Putting Drills To Release the Birdies & Eagles in you.

Developing putting drills that work is one of the fastest
ways to lower your score. Many senior golfers lose a significant
number of strokes once they get onto the green. By
utilizing putting drills, you can learn to get the ball
into the hole in fewer strokes.

Any seasoned senior golfer will tell you that the short game can
be stroke-hungry, and that what happens on the green can
wreak havoc on an otherwise good score. 3-putts, 4-putts,
and even 5-putts are more common than you might think-but
there is good news. Putting drills can dramatically help
golfers hone their skills on the green, resulting in fewer
total strokes.

When it comes to putting drills, spend time concentrating
on the three essentials:

Keeping the face square
Maintaining a smooth swing
Achieving distance control
Keeping the Face Square:

If you are in the habit of hitting the ball with your
blade open or closed, try this:

Place a ball on the practice green and put a tee in the
ground about twelve inches behind the ball. Put a silver
coin on the ground about six inches in front of the ball.
Bring your putter back until it taps the tee and then
swing it forward, watching to ensure that the face stays
square as it passes over the coin.

Maintaining a Smooth Swing Putting drills should have a
specific purpose and specific goal. With this next tip,
you can learn to swing the club smoothly, which is key to
maintaining your tempo and striking the ball solidly.

Again, place a ball on the practice green and stick a tee
into the ground about 12 inches behind the ball. Bring the
club back until it just barely nicks the tee and then
immediately go into your fore-swing.

Keep your arms moving in a pendulum fashion and keep your
hands still.

Achieving distance control

One of the most crucial putting drills is learning
distance control. The only way to master distance control
is through your own touch or feel. Nothing else can
replace hands-on practice time when it comes to honing
your skills on the green.

There are dozens of practice exercises for distance
control, but one of the best is to simply stake out five
tees, four feet apart, with the last tee being 20 feet
away. Then, concentrate on getting the ball to each of the
tees consistently.

If the ball rolls a few inches past the tee, that’s fine
What you don’t want to see is the ball stopping short of
or rolling well beyond the target tee.

Notice that you are not aiming at a flag or a cup with
this exercise, as this could distract you and cause you to
focus more on accuracy than distance. While it’s true that
distance and accuracy must work together, there are times
when they should not be learned together.

“These greens are so fast I have to hold my putter over the
ball and hit it with the shadow.” (Sam Snead)

These are only a few of the many putting drills that are
available from golf pros and golfing websites. To master
your skill on the green, you will need to invest time and
energy. Learn to read the green and how to lag a putt, but
most of all, learn to love putting drills. They really do
work.