Your putting stroke can make up between 35 and 50 percent of your overall golf score. Yet many golfers, both amateurs and pros, spend most of their practice time working on their drives. Improving your putting stroke is one of the best ways to improve your overall golf score. These five tips will help you take strokes off of your overall golf game by improving your score on the putting green.
Keep Your Head Still
When putting, it is essential to keep your head still, even after you have hit the ball. Even the slightest movement of your head can cause your shot to miss. After you have lined up your shot, focus your eyes on the grass below the ball. Do not follow the ball with your eyes, but rather use your ears to determine whether or not you made the shot. By keeping your eyes on the grass, your head will not move even the slightest.
Use Your Shoulders and Arms
The shoulders and arms should be the cause of your movement. While your hands guide the putter, the arms and shoulders are the power behind the shot. Do not move your wrists, but lock them in place.
Reading the Line
One critical step to improving your putting score is learning to visualize the putting line. The putting line is the line connecting the ball to the hole. Think of a line drawn from the ball to the hole, taking into account anything along the path that could change the direction of the ball. After you have the path in your mind, align your shot, but remember to keep your head still when putting!
Tempo Is Key
The tempo of your putting shot is another important aspect of putting successfully. The backstroke and the forward stroke should be identical in length. If you are having trouble making straight shots, try to accelerate at the moment when the putter hits the ball.
Practice, Practice, Practice
While this tip may seem obvious, most golfers spend very little time practicing their putting strokes. The majority of practice time is spent on the driving range. If you really want to shorten your golf game, you must spend more time practicing putting. While practicing, you are learning your tempo, training your eyes and arms, and learning to the putting line. Be sure to practice short puts, even if the putting green is long. Remember, even the pros don’t make all of their long putting shots! With the right practice, and enough of it, you will find your golf game getting shorter as you improve your putting score!
