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Practice Drills for Improved PuttingHighly effective putting practice for distance control and confidence improvement.
There are three basic kinds of putting
practice drills:
1) Distance Control 2) Stroke Mechanics 3) Confidence
DISTANCE
CONTROL
The Lag
Drill
This drill will really help
you learn to control your distance. You should
not putt to a hole when practicing your
distance control.As shown here, a string is
used for the distance marker, but the edge of
the green or two widely spaced tees or a couple
of golf balls could have been used. The purpose
is to concentrate on the distance the ball is
going, not on hitting a specific target
line.
In each case you should try various lengths
of putts working on getting your distance
as consistent as possible. You can make a
mini-game out of your practice by trying
first to see how close you can come without
going past your distance marker, then
trying some putts to see if you can stop
right on the marker line and then finally
see how close you can come but with just
enough distance to go past your marker
line.
For putts longer than about six feet,
there seem to be two theories about the
ideal distance to try and hit your
putts. Some teachers advocate an
"eighteen inch rule", that is that all
putts should be hit hard enough to go
eighteen inches past the cup if they do
not go in.
The second distance theory is that
you should "die he ball at the hole
"so it has a chance to fall in from
the side even if it is not
perfectly on line.
On golf courses that get a lot
of play, all of the foot steps
in the vicinity of the cup tend
to make it into a mini-volcano
such that putts approaching
slowly will roll away from the
hole if not hit dead center or
hit firmly. The "eighteen inch
rule" is your best chance if
you encounter courses with the
areas around the cups worn
down.
If on the other hand you
play a course that changes
the cup locations on the
green nearly every day and
the course does not get a
lot of daily play then the
"die it at the hole"
approach will give you the
best chance of making more
putts.
STROKE
MECHANICS
Here are some
drills and training
aids to help you
develop a
consistent
stroke.
The String
Drill
The string
drill has
been shown
to give
excellent
results in
helping
develop a
straight
back /
straight
through
stroke. By
using a
"string"
between two
small
posts, a
line to the
hole can be
setup at
various
distances.
Usually, a
ten foot
string will
let you
practice
your stroke
on four,
six and
eight foot
putts. By
having the
height of
the string
just above
the golf
ball, it
will also
help assure
that you
are keeping
your putter
low to the
ground
during your
stroke.
You
need to
pick a
level
spot on
the
putting
green,
as
shown
below,
put one
post
right
behind
the
hole
and the
other
out
about
ten to
twelve
feet
away
from
the
hole
such
that
the
string
is
tight
and
about
two
inches
above
the
ground.
You
then
place
the
ball
(only
about
two
feet
from
the
hole)
under
the
string
and
place
your
putter
behind
the
ball.
You
should
take
the
putter
back
and
through
very
slowly
at
first
to
watch
that
it
goes
straight
back
/
straight
though
and
that
the
face
stays
square
to
the
hole(string
line).
And,
you
must
keep
your
putter
low
to
the
ground
for
the
most
consistent
roll.
As
you
get
the
feel
for
this
drill,
then
start
to
increase
your
distance
away
from
the
hole.
You
will
find
that
this
drill
will
help
you
under
actual
playing
conditions
because
you
will
be
able
to
visualize
the
string
going
to
the
hole
on
straight
putts.
And,
it
will
help
you
visualize
your
intended
line
on
breaking
putts
as
well.
As
you
try
multiple
putts,
be
sure
and
vary
your
distances
and
even
move
your
string
position
occasionally
so
that
you
do
not
wear
out
an
area
of
the
practice
putting
green
by
standing
in
one
place
too
long.
The
Circle
Drill
For
this
drill,
select
a
hole
in
a
relatively
flat
area
of
the
green
and
place
four
or
six
balls
around
the
hole
in
a
rough
circle.Then
putt
them
into
the
hole
in
rotation.
Start
with
the
balls
only
about
two
feet
from
the
hole.
When
you
have
made
all
four,
move
out
to
three
feet
and
repeat.
Continue
increasing
the
distance
until
you
miss.
Then
when
you
miss,
START
OVER
at
two
feet.
This
drill
will
help
you
repeat
your
setup
and
preshot
routine
and
give
you
a
little
competitive
pressure--you
will
be
surprised
how
the
self
imposed
pressure
builds
as
the
distance
you
are
putting
from
increases.
And,
especially
as
you
near
setting
a
new
"I
made
them
all"
distance
record
for
yourself.
Once
you
are
confident
from
six
feet
and
in,
then
you
should
pick
a
hole
for
the
drill
that
is
not
in
a
flat
area.
This
will
give
you
practice
on
uphill,
downhill,
left
breaking
and
right
breaking
putts.
PUTTING Drills
The
Ladder
Drill
This
drill
is
similar
to
the
Circle
Drill,
but
is
more
effective
for
learning
how
to
make
breaking
putts.
You
start
with
a
hole
in
a
non-flat
area
of
the
green
and
place
4
to
6
balls
in
a
line
going
away
from
the
hole.
As
you
make
each
putt
you
will
get
a
good
feel
for
how
much
break
to
play
and
what
speed
to
hit
the
ball
with.
You
can
use
the
same
kind
of
"game"
by
making
the
distance
between
the
balls
increasingly
larger
as
you
work
on
making
all
of
them.
CONFIDENCE
You
gain
confidence
by
repeating
a
successful
action..
By
working
on
relatively
short
(2
to
3
foot)
putts
you
will
make
a
high
percentage
of
them
and
build
confidence
to
work
up
to
longer
putts.
You
can
further
improve
by
working
with
a
very
small
target.
Place
a
dime
on
the
green
or
stick
a
tee
in
the
green
and
try
to
hit
them.
You
will
be
amazed
how
much
larger
the
cup
will
look
after
such
drills.
Remember:
If
you
believe
you
will
make
the
putt,
you
probably
will.
And,
if
you
don't
believe
you
will
make
the
putt,
you
probably
will
not.
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