent manner to make sure your swing is straight.

Gauge how the ball hits off of your putter face to understand if it is truly square and in-line the putt direction you would like to go. This is often one of the most common mistakes people make when putting. While their backswing might be straight and in-line, their putter face is slightly off square due to too much rotation of the body or poor grip on the handle.

To improve on this, continue to make sure that your backswing is straight and minimize your body movement while swinging through the putt. This will allow you to make any changes to your grip that are required to keep the putters head square to your shot.

Once you have fine tuned this swing, set a goal of getting five putts in a row and then 10 and then 20 and so on. This repetition and self competition will put a little pressure on you to give you a better feel for when you're competing against friends as well as consistent good practice to help your body remember the swing.
To be able to consistently keep up a practice schedule you may want to look into adding your own practice putting green to your home. They can easily be installed in your backyard, and can even be as simple as getting a small piece of artificial turf and a ball marker that can easily be used on the patio and rolled up when not needed.

As you can imagine this little drill can have a huge impact on your putting stroke and your short game. Practice consistently a few times a week and impress your friends out on the greens.
James provides information about getting a backyard home putting green through his website on personal putting green.

Golf Putting Drill Video lessons

2009-09-02T14:36:00.000-07:00

How To Improve Your Putting With Practice Drills by Rickard Strongert, VideoJug's resident golf expert illustrates several practise drills to improve your golf putting.

Practice Drills:
Golf: How To Improve Your Putting With Practice Drills

How to Improve Your Putting Skills

2009-09-02T12:18:00.000-07:00

Golf Putting Practice - How to Improve Your Putting Skills

By Mark Davison

Putting in time for some golf putting practice is the best way to lower your scores. Not only will it help you to develop a better putting stroke, but it will also improve your judgment of speed and distance and, in doing so, increase your confidence when you are on the putting green.

The farther you are from the hole the less likely you are to hole a putt, so the secret is to make sure that if you miss you leave the ball close enough to the hole to make the next putt a formality. Here are a couple of drills designed to help you hole out.

Practicing Your Long putts

When you're practicing those longer putts, try this exercise: Take a handful of tees and place them in a semicircle around the back of the hole - a radius of 18 inches (0.4 m) to 2 feet (0.6 m) should be enough. Now take five balls and try to ensure that each of the putts stays within the semicircle. If you fail, then repeat the exercise until you succeed. As you improve, lengthen the distance of the putts.

Practicing Your Short putts

Even professional players sometimes miss the short putts. If you want to master the art of holing those tricky little shots, try this simple round-the-clock exercise. Place 12 balls in a circle around the hole to create a "clock face," and then try to hole each of them in succession. If you miss one ball, start again from the beginning. As you improve with practice, increase the distance between the balls, so widening the circle.

Learning to Read Greens When Putting

Developing a smooth, reliable putting stroke is just the first step in becoming a consistent putter. To progress from good putter to great putter you must master the speed, and what's called the "break," of your putt. This means judging the contours of the green and knowing how hard you'll need to hit the ball.

Reading greens begins with understanding how your ball reacts when rolling up, down, or across a slope. If it's an uphill putt you'll need to hit your ball harder than on a level green. If it's downhill, don't strike the ball so hard. When putting across a slope, aim wide of the target and try to determine how much the ball will curve on its way to the hole.

Before you start your round, spend a little time on the practice green. This will help you gauge the speed of the greens on the course. Don't be tentative when taking short putts. It's often easier to hole them when you hit them firmly and take any break out of the putt.

Before you take your shot, examine the break from a variety of angles and make a mental note of how any of your playing partner's putts react on the way to green.

When you've picked your line and gauged the speed, be positive and trust your putting stroke. The worst mistake in putting is leaving the putt short, so hit it hard enough to ensure that it stops just before the hole. With sufficient practice, you should be able to master putting and lower your score easily.

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A Simple Putting Drill That Anybody Can Do

2009-09-02T12:04:00.000-07:00

Putting Drill: A Simple Putting Drill That Anybody Can Do
Author: Maxx Johnson

Many students want to go directly to the driving range for every lesson in a series. Truth be told it would benefit them more if they would allow us to work on a putting drill and head to the practice putting green. It has been proven time and time again that the quicker that you improve your putting the quicker your scores will come down. With that being said, practicing a putting drill just does not sound as sexy as pulling out the driver and seeing how far that you can blast a ball down the fairway.

To improve your putting, try this one-hand putting drill. Once they get over the shock of the thought of attempting to putt with just one hand, it has helped many of my students to improve their putting stroke and in turn lower their golf scores. This can easily help you do the same.

Two reasons that I highly encourage my students to practice this one handed putting drill is that it gives them the exact feel of a proper putting motion and it develops a feel for the proper impact position for the putting stroke. This is a very simple thing to implement into your putting practice. Take your grip stance and posture and proceed to setup to stroke a putt from just two to three feet away from the hole.

