Putting Tips and Drills For Beginners
Putting is essential to improving your golf game, and lowering your score. Below is a breakdown of everything you need to know to improve your putting skills, as well as some golf drills at home that will help you.
Tip One: Learn to Examine the Green
Getting to know the Green makes a huge difference in your putting game! Learning how to recognize how the length of the grass affects your game, and how the weather impacts the course, will help you make better decisions regarding your putting.
Grass that is lighter green has just been cut away from you, which causes less friction. This is important to know because you will need to adjust how hard you swing. You won’t want to hit the ball too hard, because the golf ball will move faster on the green because of the way it’s cut.
Weather, such as rain, changes the conditions of the course. By being cognizant of the length and direction of the green you will be able to make better decisions, and that awareness will carry on to other golf courses you choose to play on.
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Tip Two: Make the Club an Extension of Your Arm
The club can feel a bit awkward for beginners. To help with this, pretend the club is an extension of your arm.
Your hands should be weighted equally, and your grip should feel natural, allowing you to relax and focus more. As you swing, picture the club as an extension of your arm, and let the club assume its own momentum as your swing. This mindset may improve your putting skills, and as an added bonus your grip as well.
Tip Three: Visualization
Visualizing what you want to happen while you’re putting will be a great skill for you to develop.
Visualize your swing as if it were a pendulum, seamlessly flowing through to the golf ball. Start the movement from your shoulders, and keep your legs stable while you are playing the shot. Distribute your weight to your toes, instead of your heels so you have more control during your shot.
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Drill One: The Gate Drill
If you are struggling with keeping your strokes straight, try out the gate drill.
To set this up, lay two golf clubs on the ground, with the butt end facing down on each side to the hole. The clubs will serve as bumpers to guide your ball into the hole. Provide a wide enough space between the two clubs so that your putter can make a stroke without bumping into them. Your goal should be to swing the putter back and forward as straight as possible. You’ll know you haven't hit straight if you hit into one of the two clubs.
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Drill Two: Make 100 ‘2 Foot’ Putts in a Row
After becoming comfortable with the Gate Drill, you will want to start sinking your putts and improving your range.
To do this, stand 2 feet away from the hole. Practice hitting 100 shots at 2 feet apart, and as you improve move back 3 feet, 4 feet, 5 feet and so on until you can sink putts at multiple distances. You will also want to practice sinking putts from all sides of the hole so that you get a slightly different terrain. If you want to get really good, practice sinking 100 putts per day.
It will take time to improve, but the results will be worth it!
Try out these awesome golf putting tips for beginners and watch your skills soar!