Jump to content
IGNORED

I Love Practicing Putting!


Ben
Note: This thread is 4212 days old. We appreciate that you found this thread instead of starting a new one, but if you plan to post here please make sure it's still relevant. If not, please start a new topic. Thank you!

Recommended Posts

And I used to absolutely hate it. I used to think that no matter how much time spent on the putting green, that it would never really translate to on-course, or tournament conditions. I'd think to myself, "I could sink putts all day long on the practice green and be at a total loss in a round. Why do I even practice putting?"

But, I've had a break-through and complete change of heart. I haven't been able to work on my swing for a weeks because of an injury to my hand so all I do is putt now and have developed a really fun routine.

100 short range putts (1'-3')

50 mid range putts (4'-8')

18 "holes of golf" (10'-35') Playing 18 holes and seeing how many one-putts I make, pretending they are birdies. My record is 8under so far

18 ultra long putts (35'+) Trying to hole each putt, but also making sure I two-putt at worst.

With each segment, I go through my putting routine as though it was an actual putt on the course. And that's where the break-through came to me. Some of you may be thinking to yourself "uhh, duh Ben". But this really clicked for me. By acting out my entire routine I feel as though these putts actually mean something. I feel great and overwhelmed with a sense of accomplishment when I roll in putts number 100 and or those long biridies. Its not just me making meaningless putts anymore.

On top of that I got some really good putting advice from a guy I played with named Berry Henson. He's had some Nationwide and PGA Tour experience, along with Canadian Tour and just passed Asian Tour Q School last week. Anyway, this guy can putt! In our round that day he was 8under after 10 holes! After my round we were sitting down for lunch and I took the chance to ask him how he was so good. He was nice enough to give me some pointers and I took that to my game. I started making putts and felt a new confidence. Now that I've put this routine in play, I actually feel like a great putter. Where before, I had the confidence in my short range putts, but not so much in the long range guys. Hooray for putting and putting practice that actually works!

  • Upvote 2

Callaway RazrFit Extreme 9.5 w/Project X 6.5
Callaway XHot Pro 15* 3Wood w/Project X 6.5
Callaway XTour 18* 2h w/S300
Callaway XHot Pro 4/5 irons w/S300
Callaway XForged III 5-PW irons w/S300
Callaway Forged 52*/58* Wedges
Odyssey 7 Versa 90
Callaway Hex Black Tour

Link to comment
Share on other sites




Originally Posted by Ben

I started making putts and felt a new confidence. Now that I've put this routine in play, I actually feel like a great putter. Where before, I had the confidence in my short range putts, but not so much in the long range guys. Hooray for putting and putting practice that actually works!


Confidence and attitude is a great thing...I recently started putting while on the way to work and I am enjoying it as well.  I am going to add some things that you mentioned tomorrow morning.  Thanks for sharing.

Cobra LTDx 10.5* | Big Tour 15.5*| Rad Tour 18.5*  | Titleist U500 4-23* | T100 5-P | Vokey SM7 50/8* F, 54/10* S, SM8 58/10* S | Scotty Cameron Squareback No. 1 | Vice Pro Plus  

Link to comment
Share on other sites


Putting is so much confidence, when you got it, you drain them from anywere and it gets fun. I love seeing the face of the guy i am playing againts in league when you drop a 20 footer for a par to tie the hole. The best thing to do is to try to remember those moments when you make putts. Everytime you hit a good putt, after it goes in, try to recall that feeling of the contact and try to remember the sound of the ball going into the hole. Having that sort of memory will help draw you back if you start to loose it. For me, it was two putts from last years scramble. Played on Donald Ross course, i made a 30 footer for birdie, and a 20 footer for birdie. Those putts were solid and perfect, i still can remember them vividly in my mind. I know when i putt i can putt like that.

Matt Dougherty, P.E.
 fasdfa dfdsaf 

What's in My Bag
Driver; :pxg: 0311 Gen 5,  3-Wood: 
:titleist: 917h3 ,  Hybrid:  :titleist: 915 2-Hybrid,  Irons: Sub 70 TAIII Fordged
Wedges: :edel: (52, 56, 60),  Putter: :edel:,  Ball: :snell: MTB,  Shoe: :true_linkswear:,  Rangfinder: :leupold:
Bag: :ping:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Awards, Achievements, and Accolades

Totally! I've read Bob Rotella and that's what he says too. Always remember the good putts and practice watching them go in in your head. I have done that since reading that Putting Out of Your Mind book, but those were putts that I was making somewhat out of dumb luck. Now that I can actually make putts,and be able to practice them mentally, I'll be deadly!!!