Take your usual putting grip for a putting stroke. Assuming you are putting right handed, take your left hand off the putter leaving only your right hand on the putter in the hands usual position. Now you should have your putter in its regular position and the ball position placed in your usual position as well. The palm of your right hand should be equal to the direction of your putter face.

One reason for doing this putting drill from such a short distance as two or three feet is the backswing will not need very much movement. This should allow you to "feel" the putter head as it moves through the motion no matter how strong you are. The right wrist should keep the same angle throughout the stroke as at address and will not break AT ALL during this stroke from this distance.

With the correct grip pressure, you will be able to feel your putter load against the index finger of your right hand (again, for a right handed golfer). This load that is properly stored will be delivered to the golf ball during the forward stroke and will be lost just after impact. If you use a stripped range ball while doing this putting drill, place the stripe so it is parallel to the green surface and make your stroke under the stripe on the range ball. Your right hand should be ahead of the ball at impact. To finish the putting drill, hold your finish to a slow count of three. The putter head should be under your hands and not way out in front of your hands. Remember, your right wrist angle should not change.

With this simple putting drill, it will not take long at all and you will begin to hit your putts more and more solid and will be watching them go into the hole. Once this happens you will watch your scores go lower and lower.
About the Author:
Max Johnson of VGS Golf Learn more about Putting Tips. Read more on free Putting Drills.

Importance of Golf Putting Drills

2009-09-01T08:34:00.000-07:00

The Importance of Golf Putting Drills and Practice

Author: Paul Hobart

The drill for warming up before starting a match is vital in almost every sport, be it swimming, cricket, football or golf. The first few minutes of preparing one's body to meet the possible challenges it will face in the upcoming match or game is very important, because without your warm-up routine, you might end up losing out on your reflexes, mental alertness and overall physical fitness. All of that might lead to disastrous consequences! Hence how well your preparatory ritual goes, might well decide to a great extent how well your match will proceed. So don't neglect it!

In the case of golf, when you spend those extra few minutes on the greens, practicing for your next match, you are actually preparing yourself for the speed and alertness that the game will demand of you. Your rhythm is set and you play with a smoother tempo. Otherwise, it will be futile getting to the green and just standing still on it for half an hour, now won't it?

For putting there are specific drills that you could use to limber up. A popular one offers this short series of steps:

- While starting out on your putting drill, put to a specific target like a tree or a small pebble from a distance of about twenty to thirty feet.

- Try putting from various angles and observe the manner in which the ball moves. Being able to control the speed and the movement of the golf ball is a very important aspect of golfing.

- Take this time to judge the speed of the ball on your particular course. This will help in your attaining a better judgment.

There are other drills you can do, too. Read about them, learn others and vary your training and practice, and you'll find your build strength of multiple areas that way.

Popular Golf Putting Drills

Practice makes perfect, so the saying goes. So head out for golf putting practice to perfect your game.

Popular putting drills you can do follow. Read about them, learn others and vary your training and practice, and you'll find your build strength of multiple areas that way.

• Spend at least five minutes rolling these putt balls to your target. However, don't practice with paper cups. This will falsely lead you to assume the golf holes to be much bigger than they really are. If your mind and your body get used to getting the balls in to the cup, you will be under the illusion that your game is improving; when in reality, you are only using an easier target. It is far more effective to use smaller targets like coins or pebbles. That way the real golf hole will seem bigger, and your confidence will improve during the real match.

• The last stage of your warm-up could include a series of twenty five putts against a slope, i.e. on a rising hill, from a distance of six inches from the hole. This practice is useful for short-range shots.

Beginners often crib about how the land they practice on in the 'practice greens' is different from the greens they play their final matches on. The only difference lies in their minds: the pressure to perform makes the player think the grounds are different. In reality, the grass level is of an identical height on both courses.

Now don't go thinking that drills are boring stuff! Make sure you spice up your personal drilling routine in your style. Make it challenging and varied so that you get your required practice without getting bored.

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/sports-and-fitness-articles/the-importance-of-golf-putting-drills-and-practice-1032954.html

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Three Stroke - Saving Putting Drills

2009-08-30T12:14:00.000-07:00

By Jack Moorehouse

Sinking more putts, as I've said in my golf tips, is the key to quickly lowering your golf handicap. You use your putter more than any other club in the bag. Think about it. Two-putting each hole during a round means you used your putter 36 times. That's anywhere from 30 percent to 40 percent of most scores. Yet the average golfer spends far less time practicing his or her putting than working on his driving or chipping.

If that's you, then you need to make the most of your time on the practice green. Develop a routine practicing your putting that makes use of every minute you're on the green. Try sinking every putt you take, unless you're practicing your lag putting. And include drills in your practice routine designed to improve your putting fundamentals. Below are three great putting drills I've used in my golf lessons over the years designed to hone your putting skills.

