My Putting is Ridiculous & Letting Me Down

At least that's how I feel at the moment.

Tee to green I seem to be playing pretty well, but my last 5 rounds I've averaged around 40 putts per round out of an average total score of about 91. I reckon for a mid-teen handicapper I should be putting in around the 30 mar. Is this realistic?

May well be time to invest in a putting lesson or 2.

My putts have been hitting the forties lately but i have been counting putts from off the green. What really annoys me is to skim the hole from 20-30 feet then miss the little 2 footer on the way back. Of course i should be thinking of improving my chipping and getting closer to the hole in the first place.

 Grahan, if it's a technique thing then lessons may but if it's a head thing (I'm assuming you putted well before) then change your grip or a good point that Chris Perry mentioned which I used to good effect was telling yourself 'this is a gimme' from the two foot region.

Patrick, yep good tip.  I do that from the 4 foot mark. Level greens it's in the hole, line up and hit with commitment, jobs a good un

From greater than 10 foot I also aim for an imaginary hole of 4 foot in diameter with the actual hole the cente, this gets me to the 4 foot mark above

So for me - putting okay, rest of the game *****************    I will start another thread on the short game help I need!

Inside 3 foot I've started taking my putter back a couple of inches and powering through to the hole as opposed to an equi distant back and forth stroke which I use for all my other putts. At the moment I am finding this to be more effective and not lipping out like I used to. Might be worth a try on the practice green. Confidence increases after sinking a few like this and the idea of 'this is a gimme' becomes reality.

TBH, my putting has got worse as the rest of my game has got stronger. Typical really!!

Putts of greater than about 10 feet I leave short and the shorter putts I hit too hard. Used to average about 33/34 putts per round now I'm struggling to break 40. 

20 feet+ putts I aim to get it withing a bin lid of the hole. I'm playing tomorrow so I'll see how I get on with some of the advice above.

PS thanks for the PM Wayne, I may well give him a ring if I can't solve it myself.

Well Graham, I have just taken 40 putts today, so I know how you feel.

You give me a lesson in putting every time we play, David. No need to constantly rub it in.

I thought I was seeing you on Monday evening, Stuart.

Well today was erratic to say the least. I went round in 83 and took 36 putts.

1 putted on 6 holes

2 putted on 8 holes

3 putted on 3 holes 

and

5 putted on 1 hole when I was on the green in regulation!!!!

Think my biggest problem is my putting stroke isn't smooth all the time. Sometimes I feel my whole upper body moving, other times it's just my shoulders. 

My round today should've and could've been so much better.

I find a good tip is to pick your line to the hole and follow it back to something around 5inches in front of the ball, a mark, a blade of grass, whatever. Then putt over this mark. Works pretty well for me.

 Graham, it's a big improvement but 5 putts?! It's got to be a confidence thing. I think you've got to practice your putting stroke. I'd start off ensuring you're swinging through the same line and hitting the ball squarely. Don't bother hitting balls, just put one ball a couple of cm's from the toe and another ball a couple of cm's from the heel and get the feel of swinging through the gap without touching either ball, you can do this in the house. Be mindfull and keep your head still, also be aware that your arms and shouders form a triangle and it is only that triangle that should move. Then it's a matter of finding your range and reading the greens.

 Graham, it's a big improvement but 5 putts?!

Tell me about it Patrick. 2nd shot landed on the front of the green a good 40 foot from the hole. Left my 1st putt about 12 feet short, 2nd one went about 3 foot past, return putt was then downhill, lipped out and went about 3 foot past again, then made the same mistake again and put my 4th putt about 2 feet past the hole. Finally knocked it infor a triple bogey when I should've been walking off with a bogey at worst.

All this came after sinking a left to right 25 footer on the previous green for a birdie!!!!!!!!

I've got an Eyeline Putting Plane System but to be honest I can't get the hang of it.

As  Nicklaus putts is that what you mean Pat, something been wrong with your typo finger too,where've you been?

It's Defo how Nicklaus putts and something i resort to if struggling  but not something I do constantly ,I use a more conventional style as taught by Phil Gazeley. Theres a few I don't miss your not one of them Pat

Graham

Ive had a look at your progress over the last 6-7 months and it is fantastic. The irony of hitting more fairways and more GIR will result in more putts per round because a shot 5yds right of the green then chipped on will result in a 1 or 2 putt. But a ball on the green in reg may result in being 35ft from the hole and a probable 2 or maybe 3 putt. So maybe your puttings not as bad as you think cos your scores are coming down.