Originally Posted by saevel25

Putting is so much confidence, when you got it, you drain them from anywere and it gets fun. I love seeing the face of the guy i am playing againts in league when you drop a 20 footer for a par to tie the hole. The best thing to do is to try to remember those moments when you make putts. Everytime you hit a good putt, after it goes in, try to recall that feeling of the contact and try to remember the sound of the ball going into the hole. Having that sort of memory will help draw you back if you start to loose it. For me, it was two putts from last years scramble. Played on Donald Ross course, i made a 30 footer for birdie, and a 20 footer for birdie. Those putts were solid and perfect, i still can remember them vividly in my mind. I know when i putt i can putt like that.



Callaway RazrFit Extreme 9.5 w/Project X 6.5
Callaway XHot Pro 15* 3Wood w/Project X 6.5
Callaway XTour 18* 2h w/S300
Callaway XHot Pro 4/5 irons w/S300
Callaway XForged III 5-PW irons w/S300
Callaway Forged 52*/58* Wedges
Odyssey 7 Versa 90
Callaway Hex Black Tour

Link to comment
Share on other sites


If you have a nice consistent putting stroke, confidence and some clue about reading greens you're golden.

I miss practicing on real greens and not carpets. Sigh.

Waiting out the 2 feet of snow that just dropped on the course....

Link to comment
Share on other sites


I enjoy practicing putting too. I've spent the last month or so working on rolling the ball straight down a visible line (I use a piece of string tied to two tees, or just the flagstick shadows in the late evening). This has greatly improved my ability to send the ball where I want it to go on the green. Now working on "seeing" that baseline in my mind out on the course.

Need to get better about sticking to my routine. Thanks for the reminder Ben.

Stretch.

"In the process of trial and error, our failed attempts are meant to destroy arrogance and provoke humility." -- Master Jin Kwon

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Awards, Achievements, and Accolades

I too am rediscovering the love of putting.  One thing that helped was that my wife got me a cool new putter for x-mas!  But something occurred to me this past winter as I was shooting some hoops for fun.  You don't always make them, and should not expect to make every one.  When playing basketball, you inevitably miss, but you don't kill yourself over it and it's forgotten as soon as you retrieve the ball.  I want to take that to my game.  Also, I've got some pretty strong fingers and wrists and I was prone to taking a lower arced faster shot, and I'd hit the inside of the rim all the time but half the time it would come back out.  I started taking a softer higher arc and voila!, sinking baskets left and right.  That little bit of finesse and timing helped me paint a great mental picture and gave me more patience to get the ball to the hole.  Went to a practice green in FL when visiting in-laws and I started to love putting again.  It always seems I get frustrated at my golf game towards the late months and somehow find the passion again through the waiting of the winter.

By the way, I love the sound of that practice routine.  I think I found myself a new way to practice!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Awards, Achievements, and Accolades

One thing that helps me is I normally use 1 ball to practice putting. The reason I do this is if I have 5 or 6 I tend to get fatigued and start to get into bad habits. I take my time during a practice session  and with 1 ball it helps me develop/ingrain my routine and treat each putt like I would on the course. Just like any other form of practice it's the quality, not the quantity. I find this regimen translates well out on the course.

Link to comment
Share on other sites


If your practicing on carpet, like we do in the north.. ;b, i would recommend practicing the following,

Tempo, i use to use an online metranome for this, easy to google..

I like to wrap two rubber bands around my putter, leaving only a small area in the center of the putter, and try to hit as many as i can solid in that spot, if you miss hit, the ball will hit the rubber bands

I could care less of the putter path, as long as the path is the same each time you can putt period. This whole idea of arc to arc, or arc to straight, or straight ot straight, as long as its the same each time you can putt because you know what your doing.

Basically in winter, up north, with out speed of greens or being able to read a green, just work on stroke only. I wouldn't even look up to see how far the ball goes. This can throw you off when you get on a real green.

