Stroke Mechanics and Direction

When you look on Tour, there are seemingly as many different putters and styles as there are golfers; which, is why I work on simply three factors in the set-up and one in the stroke itself as common denominators of all great putters.  The rest is all individual preferences.

1)Grip…most great putters have their hands (palms) directly opposing each other on the grip.  They are parallel to each other and the putter face.  Because most people use putters with a flat-formed grip, very few people ever get this wrong!  The primary function of the grip is to keep the hands quiet and thus the putter face square throughout the stroke.

2)Alignment…shoulder and forearm alignment are critical as they control the direction the putter moves when striking the ball.  I don’t care where a golfer’s feet are aimed, only that the shoulders and forearms are parallel to the target line.  Check this constantly by using a mirror on the ground under the ball.

3)Posture…the eyes should more or less be right over the golf ball and target line.  I don’t care how bent over or tall you are at address, as long as the eyes are positioned right over the ball.  Keep in mind that visual perception controls your alignment and we want a definite relationship (not skewed) between the golfer’s eyes, putter and target.  If there are any angles here, a misaimed putt is sure to result.

Palms Parallel

Putting Drill   “Can You Spare a Dime?”

As for the stroke, we want to eliminate any unwanted hand and wrist motion in the stroke.  Basically we want the putter to be swung using the shoulders and back…not the hands.  Most golfers have heard, take the putter back low and slow and swing the putter like a pendulum….but what does that mean and more importantly what does it feel like?  To practice this correctly, place a dime on top of your putter and swing it back and forth without dropping the dime.  You will quickly feel how the back muscles control the stroke and putter swings low to the ground.  Any hand action will result in the putter being swung up to steeply and the dime falling to the ground.  This is also a great drill to get the jerkiness out of your stroke!

The best putters in the world know how to hit the ball the right direction and the right distance.  Earlier, we looked at putting mechanics, which control the direction we stroke the ball; which, for most golfers is relatively easy.  Think about it, how often do you miss a putt ten feet left or right of the hole (on say a forty foot putt), versus miss the same putt ten feet long or short of the hole because you didn’t put the right speed stroke on the ball.  Most golfers suffer on the green because they simply cannot judge speed and stroke the ball smoothly.

Feel is an acquired skill honed through time and practice.  Keep in mind that feel and depth perception are closely related, as 80% of what you think is what you see!  (Yes, 80%)  How well do you use your eyes in a round of golf?  How observant are you?  How much do you stare at your target…. verses the ball?  I find most golfers are mesmerized by the golf ball and simply hit the ball around the green with relatively poor results.  Golf is a game of distance and direction; one without the other simply won’t do.

Your eyes work amazingly well (and fast) if you let them.  Let’s start with your practice stroke before you set up to the ball.  Your practice strokes are designed to do one thing, rehearse the stroke and associate that stroke to the desired speed you want to roll the ball.  My strong suggestion for golfers is to LOOK AT THE HOLE DURING PRACTICE SWINGS…not at the ground by the golf ball!!!!  Think of throwing a ball to someone…would you ever look away from your target or on the ground at your feet as you try to figure out how far they were away?  Seems ridiculous, doesn’t it?  You would have a very difficult time hitting them wouldn’t you?  But that’s exactly what golfers do!  In the most critical time they are trying to figure out distance to their target….they are looking at the ground instead of their target!  Take your practice swings looking at the hole while you associate the arm swing to the desired distance.

Stare at the hole during your practice swings to make your eyes work for you!

I use a lot of drills to help golfers find proper feel and one of the best is putting to the fringe with your eyes closed.  Start about 20 feet from the fringe and roll balls to the edge of the green and gradually work back.  Ideally you want the ball to roll within 6 inches either side of the fringe.  After a couple putts, hit several putts with your eyes closed during the stroke.  Pay attention to how your stroke feels, only then open your eyes after you have asked yourself…is the ball rolling the right distance?  Is it too long?  Or is it too short?  If you are like most golfers I know, you will probably find out that for distance control you putt better with your closed!  This drill makes you focus and concentrate solely on your stroke and feel, which will greatly speed the learning curve on hitting the ball the proper distance every time!