Putting short!

[Lanctot]

I seem to always put short... the line is often good but I seem to find myself always putting short.

I have a Ping G5i. Would a heavier or lighter putter help me? Shorter or Longer shaft?

Or simply hit the greens and practice more often :P??

Thanks!!

[jbest]

I have the same issue...with chips too;

Last time I played I told everyone playing I was NOT going to leave a putt or chip short - I was intent on giving every ball a chance - no matter how far past I went.  Seemed to help because I was only short twice.

Key is to announce it at the tee box and you'll be embarrassed to leave it short again!

[Lanctot]

ahha thanks for that answer but it doenst quite answer my question as to whether or not weight in a putter can affect my distance

[spam]

I would say if you like your putter then you should work on your speed. I practice speed if my putts by setting up with 5 balls hit the first one and don't watch it or look at it. Then hit the next 4 the same way just trying to match the first one. I start long so say like 20 ft just try and hit your first ball 20 ft and don't watch or look at we're it goes then repeat with the other 5 balls then move to 15 ft and repeat so on and so on until you get to say a 5 footer

[Lanctot]

Originally Posted by spam

I would say if you like your putter then you should work on your speed. I practice speed if my putts by setting up with 5 balls hit the first one and don't watch it or look at it. Then hit the next 4 the same way just trying to match the first one. I start long so say like 20 ft just try and hit your first ball 20 ft and don't watch or look at we're it goes then repeat with the other 5 balls then move to 15 ft and repeat so on and so on until you get to say a 5 footer

Thanks!

I havent tried that many putters to say whether or not I really like mine!

[spam]

I would try an find one your comfortable with. I found a Rossa putter about 4 years ago and can't pull it out of the bag before that it was a cheap putter that I played forever. If there is a club I have a hard time changing its my putter. So if you really just don't like your putter ditch it or just try and spend some time with it and work on your speed. It sounds like speed is more of a issue over the putter being a issue. Just my thought

[teed off]

I seem to always put short... the line is often good but I seem to find myself always putting short.

I have a Ping G5i. Would a heavier or lighter putter help me? Shorter or Longer shaft?

Or simply hit the greens and practice more often :P??

Thanks!!

Might be the archer not the bow, try a putting lesson with a club pro to find out why you are consistently short.

[georgep]

The weight of the putter should not cause you to consistently hit putts short.  You should still be able to adjust the distance of your putts over the course of a round.

I would practice distances as the previous poster suggested. Another thing to try is putting to a spot 18-24 inches past the hole. Obviously, be sure to locate your target spot taking the break of the green into account. You want the hole to get in the way as the ball rolls to your target. Make that spot the last thing you look at before putting or even try looking at it while you putt.

[Wardy]

You'll be hitting putts short, because you don't follow through with the putter. I bet you're paranoid about hitting it too far?

[PirateJim]

I have struggled with leaving putts short, then blasting the next one way past.  Part of my problem was really with my stroke; it was okay for short putts but I couldn't seem to add incremental power to it very easily.  I've been working on that aspect and continue to do so.

Swapping to a putter that gave me a bit more feedback than my Odyssey seems to have helped too, although I suspect that simply spending more time on the practice green is what has done the most good.  Putting is all about feel, and I don't know any way to develop feel than by practice.   Whether it be putting or the short pitch shots around the green, practice may not make perfect, but it will almost certainly make better.

[Tee2Trees]

Maybe this is answer you are looking for:

In my experience, heavier putters cause me to leave putts short.  I have found that lighter putters give me better distance control and heavier putters maybe give me better accuracy to the line.  I think the reason is that the lighter putter becomes more of an extension of your hand vs being a heavy instrument.  Taken to the extreme, it would seem that rolling the ball up to the cup with your bare hand is going to be more accurate in terms of speed rather than rolling it up there while wearing a weighted arm band.  I try to stay away from the heavier putters now.  Even the venerable Odyssey 2 ball is designed to minimize weight with hollow construction and an aluminum insert.