Matt Dougherty, P.E.
 fasdfa dfdsaf 

What's in My Bag
Driver; :pxg: 0311 Gen 5,  3-Wood: 
:titleist: 917h3 ,  Hybrid:  :titleist: 915 2-Hybrid,  Irons: Sub 70 TAIII Fordged
Wedges: :edel: (52, 56, 60),  Putter: :edel:,  Ball: :snell: MTB,  Shoe: :true_linkswear:,  Rangfinder: :leupold:
Bag: :ping:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Awards, Achievements, and Accolades

That is a serious practice session.  I think you hit the nail on the head in regards to practice like it means something.  I do the same thing with the short game and I think it has helped tremendously around the greens.  People look at me strange as I'm cursing to myself on the practice green when I miss a putt I think I should have made but it is better than mindlessly hitting shot after shot.

Brian

Link to comment
Share on other sites


To me, it doesn't do anyone good to get upset while practicing. All that does, at least i think, is lead to the person loosing there composure on the course because they link that emotional response to hitting bad shots. I would just step back, and think of why you missed the putt if you noticed, if not then just forget it and continue.

Matt Dougherty, P.E.
 fasdfa dfdsaf 

What's in My Bag
Driver; :pxg: 0311 Gen 5,  3-Wood: 
:titleist: 917h3 ,  Hybrid:  :titleist: 915 2-Hybrid,  Irons: Sub 70 TAIII Fordged
Wedges: :edel: (52, 56, 60),  Putter: :edel:,  Ball: :snell: MTB,  Shoe: :true_linkswear:,  Rangfinder: :leupold:
Bag: :ping:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Awards, Achievements, and Accolades

Thanks for the post Ben.  I have always enjoyed practicing putting and agree with all the points that you made in regards to "how" to practice and how to make it more fun.

I find that playing games is definitely a way to practice and documenting records (for example, counting how many 8 footers you can make in a row without missing) and trying to beat that record everytime translates to executing that putt on the course.

Golf is a game that requires an immense amount of muscle memory and "feel" memory and ingraining the feel of your putt while practicing is a great thing!

Deryck Griffith

Titleist 910 D3: 9.5deg GD Tour AD DI7x | Nike Dymo 3W: 15deg, UST S-flex | Mizuno MP CLK Hybrid: 20deg, Project X Tour Issue 6.5, HC1 Shaft | Mizuno MP-57 4-PW, DG X100 Shaft, 1deg upright | Cleveland CG15 Wedges: 52, 56, 60deg | Scotty Cameron California Del Mar | TaylorMade Penta, TP Black LDP, Nike 20XI-X

Link to comment
Share on other sites




Originally Posted by saevel25

I like to wrap two rubber bands around my putter, leaving only a small area in the center of the putter, and try to hit as many as i can solid in that spot, if you miss hit, the ball will hit the rubber bands

I could care less of the putter path, as long as the path is the same each time you can putt period. This whole idea of arc to arc, or arc to straight, or straight ot straight, as long as its the same each time you can putt because you know what your doing.

That is a really cool idea!

And sorry leftygolfer but I agree with seavel25 on the anger management. We've got this kid that practices at my club and he is constantly belittling himself and slamming clubs on the range or practice green. Like we've all been discussing here, practice what you want to take to the course. Let the bad shots slide, and move on to the next.

By the way lefty, where are you playing poker?


Callaway RazrFit Extreme 9.5 w/Project X 6.5
Callaway XHot Pro 15* 3Wood w/Project X 6.5
Callaway XTour 18* 2h w/S300
Callaway XHot Pro 4/5 irons w/S300
Callaway XForged III 5-PW irons w/S300
Callaway Forged 52*/58* Wedges
Odyssey 7 Versa 90
Callaway Hex Black Tour

Link to comment
Share on other sites


Yesterday morning I went to the course first thing. It was a cold foggy day, so foggy that if you hit your driver, the ball would disappear, so I just skipped that and walked down the fairway to where I could see the green, barely.

I spent the round hitting two from 175 yards, two from 150 yards, and two from 125 yards.

Anyway, this is a putting practice thread, so I had six balls on the green (eventually). I practiced reading the green, lining up the putt, and stroking the putt, practicing in ways that were different than doing it on the practice green.

It was the best putting practice I have ever done--green-reading, approach puts, eight-footers, three-footers, all sorts of breaks and slopes, full putting routine on each putt, all under "real" course conditions.

I can't begin to describe the difference between doing all this on the practice green and on the greens around the course, but it is different. Maybe it's that being on the course puts an air of reality on putting that the practice green doesn't.

