Missing Short Putts

[Varsity_Golf]

Lately, I have been missing alot of short (5-8) foot putts, and I have no idea why. I am starting to get psyched out by this. I've heard people call this the "Yips", but I really need to get over this by the time season comes (aug. 25). Should I simply be on the practice green working on these putts or is it a mental thing? or both???
Thanks,

Varsity_Golf

[TourSpoon]

Golf is extremely mental and this is another example as a lack of confidence and doubt will start to wear on you if you let it. Start practicing hitting those three footers until you are ten for ten and then move back to four feet and try the same. At five feet try for 90%, etc. Start working your way back so that at eight feet you are at 70%. By the time you get to eight feet you will start noticing some things and start to get the confidence back. Putting starts with confidence and that confidence allows you to make a tension free stroke.

[KEEPITSIMPLE]

What kills me are the 3,4 footers. I probably shouldn't be giving anyone tips on putting as I have tried everything and I am still a crappy putter. BUt from experience, I know for a fact it can be mental,because believe me I shot in the 80s before hitting 16 greens ,but that is why it is so important to work on your mechanics first and get them right so that you have the confidance from positive reinforcement. IMO, don't just work on making 8 footers, video tape yourself and make sure you have the right mechanic for your putting stroke. Boy, I only wish I had done this before my crappy mechanic permanently tarnished my putting psychic.

[andy101]

I agree with everyone on the confidence side. Very important to be confident with your putts. What I am working on at the moment and I find is a great practice is as follows.

When I am on the putting green at the range I, i read my putt, pick a line and putt to that line and thats it. If I miss the putt but miss it on the exact line that I aimed at, then I am happy. Why? Because I missed it because I just had the wrong line and not because I hit a bad putt. I find too many people get over the ball either have no clue and hope for the best or change their minds at the last second and this causes missing putts and affect you even more on the next putt because you missed the last one.

As soon as you start missing the putts that aren't on your line then you my have to look at how you putting or you lacking the confidence and you are not being true to the putt.

So in a nutshell, don't be scared. Putt to your line and be true.

[brgolf]

Stroke Technique

Place an object the same width as a golf hole, 8ft away, on a flat green and use it as a target. Set up an alignment aid behind your ball on the target line to ensure your putts are correctly lined up. Hit putts that would go well past your target to eliminate any break or imperfections on the green. By hitting putts like this I found that when accurately aligned, my stroke was trustworthy. Knowing that 40-45 of your 8ft putts are not pushed or pulled is what gives confidence and allows you to focus on alignment.

Alignment

This requires a pre shot routine where you evaluate the break of the green from behind the ball and behind the hole. Approach the ball from behind to align the putterhead with the target line or a mark on the green about a foot ahead of the ball. As you already know how hopefully good your technique is then any missed putts which most often be down to a misread.

Distance

Short putts for me are not a matter of feeling the distance but more feel is required the further you get from the hole. What I mean by this is that if you have a 3 foot putt the act of hitting it 3-4 1/2 ft can be almost entirely mechanical. In other words it is hard to go badly wrong here. Observe how on progressively longer putts it is easier to leave the ball short or go more than a couple of feet by. You require a little more feel but still a very mechanical stroke. You should easily get to a stage where putts inside 8 feet don't go disasterously wrong distance wise.

[Frito]

As a decent putter and shitty everything else i'd like to say that putting is 99% mental. If your strong enough to hit the ball 50 feet with your putter whats to stop every putt from that distance going in - your brain. hit the practice green and sink some easy ones then step it up from there. you'll get your feel back no worries.

[alf174]

I started the season missing short putts, finally worked it out by anchoring the right elbow against my mid-section and pulling the club face through with my left side. Starting making putts, raised my confidence, and allowed me to work on the other trouble spots of my game.

[lhshurdl3r]

Up until about 6 weeks ago I was atrocious in almost all aspects of putting (no lie). I started standing closer to the ball with a narrower stance and now I feel I have much more control over the putter, and a better feel for the stroke. In my past 8 rounds or so, I've only had four or five 3-putts... where as I'd sometimes have 3 or 4 in a single round. My stroke is a lot smoother, my distances are dialed in for the most part... and being closer to the ball has helped make alignment a lot easier.

[PooN]

I was having all sorts of issues with putting, mostly putting down the wrong line and pulling or pushing putts along the lip of the hole. I started setting up a little closer to the ball and sitting back on my heels a little while straightening out my back (sounds more complicated than it is) and my putts have been rolling on my line better.

