4-5 ft putts killing me - need any advice on how you approach them

[MrDC]

Practice, I'm not saying that you don't, but most that struggle with the putter don't practice enough, a quick ten minutes while waiting for the tee is not enough, a good hour or more is needed frequently.

Because putting is all about touch and confidence, it's not a mechanical thing, all these methods and fancy classes really come down to one thing- practice, they may be learning how to make the special sauce but in the end the real secret is that they are simply practicing more.
 

[RH31]

I try to hit 4-5 putts with enough pace to take a little break out of them. I'm not really trying to bounce the ball off the back of the hole, just trying to keep maximum break to about a ball if possible. Obviously, you can't do this with a fast downhill twisting putt.

I visualize the line I want to hit the putt on, from the ball to the hole, and from the hole to the ball.

I use the line on my putter as a my guide for alignment. Once I settle in, I trace the line from ball to hole, then the line from hole back to ball, then stroke the putt.

[colin007]

i started making a lot more of those 5 footers when i got my putter. i couldnt properly aim the putter that i had.

[dave s]

Once I believe the line is established on the putt, I replace mark with ball matching the alignment line on the ball to the putting line.  My putter has an alignment line as well.  I line up the ball alignment line, putter head alignment line and try to move the putter straight back and straight through striking the ball center face.

What has helped me more than the free alignment aids on ball and putter is practice.  Before each round, I hit the practice green and complete the following drill.  Two balls from 4 sides of a hole.  Make 2', 3' and 5' putts TWICE from each of the four positions around the hole.

It's a good drill for seeing and getting used to the ball go in the hole almost every time. The result, hopefully, is that when the 2-5' putts present themselves during the round they become nearly automatic makes.

One stat I keep is how many 'makeable putts' I miss during an 18 hole round.  The number is usually 1 per round.  If I miss two I'm not happy. Miss 3 and it's a horrible putting day.

Practice MAKING them, seeing them go in the hole and you'll likely make them during your round.

dave

[jsgolfer]

3 hours ago, inthehole said:

Problem is my chipping and lag putting are decent, but I typically l can't get them to <3' & wind up leaving them 4-5 ft out, so I have a large amount of them every round.   I bet I make 25% of them ... seriously, it's that bad.   If I miss 4 or 5 of these a round, it will take me from a good round for me (83) to an 88 - this is a big problem. 

I'm having the same problem right now.  I miss so many 3-5 footers it's awful.  I shot 78 Saturday with 4 three putts and 79 Sunday with 5 three putts.  Now, my three putts are from 30 feet or more, but when you miss 4-5 three to five foot putts, it drives you nuts. 

[Marty2019]

I gotta suggestion.   Narrow the problem down.   Go to the practice green, and find a completely flat 5 footer.   See if you can make that 5 footer at an acceptable rate.   That should tell you if your problem is reading the green, or something in your stroke.   If you cannot sink that perfectly straight 5 footer at an acceptable rate, the problem is in your stroke, because there's no green reading involved.   It's a straight putt. 

[NeedAJoker]

Something simple I have done is draw a big long line with a sharpie over the printed alignment line you find on the ball to extend it.  I bought a little plastic guide that the ball snaps in and allows you to draw the line perfect every time.  After I set it on my target line, my only thought is to make sure I try as hard as possible to roll that line over itself.  If I see the black line wobble as it is heading towards the hole, I probably didn't hit it square.  If it rolls over itself and continues a straight line, more often than not it will drop as long as my read was right.  

Simple but it really dumbs everything when I am standing over the ball to "Make line go straight."

[natureboy]

6 hours ago, inthehole said:

Problem is my chipping and lag putting are decent, but I typically l can't get them to <3' & wind up leaving them 4-5 ft out, so I have a large amount of them every round.   I bet I make 25% of them ... seriously, it's that bad.   If I miss 4 or 5 of these a round, it will take me from a good round for me (83) to an 88 - this is a big problem. 

You have 4 or 5 4-5 foot putts per round for birdie, par, or worse?

[inthehole]

9 minutes ago, natureboy said:

You have 4 or 5 4-5 foot putts per round for birdie, par, or worse?

yep, all of the above.   Typically its for par or bogie, a couple birdie attempts per round from that distance isn't unusual - those are the ones that hurt when I miss them.

[natureboy]

13 minutes ago, inthehole said:

yep, all of the above.   Typically its for par or bogie, a couple birdie attempts per round from that distance isn't unusual - those are the ones that hurt when I miss them.

A couple birdie attempts per round at that distance is quite good for your HCP since the expected birdie percentage per round for your scoring level on a typical course would be about 4.5%.

The typical 50% make distance for your HCP would also be about 5.5' so your mid range putting does seem well below average. 25% make distance would be ~ 9.5'.

