Averaging 37 putts per round????

[metbid]

I have found that if I start missing 3 - 4 footers, it is because I am taking the putter club head too far back which allows for too much thinking, time to get off line, miss-speed, yipping, etc.  Maybe at the practice green try to find a minimum take away that still gets the ball to the cup.

[bubble]

I believe that if you putt bad your technique is bad and the roll is not good, your mind is cheated and can't understand.

putting is the most technical part of golf. it's harder to roll in 90% of the time at 2 yards than hit a FW 90% the time at 200 yards.

there is nothing personal about putting. thats a fake to sell swing lessons.

take putting courses and a standard putter in you bag, no fake big grips or big heads etc..

[DrvFrShow]

2 hours ago, Mr. Desmond said:

I think Ray Floyd has a back issue; he went to a 36 inch putter.

I have a 37" putter and a 40" putter. It's standing in the bent over position. I tried a long putter with the anchored stroke on the practice green a couple years ago and that was a godsend for my back, but that stroke has been banned. Making life more difficult for seniors. Might try side-saddle.

[Mr. Desmond]

Just now, DrvFrShow said:

I have a 37" putter and a 40" putter. It's standing in the bent over position. I tried a long putter with the anchored stroke on the practice green a couple years ago and that was a godsend for my back, but that stroke has been banned. Making life more difficult for seniors. Might try side-saddle.

Tried a long putter without anchoring it?

[DrvFrShow]

It's really been too cold outside to try anything. Like I said I have a 40" putter and might try something like this when the weather warms up.

 

[vangator]

I average in the mid 30's for putts per round.  I hit a lot of GIR and if I putt from the frog's hair or just off, I count that as a putt since I am putting.  I miss far too many 3-4 footers.  My putter is 33" but I usually choke down on it a few inches.

On good greens, I consider myself a good putter.  I make those 3-4 footers.  But on the course I usually play, I have no idea how the ball will break, so I just poke and hope.  I'm a good lag putter, even from 3-4 feet sometimes.

[allenc]

One reason for underperforming on 3-4 footers but doing fine on 6-10 footers might be that having the hole in your peripheral vision messes up your stroke.  I think that happens to me sometimes.  I've tried a couple things that seem to help: Either tilt my head away from the hole or close one eye so I can only see the ball.  Or, alternatively, look directly at the hole for short ones so I can't see the ball.  

[iacas]

22 hours ago, bubble said:

putting is the most technical part of golf. it's harder to roll in 90% of the time at 2 yards than hit a FW 90% the time at 200 yards.

I disagree with that completely. Putting is by far the easiest part of golf.

22 hours ago, bubble said:

there is nothing personal about putting. thats a fake to sell swing lessons.

I don't even know what that means. Putting is also extremely personal, so long as only a few conditions are met (three, IMO). I have no idea what the part about "fake" and "sell swing lessons" is about.

[vangator]

1 hour ago, allenc said:

One reason for underperforming on 3-4 footers but doing fine on 6-10 footers might be that having the hole in your peripheral vision messes up your stroke.  I think that happens to me sometimes.  I've tried a couple things that seem to help: Either tilt my head away from the hole or close one eye so I can only see the ball.  Or, alternatively, look directly at the hole for short ones so I can't see the ball.  

I under perform on 3-4 footers, but I don't do fine on 6-10 footers.  What's worse than underperforming?  Suck?  I think I make one 6-10 footer per round.  If I make anything longer, it means I didn't hit the putt the way I intended and it went in.

[allenc]

2 hours ago, vangator said:

I under perform on 3-4 footers, but I don't do fine on 6-10 footers.  What's worse than underperforming?  Suck?  I think I make one 6-10 footer per round.  If I make anything longer, it means I didn't hit the putt the way I intended and it went in.

Right, your post suggested you're bad at reading greens or play lots of bumpy greens.  I wasn't directing my suggestion at you, just anyone who thought it might be helpful.  Especially the op since he said he was worst at 4 feet and in.