Anyway, this is a good time of year for you to try out something like this.

I finally got caught up to as I was approaching the eighth green. I let a solo play through and finished the round unhurried.

Link to comment
Share on other sites


  • 1 month later...

I've tweaked the routine a little. On the 100 short putts I will subtract a putt each time I miss.

Callaway RazrFit Extreme 9.5 w/Project X 6.5
Callaway XHot Pro 15* 3Wood w/Project X 6.5
Callaway XTour 18* 2h w/S300
Callaway XHot Pro 4/5 irons w/S300
Callaway XForged III 5-PW irons w/S300
Callaway Forged 52*/58* Wedges
Odyssey 7 Versa 90
Callaway Hex Black Tour

Link to comment
Share on other sites




Originally Posted by Ben

I've tweaked the routine a little. On the 100 short putts I will subtract a putt each time I miss.



Lol I'd be out there all day..

Driver: adams.gif Speedline 9032LS RIP Shaft (Stiff)

3 Wood: adams.gif Oviation 3Wood

Hybrids: taylormade.gif Rescue 18* 3H - 22* 4H

Irons: callaway.gif X-24 Hot Irons 5-PW

Wedges: cleveland.gif CG15 52, 56

 

Putter: odyssey.gif PT 82

Ball:  e6

Link to comment
Share on other sites


  • 1 year later...

I like this idea because it's a quick and easy set up. The practice game I do takes a bit to set up and some days, I just don't feel like setting it up which makes me suffer in the long run. I'll try this next time I get to the range.

2013 Nike VR_S Covert Performance Driver

2013 Nike VR_S Covert Perfomance 15° 3W

18° Burner 1.0 Superlaunch Rescue Hybrid

:mizuno: 4-PW MP-69 Irons

50°, 54° & 58° ATV wedges

Classic Collection #1 Black Putter

:bridgestone: Tour B330 Balls

2013 Tour v3 Laser Rangefinder w/ Jolt Technology

You don't know what pressure is until you play for five bucks with only two bucks in your pocket. -Lee Trevino

Link to comment
Share on other sites


Note: This thread is 4212 days old. We appreciate that you found this thread instead of starting a new one, but if you plan to post here please make sure it's still relevant. If not, please start a new topic. Thank you!

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now


  • Want to join this community?

    We'd love to have you!

    Sign Up
  • TST Partners

    TourStriker PlaneMate
    Golfer's Journal
    ShotScope
    The Stack System
    FlightScope Mevo
    Direct: Mevo, Mevo+, and Pro Package.

    Coupon Codes (save 10-15%): "IACAS" for Mevo/Stack, "IACASPLUS" for Mevo+/Pro Package, and "THESANDTRAP" for ShotScope.
  • Posts

    • Day 82: 3/18/24 Tried a Stack session but could not certify my warmup. Finished with indoor chips and putting. 
    • Day 96 (18 Mar 24) - Continued work with the Divot Board with the GW and hard foam balls.  Focused on small target/small miss…setup to hit target about 30yds out - success if it hit within 6’ circle of target, fail if outside.  Had decent success averaging about 3 out of 4 (hitting in groups of four).  
    • Wordle 1,003 3/6 🟩🟩🟩⬜⬜ 🟩🟩🟩⬜🟩 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩   felt a little like Wyndham when the first three green and I began the fist pump…
    • I'm relieved someone finally defined hiking. I was giddy when I saw these new TPI videos a day or so after they dropped. Very easy to understand the problem and solution the way they have presented it. Been working on fixing this for about a year and a half now. It's nice to be able to call it something so communication becomes easy.  I was working on more lateral and up too, but just having someone define it clearly in video form was so helpful for me to continue confidently with what I thought was wrong and how I had to fix it.  My conceptual error here was just trying to rotate like a tour pro but without including the necessary forward pressure/weight shift associated with enough lateral and upward motion of the pelvis.  This video is great too, as is Greg Rose.
    • Day 2.    couple mins of rolling putts end over end.    10 mins of Slow, mirror work, working on starting the downswing and impact wrist positions. Hit a couple balls into the net after.    Then finished with a couple chips to see if I could repeat what I worked on yesterday. 
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

Welcome to TST! Signing up is free, and you'll see fewer ads and can talk with fellow golf enthusiasts! By using TST, you agree to our Terms of Use, our Privacy Policy, and our Guidelines.

The popup will be closed in 10 seconds...