[jamo]

How are you missing them? I find that when I start lipping out a lot I am hitting it too hard. The hard hit putts that lip out would fall if they were hit a little more softly.

[Leftygolfer]

5-8 foot putts aren't short putts. The tour average from that distance is around 50%. All you can do is start them on right line with the right speed. You can hit a perfect putt from that distance, hit a bump and not go in, or not break as it 95% of the time it does. Greens are living and growing. They aren't perfect even at the nicest clubs. Look at the putt sergio had to win the open. IMO he hit the perfect putt and it just didn't go in. There have been people who have studied this using robots and other things to roll the ball the exact same speed and line from 10 feet and some go in, some don't.

I really wouldn't get too worked up or start feeling like something is wrong. If your missing 3 footers, that is something to be concerned with, 5-8 footers, if you make 50% you are a good short putter.

[clonewars222]

I used to have this problem as well, but after doing a few drills I got better.

I used the tee drill to improve my speed. Even with those short putts, you can put too much speed on it and lip out or not take the intended break. To do this drill, simply put two tees on the putting green like goalposts and putt to it, getting the ball past the goalposts but as near as possible. Start at 3 feet, then 5 feet, etc. until you feel confident in each distance.

Another thing that screwed me up on the short putts was my excessive head movement. Luckily, I played with someone one day that noticed it and helped me out! Because my head was coming up as I stroked the ball, I was pulling the ball. Make sure you don't move your head.

All in all, if you align correctly (parallel) to intended line, and have the correct speed and stroke, then you'll be fine!

[breakout89]

5-8 ft putts don't exactly seem like tap ins to me

[Deryck Griffith]

All of the points mentioned so far are good ones. Another one to consider would be knowing which eye is your dominant eye. There are a huge percentage of people who don't realize that they have lined up wrong due to their less dominant eye fighting with their dominant eye. Next time you practice, try this.

Setup to the hole approximately 5 feet away and stand over the ball and aim to make your put. Before you actually putt the ball, close your less dominant eye and check to see how you are lined up when focusing with only your dominant eye. There is a good chance that you may not by lined up to where you thought were looking with both eyes. This problem is extremely amplified from shorter distances because you tend to focus more on aim and both eyes fight each other. When you close the less dominant eye, you ensure that you have lined up perfectly making this a great exercise to try out.

With the confidece in knowing that you are lined up perfectly, it takes that doubt out of the picture and enables you to focus 100% on making a good stroke on the ball.

[alf174]

There is a difference between "making the putt" & the ball dropping in the hole. If you putt, and the ball goes down your intended line to your intended distance, then you made your putt. That doesn't mean the ball ended up in the cup; you may not have read the break correctly. Happens all the time when you're lag putting.

[alomar123]

5-8 ft putts don't exactly seem like tap ins to me

Its because they arent, the pros miss them more than 50% of the time, but some of us here are just plain better than pros.lol

[saevel25]

Keep your head still. When you start missing them you start wanting to see if it is finally going to go in more and more, and you constantly check earlier to see if the ball goes in. After you putt, count to 2 before rotating your head, do not lift out of the stance, to check the putt. This will be good practice and you can fix alot of putting issues with a stable base and still head.

Now, keep track of how you are missing them. Putt on a straight stretch of green, and see if you miss them left or right. Just keep working at it till you gain confidence again. Remember, do not deaccelerate into the ball, don't be afraid to hit it past the hole a foot or two.

[saevel25]

If dave pelz is good for something its stats, the man can keep track of stats..

10'-15'
PGA: 30%
Scratch: 22%
10 HDCP: 19%
20 HDCP: 14%

Average 2nd Putt Length
Pro's: 2'5"
0 HDCP: 6'7"
10 HDCP: 7'11"
20 HDCP: 6'5"

Look at the disparity in putting, even at scratch golfers, Pro's average about 4-5 feet closer to the hole with there 2nd putts, this is on all putts.

So think about it, the reason they don't three putt, they have tap ins.

But also they only make 30% from 10'-15', i would suspect that doesn't increase much from 6'-10', maybe 45% of the time.

Also note,

Putts from 10' to 25', % of putts left short
Pro's: 15%
0 HDCP: 44%
10 HDCP: 53%
20 HDCP: 44%

So pros have an average of about 30-35% less on leaving putts short.

There is the disparity in putting, Speed, number one cuplret. Don't worry about line, line is always determined by speed, except on straight putts. Just find out what side it breaks to, get the line, than forget the line, its not there, now go to all speed