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Putting
Putting: Make it look like it has a chance to go in
Oct 4th
I want to talk about visualizing putts. Lately I hadn’t felt like I was seeing lines well. I had the speed down pretty well based on my previous post about putting. And I have continued using that technique. However, I’ve been missing a number of putts recently.
I tried something today that seemed to help a lot and as a result I saw the lines much better.
I was thinking that whenever I’ve seen the pros putt that it looks like every putt has a chance to go in. They don’t tend to miss by very much. If I look at my past misses, I could say that a small number of those putts looked like they had a chance to go in, but the majority did not. And it wasn’t that they were so off, they weren’t. In fact I missed a lot of those putts by maybe an inch or two on either side,or hit them short, or long, but they didn’t really look like they had a chance to go in.
So I tried something new. My putting thought was this: “Make the putt look like it has a chance to go in.” It doesn’t mean that it has to go in, only that it looks like it has a chance to go in. I hit the practice putting green, and my objective was to have every putt look like it had a chance to go in.
Now you might say, isn’t the objective of putting to get it in the hole? Yes it is. But how many people do you know who can hole every putt.
This was, for me, a very different experience putting with this thought. For some reason it made it easier to see the lines. It also seemed to help with my speed. So I was doing this for a few minutes and an interesting thing happened. I started to hole a lot of those practice putts. These were 10 to 20 footers from different spots around the hole. And they just kept going in. Normally from that range I might make, 2 or 3 out of 20. I started to make 9 to 12 of out of 20. That’s a big increase. And the putts that didn’t go in, were a lot closer to going in, they would lip, or just burn the edges, rather than being a couple of inches on either side, or short or long by a few feet.
So why did this work?
I don’t really know, but I suspect that I gave myself a real process for my subconscious to follow. I wanted the putts to look like they had a chance of going in. In order to have that happen, both the speed and the line have to be pretty much spot on. I also, took the pressure out of holing the putt. Since the goal wasn’t to make it, but to make it look like it had a chance, that is actually easier to accomplish then holing it. But because they were on good lines with good speed, many of those went in.
It worked on the practice green. Would it work on the course?
I ended up having one of the best putting days I’ve had recently. I holed a number of good putts, but if I didn’t hole it, I always had a really easy tap in, even putting from as far as 60 feet away. My lag putting was terrific. It also had a really calming effect. It took pressure off my long game. I knew I wasn’t going to three putt, and I knew that if I put it on the green I had a chance of making it, and a certain two-putt.
How to Make More Putts
Sep 18th
In “Zen Putting: Mastering the Mental Game on the Greens”, Dr. Joseph Parent redefines making a putt. He putts it this way, if you started your putt on the line you intended, at the speed you intended, then you made your putt. This is important becuase it takes pressure away from holing the putt, and paradoxically leads to holing more putts.
Two rounds ago I took about 34 putts. For comparison the average PGA tour player will take about 30 putts per round. In my latest round, I only needed 27 putts. That’s a big difference. So how did that happen?
I have found that applying Dr. Parent’s definition of making putts is very helpful. It gets you focusing on the quality of your process. Getting comfortable with this method should help especially in higher pressure situations. If you become accustomed to focusing on the process it will release some of the pressure. Once I have picked out my line, I find that the most important thing is to get the speed right. This comes from trusting your feel.
In my putting practice lately I have focused on feeling the right speed on the practice stroke, and repeating my practice stroke when actually putting a ball. It has lessened the need to hit it harder, or to ease up on it. And has made it much easier to putt consistently. As you begin to trust your ability to fel the right speed, you begin to feel less pressure. Here is why.
If you don’t have good control of your speed, you attempt a tentative putt that either adds speed because you don’t feel the ball is going to reach the hole, or a decelerating stroke that ensures the putt won’t reach the target. Do this often enough and you end up with 4,5,6 footers for your second putt. These are not exactly the easiest putts. However, when you can trust your speed, you will end up with a lot more tap ins. This increases confidence and lowers pressure. If you know you are going to have a simple tap in, it actually becomes much easier to read the line, and hit a confident putt. Confident putts have a better chance of following their intended line and going in the hole.
What is the best way to practice this?
Go to the practice green, set down a ball and take a some practice strokes. Really try to get a feel for the speed of the putt. When you are certain that you have the right speed down, address the ball, and hit it the same speed as your practice stroke. Now, you need to pay attention. You probably won’t hit it the same speed as your practice stroke. Without judging, notice what happened. Did you hit it softer or harder than the practice stroke? Do a few and you should begin to notice your particular tendencies. Soon you will be able to consistently putt with the same speed as the practice stroke. And when you do, you’ll start to see some good results.
Trusting your insticts
Sep 15th
When it comes to putting I think as amateurs we often don’t trust our instincts. When I’m putting poorly my speed is off. But what happens is that I will take some practice strokes that feel right, but when it’s time to actually putt, I won’t trust my initial practice strokes and I’ll either hit it harder than I need to or not give it enough juice.
Today I set out to reproduce my practice strokes. And my speed was pretty much right on all day. I think though this is one of those habits that just needs time. It takes time to trust your instincts. At least for me it does. But I think in the long run this will be a key to reaching scratch.
