Monday, November 22, 2004

Putting
The art of putting is one of the most difficult parts of golf to gain an understanding. First of all, the toughest part of putting has nothing to do actually making a putt. The toughest part of golf is getting your hands to react to what your eyes are seeing. With that being said I have quick drill for you to try.
1. Take your normal setup position.
2. Look at the hole.
3. Continue looking at the hole while making your putting motion.

Remember that I said that putting was an art. You must use your eyes to tell your arms how hard to hit the ball. You must also use your eyes to tell your hands what a square club face looks like and you must 100% committ to these two feelings or you will miss the putt everytime. Committment in putting is 90% of putting; the other 10% is mechanical, but only 10%. Look at your friends who putt well. They all look different. Each one of them grips the putter differently, each one of them stands differently, and each one of them strokes the golf club differently. What they have that is the same is confidence. Pure and simple putting requires two main instruments; Committment and Confidence. If you have those two items you will make your share of putts. Here is the 10% mechanical that you need to succeed after you have committment and confidence.
1. Position the golf ball forward in your stance.
2. Position more weight on your left foot than your right foot.
3. Keep the shaft of the club straight up and down, not leaning forward and never leaning away from the target.
4. Keep your left or lead wrist firm throughout the stroke.

That is it. If you can master those four mechanical positions you will conquer 10% of putting; the other 90%, committment and confidence will only be mastered with practice and patience. Good luck, you will need it!


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