By underperform I just mean make a lower percentage from a certain distance than you think you should or than typical players make.

Personally, I do pretty well from 3-4 feet but misread or mis-direct the majority of 6-10 footers.

[DrvFrShow]

I've also noticed that having the hole in peripheral vision with glasses distorts where the hole actually is, and this doesn't help. I do putt better when I take off my sunglasses and putt. I tried this one round and had a 32 putt round, but it was a real pain to do it. Just another reason to try side saddle. I picked up a 48" Odyssey putter for $60.

[Golfingdad]

7 hours ago, allenc said:

One reason for underperforming on 3-4 footers but doing fine on 6-10 footers might be that having the hole in your peripheral vision messes up your stroke.  I think that happens to me sometimes.  I've tried a couple things that seem to help: Either tilt my head away from the hole or close one eye so I can only see the ball.  Or, alternatively, look directly at the hole for short ones so I can't see the ball.  

Seems like closing an eye would be dangerous as it would screw with your depth perception.  Looking at the hole is starting to become an option for a lot of people since Spieth began doing it, it seems.

I'm still interested in hearing a more detailed explanation from @JapanDave on whats causing all the putts.

[vangator]

4 hours ago, allenc said:

Right, your post suggested you're bad at reading greens or play lots of bumpy greens.  I wasn't directing my suggestion at you, just anyone who thought it might be helpful.  Especially the op since he said he was worst at 4 feet and in.

By underperform I just mean make a lower percentage from a certain distance than you think you should or than typical players make.

Personally, I do pretty well from 3-4 feet but misread or mis-direct the majority of 6-10 footers.

I don't take anything personal.  Everything is in fun.  I think I'm going to bend the hosel on one of my putters that is too flat.  I really like the alignment aids.  I'm going to regrip my regular putter with a smaller diameter grip.  I've got a Winn 1.60 right now.  That's similar to the Super Stroke 5.0 I think.

 

3 hours ago, DrvFrShow said:

I've also noticed that having the hole in peripheral vision with glasses distorts where the hole actually is, and this doesn't help. I do putt better when I take off my sunglasses and putt. I tried this one round and had a 32 putt round, but it was a real pain to do it. Just another reason to try side saddle. I picked up a 48" Odyssey putter for $60.

I wear monofocal glasses when I play golf instead of my progressive lens.  I have very little peripheral vision, so that's not one of my many problems.  I'm probably legally blind in my left eye.  Something like 20 / 3200. 

I tend to be pretty decent at hitting my line.  It's just that my line stinks.  I tend to over read putts, because I hate to miss on the low side.  They have no chance of going in.  However, I think I miss just as many high as I do low. 

[JapanDave]

On 2015/12/20 at 1:44 AM, Golfingdad said:

Just based on two things: 79 and 37, it sounds like you strike the ball well enough to hit a lot of greens, but not necessarily within close proximity to the hole.

I average several fewer putts than you, but it's a safe bet it's for one reason alone: my approach shots stray just enough more than yours such that I miss the green and then pitch it closer.  It's very easy to average 31 putts while hitting only 7 greens.

Your solution is threefold:.

1. Work on hitting your line every time on those 4-5 footers so you make more of them.

2. Work on the speed of the lag putting such that the 4 and 5 footers are 2 or 3 footers more often.

3. Work on the ball striking such that the lag putts start from closer as well.

Youve possibly got the makings of a scratch game based on what I'm guessing!!  Good luck!!!

Yes, I tend to hit a good share of greens, but like you said, most are over 15ft from the hole and more.  

Lately I have been blowing out my scores with an untimely OB which results in a double or even tripple bogey. One of my recent games I had 14 pars with 3 doubles and one tripple. Had a few 3 putts in there as well.

On 2015/12/20 at 4:02 AM, Patch said:

Since everything that needs to be said about putting has been,  I have one question for the OP. 

