Why are YOU Missing Short Putts?

There is nothing more frustrating than missing putts up to 4 foot. You are standing directly over your ball and you can see the hole directly in front of you. This is especially frustrating when you know that your firm putt should not break to the left or right. Why are you pushing, pulling or slicing your putts?

At the BMW Championship Tournament, Justin Rose sank 45 out of 45 putts under 5 feet before his final putt during the playoff hole. He pulled his putt left and lost the tournament. I noticed that he setup for every putt with his bulky rain shirt tucked under his left elbow. The extra tension on that final putt must have caused him to tighten up and he pulled his putt. Possibly his tight left arm caused the pulled putt.

This may have been Phil Mickelson missing another short one. The pros know how to avoid missing a short putt and you should too.

Tension in your grip and tension in your arms will prevent a straight putt every time you get into a must make situation. Just focus on hitting a straight putt at your target point.

Putting Tips
1/ Don’t stand over your ball for more than 3 seconds thinking or preying. Take your practice swing to loosen the rocking motion in your shoulders and then make your putt.

2/ Don’t Slice or Pull Your Putt. Our bodies are designed to swing a club or a putter around our bodies. That motion causes a slice if you slide your putter face off the ball as you rotate by the ball. To swing your putter straight up your target line, focus on rocking your shoulders to force your putter to swing directly up your target line.

3/ On short or long putts try swinging with both hands to impact and then release your right hand from the putter to allow the putter to swing up the target line while holding the putter with your leading hand. Only the point of impact counts when you are making your putt on the center of your putter face. NOTE: Justin Rose putts with a loose claw grip on his trailing hand. It’s a great way to let your leading hand take control of the direction of the swing of your putter as you rock your shoulders up your putting line.

4/ Always plan to putt 10 to 15 inches past the hole to allow your ball to bounce over ruts and damage on the green near the hole. Because you are making a firm putt, plan for less break

5/ Always take a practice swing or two to get your motor running (to get your body moving) and to get the feel for the right amount of swing to pass the hole.

6/ Stare at your Target Point near the hole and then stare at Your Ball: Staring at your target point gives your brain an optical feeling for the distance and direction that you need to swing.

7/ Always putt by keeping your eye focused on the back edge of your ball to prevent your head and shoulders from lifting and turning if you look up at the hole as you swing. DON’T FOLLOW THE SWING OF YOUR CLUB WITH YOUR EYES and DON’T LOOK AT THE HOLE DURING YOUR PUTT.

8/ Focus on hitting the ball on the dead center of your putter. Off center hits will change the direction of your ball. NOTE: Your putter may not be perfectly balanced for your swing. By making 10, 3 foot putts in a row you may find (like I did) that you need to hit slightly inside or outside of your putter center line to complete straight putts.

After you choose the direction of your putt and determine the amount of swing to pass the hole you only have to hit your ball on the center line (or balance point) of your putter. Practice with a flat leading wrist using your GOLFSTR+. Buy one today at www.golfstr.com