Might be helpful to do several benchmark tests with 10 balls mixing up the line from a few distances between 3 & 10 feet. Record your make / miss at each distance to get an actual measurement of your percentages. That's your 'realistic' putting benchmark that approximates using both your green reading and ability to hit the line & distance. Then also do some sets of straight putts at different distances to strictly test your ability to hit the line. The comparison could tell you something.

[billchao]

This was a glaring weakness of mine at the beginning of last year. By the end of last year I turned it into a strength. AimPoint and SAM PuttLab FTW! 

Basically I learned what line I needed to hit and how to hit it.

[9wood]

10 hours ago, inthehole said:

It I keep a detailed golf log & after reading it over for the last couple seasons, it's evident short putting is a glaring weakness. I typically read both sides of the putt, but it's uncanny how many birdies I give away by missing the 4-5 footers.   My lag putting has improved significantly and I'm fairly solid from 3 ft an in - it's the makeable 4 - 5 footers that I consistently miss that really hurt me.  

I really need help with this ... can you guys give me any advice on how you approach these short putts ?    Once you establish your line, I'd like to know how you aim, what exactly you're aiming at, how you approach the putt, swing thoughts ... anything would be a help.   FYI - I don't draw a line on my ball & take the time to line up the line on the ball - maybe I need to start doing this ??

Really appreciate any help you can offer ... thx.

It often seems that I am able to make more 20-30 foot putts than 4-5 footers. But I have noticed that when I miss a 4-5 footer it's been when I have taken too much time lining it up and thinking about it. I have found that I am able to make more of those 4-5 footers when I don't take as much time lining them up and thinking about them. 

[dchoye]

On ‎13‎/‎01‎/‎2016 at 7:52 AM, inthehole said:

Problem is my chipping and lag putting are decent, but I typically l can't get them to <3' & wind up leaving them 4-5 ft out, so I have a large amount of them every round.   I bet I make 25% of them ... seriously, it's that bad.   If I miss 4 or 5 of these a round, it will take me from a good round for me (83) to an 88 - this is a big problem. 

keep a record. I think slightly better than 50% make from that distance is consider average for scratch golfer.

I would try to practice as many 4-5 footers from different angles. uphill, downhill, flat, big breaker, tiny breaker etc and see which ones cause more trouble.

flat ones should be the easiest though. Maybe its you aren't reading the break properly?

Edited January 14, 2016 by dchoye

[nickyreno]

I approach most if my putts by walking up to them 

[Gunther]

I missed a frickin 2 footer today, which I haven't done in months.  Grrr.  But, the reason I'm a decent short putter I think is because I keep my left wrist solid and line my putter up to the target accurately.  I don't mark the ball with a line but I make sure that putter head is exactly perpendicular to whatever my target is.  From 4 feet, it's typically the hole.

Another thing I do on shorties is I look at the back of the cup, particularly on dead straight ones (which most are from that length, or you can make them so with your pace).  

These things have helped me become what I believe is an above-average putter.

[Lefty-Golfer]

I didn't read every response but the obvious thing to me is work on your lag putting so you don't have many 4 or 5 footers...not being a smart ass just that it seems to me unless you are constantly looking for 1 putt pars you won't have a tremendous amount of them during a round if your lag putting improves.

[Dave325]

On January 14, 2016 at 6:13 PM, Gunther said:

I missed a frickin 2 footer today, which I haven't done in months.  Grrr.  But, the reason I'm a decent short putter I think is because I keep my left wrist solid and line my putter up to the target accurately.  I don't mark the ball with a line but I make sure that putter head is exactly perpendicular to whatever my target is.  From 4 feet, it's typically the hole.

Another thing I do on shorties is I look at the back of the cup, particularly on dead straight ones (which most are from that length, or you can make them so with your pace).  

These things have helped me become what I believe is an above-average putter.

I too miss a lot of short putts. I like your idea of focusing on the back of the hole... I'm goin to try that. Speed is one of my downfalls.... I either leave them short or end up with the putts that rim the cup and spin out, which are really frustrating. I think some of that is pulling the putt off-line... Trying to work on my pendulum swing, flow and grip to correct this issue. I think I found some good things about the grip that seems to help, but it's still early in that process.

[Marty2019]

I still think most people miss these putts because they are peeking at the hole and not holding their head still.   My short putting improved immensely after I decided not to look at the hole even after I hit the putt.   Even eye movement affected me.   It's hard to keep your head still when the hole is right there, just 5 feet away.   Everyone wants to talk about all sorts of other reasons why we miss these putts, but sometimes, the answer is very simple. 

http://puttingzone.com/MyTips/short.html