Do you every use your putter instead of a wedge when off the green? I might be wrong but I have always thought that when using a putter when not on the actual green, did not count as a putting stroke. If this is the case, then perhaps you are averaging something less than 37 putts.

On another note I average 29 putts per 18 holes,  and can shoot 79s. Go figure. 

No , chip most times unless the the ball in on nice short fringe grass or is relatively flat around the green and the grass is very short beyond the fringe (Very rare) And I am only counting strokes when I am actually on the green. Put it this way, I blow about 3 or 4 birdy chances most games.

Thanks for the great replies guys, I can see that my speed is probably a big problem, but I am also guessing that my aim is bad as well. Lots of things to work out for sure.

Edited December 22, 2015 by JapanDave

[onthehunt526]

The problem more than likely isn't the four-footers, probably more than likely lag putting.

@JapanDave here's my question if you are averaging 37 putts per round and average 79, on the 10-12 or so greens that you hit per round, how long is your average first putt? 

You could A) be blowing your birdie putts past, or B) lag putting is your issue.

[pganapathy]

A suggestion for putting is to pick a spot say a foot away from your ball on the line you want your ball to start on and focus on getting the ball going on the correct line.  It is a lot easier to set up for a spot a foot away.  If you hit that spot but miss the putt, especially from close by, then either the speed or the read is wrong.

[RH31]

On ‎12‎/‎20‎/‎2015 at 7:32 AM, JapanDave said:

Hey all, so over the last six months I have averaged 37 putts per round with an average score of 79. I have come to the conclusion that I suck at putting. Anyone have any advise on how to improve this? And BTW, my most missed putt is usually within 4ft, which of coarse entrails a 3 putt.

 

I didn't start putting well until I figured out what works for me. Green reading, setup, stroke,

practice, I more or less know what works best for me.

 

I read every putt like I'm going to make it. 2ft or 50ft I read the line the same. I look at the putt from the low side of the hole and check the slope from the side. If I can't decide on a line, I ask myself where would this ball go if I putted it straight at the hole? Surprisingly, I find the break dead on using this method.

I need to setup with my eyes directly over the ball. I sometimes choke down further on 3-4 footers to make sure of this. I tap the putter lightly on the ground before the stroke to ensure a smooth takeaway. Very slight forward press gets things going.

When I'm working on my stroke, I practice putts 10ft and shorter. If you can be a good putter from this range, your lag putting will improve by default. You won't be as tense over those long ones.

I like to pick a putt that has a slight right to left break. That way I know if I miss, It was my stroke and not a misread. So, I stay on this same line and jar putts from 2-10ft. I look from my ball, follow the intended line to the hole, then follow the line back to my ball and stroke it. I try to not look at my ball as it goes towards the hole. I listen for the putt to drop. I go back and forth on this same line, it really builds confidence.

At home, on the carpet. I simply putt on ball into another. It makes me focus on the line and striking the putt firmly. If you can putt on ball directly into another ball, you stroke is dead on.

If I need to practice for speed, I putt one ball and different holes, different lengths.

If my putting goes south, I'm either peeking, not lined up with my eyes over the ball, or soling the putter too heavily.

Hope you can find a tip in there somewhere that helps.

[JapanDave]

16 hours ago, pganapathy said:

A suggestion for putting is to pick a spot say a foot away from your ball on the line you want your ball to start on and focus on getting the ball going on the correct line.  It is a lot easier to set up for a spot a foot away.  If you hit that spot but miss the putt, especially from close by, then either the speed or the read is wrong.

Probably average about 30ft. I am pretty sure I am reading them correct, but I must admit I leave a fair few putts short of the hole on those 4 footers. I get worried that I will go too far past the hole and be left with another putt I don't want. So I guess it is taking the safe route and NOT hitting a 4 putt, but obviously that does nothing for my score.