Thanks for that David, you may well have a point with the GIR's.

I think my main problem is keeping my body still and developing a consistent putting stroke. I seem to be ok when it comes to reading the line of the putt. I've tried the Nicklaus method before  and it's worked from time to time, butI don't think it's something I could do all the time.

I think over the winter months I'll spend more time on the putting green rather than the range.

Graham

not offering advice, but something to think about.  During Saturdays Golfshake event I had the opportunity to watch a lot of people putting while I was out taking some of the photos.  The greens were pretty fast, very true but with some major undulations and more subtle borrows and some of the pin positions were testing.  I saw a lot of 3 putts (and a couple of 4's) and I have to say that it was more to do with a lack of concentration than technique.  Most of the players were looking pretty tired (it was a pretty tough course on the legs and the head) and their comments backed this up.  On lots of occasions I saw people lining up 20ft putts, taking their time, getting it to within 4ft or so but then just glancing at the next putt and subsequently 2 (and 3) putting from close range.  A few more seconds picking the ball up and going through the routine again would, I'm sure, have reduced this. 

I too have been having putting problems lately. However I found that by swopping to a heavier headed putter I have gained a lot more control on the putts of 4ft or less.

Well thanks to the advice and comments from you guys I've now got my putting back under control. Last 5 or 6 rounds I've been taking 34/35 putts, much happier now and my putting stroke now seems to be much steadier and smooth.

As long as you get sorted by next April 

Just been looking at my putting stats for the last couple of months, 19% 1 putt, 72% 2 putts with an average of 33 putts per round - and only 3 recorded 4 putts since I started keeping track (2 of them were in Portugal).  Personally I think thats a pretty good average (although it still doesn't get me into the top 50 of the virtual leaderboard, even in my category!) so thought I'd have a think about how I do it.  My conclusion?  I don't worry about putting - every time I step up I think I'm going to hole it.  Experience tells me that that's far from being true, I leave a lot short - but for the next one I go with exactly the same attitude.  Call it optomism, stupidity or blind faith - it's something I've never worried about.

Mark - the effect you describe is called Parallax Error.  Unfortunately with the ball being spherical your eyes are always the centre of the ball! (sorry, bit pedantic I know).  I get over this by adding a couple of extra marker lines on my putter head.  I know now that when the ball is in between the two outer lines as long as the upper and lower centre marks are aligned then the head is square to the ball - simple really.

St.Andrews greens are very large and putting there is indeed a game all on its own, Alan, so I would not get too disappointed about your putting at that course, as the circumstances are unique, like no other.

Hitting 15 greens anywhere else in the country and you would probably have shot a round under par, I know I would.

 Allan, there has been recent threads about swing and having seen yours I'm surprised at your handicap '(til Malcolm Fell told me about your putting) so all I can say is forget about the rest of your game and concentrate on the putting. DO NOT assume that you're crap with a putter. Believe me it is a confidence thing (followed up with a bit of technique) as I have a 'spread' if tht's the right word from 27 to 44 putts. That alone should impress us on the importance of putting,

 Where am I right now? Well I think I'm in charge of the putt and this f***ing green will not deter me from his birdie/par/bogey (funilly enough an eagle yesterday which I didn't get..but thdrd you go) and it has got be the better attitude of 'do I think I can get down in two?'

 Looking forward to playing with inCGL.

I think that my p[oor putting is down to playing too many different courses. It does not allow for grooming a decent putting stroke.

Last Friday at Cotgrave Place, Monday at Sherfield, Wednesday at Blue Mountain, Thursday at South Winchester and Friday at Paultons Park.

Five dfferent courses in a week and I wonder why the putts will not drop. I am my own worst enemy.

John you have a v good point

I played v well on Fri with reasonable putting but played Hollins Hall yesterday and had 46 putts....forty bloody six putts. Tee to green was excelent save one penalty drop

 Sorry about this punctuation but just trying out my daughters laptop

it

Had 10 3 puttsidtfor a               hon, you have a good point