Golf Putt | Perfect Putting Posture

One of the quickest ways to improve your putting game is to improve your posture. Jack Nicklaus was the first great golfer who made it popular to put your eyes directly over the ball when you are putting. This is very hard to do for many golfers so it has been suggested that a small mirror can be placed on the green and your golf ball can then be placed right on top of the mirror.

Eyes over the ball - To see if your eyes are indeed over the ball, make sure and stand in such a way that you can actually see your own eyes in the mirror. If you can't see your own eyes, then you need to adjust your posture. A simpler method might be to let your putter hang from between your eyes and then make sure the club extends down directly over your golf ball. These techniques are great for getting the proper stance and alignment to the hole.

Placement of Your Feet - In terms of posture, it is also important to think about the way you place your feet and how you hold your body. If you typically miss your putts to the right, you may be standing too close to the ball. If you are missing to the left, you may be standing too far from the ball. These are not hard and fast rules but they are something to consider when you are adjusting your posture.

Shoulders Over Hands - Your foot position will also effect the way your hands are hanging down from your shoulders. It is usually best if your hands are hanging directly beneath your shoulders. This will typically create a smoother stroke and a better direction on the ball. The most important consideration, however, is to keep your head and your body very still as you putt. You only need to move your arms and your hands. Nothing else!

Relax and Enjoy - Finally, it's important not to get too caught up with the mechanics of your putting. Some people will insist on certain grips that will supposedly be better than others. Finding a grip that is comfortable to you and experimenting with the various postures will eventually give you a stance that is right for you. Consider the basic techniques for improved posture and then settle into a stance that is most comfortable.

Stick with What Works for You- Once you determine that successful stance, go ahead and stick with it even when you have a bad day. Practice it until it becomes perfect. Too many golfers become overly concerned with each specific detail of their stance, changing things every week and never really settling in to a relaxed posture. Don't forget that a general relaxation and enjoyment of the game is paramount to having a successful swing and a low score. You have to have fun out there in order to truly enjoy the game!

Make More Putts In Your Scoring Game

C. Ewan is a golf professional in the UK and has been teaching golf for 20 years. His wealth of knowledge and experience is mind blowing! He's coached players on the European Tour as well as the average man (and woman) next door.

He specialises in improving your golf game and bringing down your handicap. Previous students have included Steve Webster, Sam Walker and Tom Whitehouse, who are all now on the Professional European Tour.

Here, he looks briefly at the golf scoring game and putting stroke.

He asks, how many times do you leave a makeable putt short? Well, the higher your handicap the more likely you are to end up not even getting it past the hole, let alone in it.

Short game expert Dave Pelz produced some great research saying that PGA Tour Pros on average leave their putts 2ft 5inches short from a 25ft putt, if they did not hole the putt.

The research also indicates that a golfer with a handicap of 20 is 6ft 5inches short and even more incredible is the average for a beginner is 9ft short. Ouch, those three putts really hurt!

If this sounds like you, then try to work more on the pace of the putt rather than concentrating on the line. (The pace has a big say on just how much break there is any way.)

A great speed drill is to place a shaft 3ft behind a practice hole. Then from 20 to 30 feet try to hole out, but monitor how often your ball finishes short of the hole, and then try to make it finish past the hole but short of the shaft. As your pace improves your line and green reading will become much more consistent.

In golf there are two types of putting strokes that you should be aware of, the 'straight back and through' and the 'arc'.

Neil's least preferred style is a straight back and through putting stroke. In this type of stroke the putter moves straight back from the ball and the face of the blade tries to stay square to the ball-to-hole line. Then on the downswing the face has to open the same amount. To make this stroke work, the face needs to be manipulated in a shut-to-open fashion. This can produce a roll with a sliced and skid shape

This style of stroke was made very popular by short game guru Dave Pelz. In his book "the putting bible" Pelz promotes a shoulder dominated straight-line motion with no forearm rotation.

Neil's preferred putting style is to let the putter work on a more natural in-to-in shape with the face staying square to the arc. This arcing in-to-in path has a more open to closing face like a swing door. The face should be kept square to the plane of movement - a style similar to the shape to the full swing fundamentals.

Next Page »