Steady Head Drill

Among the most common mistakes I see in my golf lessons is a player moving his or her head while putting. We all know we should keep our heads still during a putt. And many of us do. But some players still have a hard time doing it. They look up to see where the ball is going once they've hit the putt. That's only natural. Moving your head hampers accuracy. To put well, you have to keep your head down and steady throughout the stroke. The Steady Head drill teaches you that.

Assume your normal putting stance, with your eyes fixed directly over the ball. Have your partner hold your head while you hit the putt, releasing it only after you've made contact with the ball. Keep looking at the spot where the ball was after you've made contact and count to three. Then look up to see where the ball went. Some teachers recommend staring at the spot where the ball was until you hear the ball fall in the cup. That works, too.

Eyes Closed Drill

Golf teachers often talk about "feel" in their golf instruction sessions. All great putters have great feel when it comes to putting. It's among the most important attributes you can develop when it involves the flat stick Your goal, once you've determined your line and assessed your speed requirements, is to remember the feel of a good putting stroke when you hit the ball. Feel can only be developed through practice. This drill helps you develop more feel.

You'll need a partner for this drill. After you've taken your putting stance and fixed your eyes directly over the ball, have your partner putt his hand between your eyes and the ball, blocking you vision. Now putt the ball. If you don't have a partner, close your eyes just before hitting the ball.

This drill encourages you to really feel the movement of your arms. You may fined that the slower they move, the more consistent your putting. Plus. it's a great exercise for learning distance control. Hit 10 putts with someone holding their hand in front of your face or with your eyes closed. See how many you can sink. Then try another spot on the green.

Ball Between The Knees Drill

Another common putting error I see in my golf lessons is a lack of stability. To putt well consistently, you must have great stability. Unfortunately, weekend golfers tend to move their lower bodies when they putt. That's a fatal mistake, but one that an be corrected with the help of a big rubber ball.

Take your normal putting stance on the practice green. Then wedge a rubber ball between your legs. Now squeeze the ball slightly with your thighs. Keeping the ball tight between your legs creates a solid foundation for your putting. Now hit some putts. Hitting putts this way helps develop a real feel for stability, essential to achieving a consistent putting stroke.

Work on these three drills from a variety of spots on the practice drill. They encourage better putting by ingraining three key putting fundamentals. If you keep practicing them, you'll eventually sink more putts per round, lowering your scores and golf handicap. You take more shots per round with your putter than any other club in your back. Make them all good ones.

Jack Moorehouse is the author of the best-selling book "How To Break 80 And Shoot Like The Pros." He is NOT a golf pro, rather a working man that has helped thousands of golfers from all seven continents lower their handicap immediately. He has a free weekly newsletter with the latest golf tips, golf lessons and golf instruction.

3 Simple Steps To Reading Greens

2009-08-29T12:28:00.000-07:00

by Scott Myers

Having to read the break and line golf greens can cause a high handicap golfer to break out in a cold sweat. This is because they haven't been shown an easy way to read greens yet.

In this article you're going to learn a 3-step process that is simple, yet a highly effective way to read every green and become a better putter in the process.

Step 1: Determine if the put is putt is uphill or downhill. -- I know this sounds like a no-brainer, but taking your time on this will help you with the other with the nest steps. Uphill putts will break less than downhill putts. So if a putt is uphill you would play for less break than a perfectly flat putt. Downhill putts are just the opposite. You would account for more break if your putt was downhill.

Step 2: Will your putt break right or left? -- Although it is impossible to tell you how much a putt will break in an article, I'll give you some putting tips to help you figure this out on your own.

Grass height & moister are the 2 biggest factors on how fast a green is running. If the grass hasn't been cut in awhile, or there is moister on the green, the putts will roll slower than normal. This affects how much the ball will break when you are picking out your line. You would have to account for more break on a dry green.

If you had been practicing your putting on the practice green, you would have a pretty good idea of how the greens are behaving that day.

Step 3: Putting steps 1 & 2 together. -- Now put everything together to find your optimal putting line. If you have a left-to-right breaking downhill putt, you would aim further left than you would for a level putt and use a softer stroke to compensate for the downhill putt.

On the other side a left-to-right uphill putt would require a firmer stroke while playing for less break on the putt.

While there have been entire books written on reading greens, these putting tips cover the majority of the basics on green reading and will give you a great jumpstart on sinking more putts.

About the author: Scott Myers has helped golfers of all skill levels start shooting the best golf scores of their life by teaching a simple, step-by-step putting formula designed to drop 9-to-11 strokes in as little as 5 minutes. To learn more about his breakthrough method, visit: Breakthrough Putting Secrets Revealed today.