Grooved Golf Swing Series: How Not To Be Short Putting Up Hill Or From Off The Green.

If you are putting up hill, estimate how far short you will be if
you hit to the hole on level ground.

Yes, that’s right; you hit your put to reach a point
past the hole the same distance.
This takes courage! However, commit to these two situations and
distances, and hit your puts.

You will be very impressed with your
efforts.
Similarly, if off the green, say 4 feet, and the grass is a bit
rough, but not too long, use your putter.

Hit your ball with enough power to stop at a spot
say five feet past the hole.
You will find, to your delight that your ball stops beside the hole.
This takes courage as well.

Keeping your ball below the hole as much as possible allows you to
hit your puts firmly.
There are a couple of things to know about
this too.
Because you are hitting your ball firmly, there will be
less break.
So the ball will not curve as much as it would for a
slower put down hill.
A firm put up hill will not go a long way
past the hole either and so you will not be faced with a long put
back if you miss.

Grooved Golf Swing Series: More Putting Problems and Their Solutions

You were unable to keep your ball below the hole on a fast sloping
green.
You are faced with a down hill put and you are filled with
trepidation.
You hit your put, and to your amazement, it is too short.

How could you hit such a short put on such a down hill run?

The answer is that you were too tentative.
You decelerated so much through the put
that you almost stopped the putter head.

OK, here is a solution that you can apply next time you are faced
with such a down hill put.
The trick is to forget about the down hill aspect of the run to the
hole.
The trick is to put for a spot well short of the hole.
This way, you will still hit your put with authority.

Work out in your mind how much further past the hole your ball will
travel if you hit your put on level ground.
If for example you estimate that the ball will go six, ten, twelve
feet past the hole, then hit your put to stop this distance short
of the hole.
This may only be four or five feet in front of you for
a fifteen foot put.
You will have to practice this because, boy, does this take some
courage!

Grooved Golf Swing Series: Putting On Fast Greens - Up Hill, Down Hill - With Authority

Some greens you will encounter, especially on tournaments, will be
very fast indeed.
I have played on greens where if the ball was set
in motion, it did not stop until it reached the other edge of the
green on a down slope. Pretty impossible.

The trick here is to try to keep your ball below the hole at all
times so that you have an up hill put for all your puts.

You have to have this thought well in your mind at all times.
Make sure of your two puts and play for this.

You will find you will put your ball into the hole sometimes
without really trying to hole out.

The important thing is to avoid the very fast down hill puts.

A put across a slope is preferable to a down hill put.

This means that you leave your chips below the hole too.
Also your long puts.
Play your long puts and chips for position at all times.

Because you have such a plan and are sticking to it, you will find
your confidence will soar.
I know I have said this before, but put
for two puts every time you are on the green.

Not for the one footers of course, but for the middle and long distance puts.

I remember having a five foot put for birdie, and because I tried
to sink the put, I was too aggressive and put my first put too far
past the hole. Result – a three put green and instead of one under,
I was one over. Dreadful feeling!
It is funny how one remembers these painful lessons.
Out of the many, many puts one makes in a
life time, one or two remain in one’s mind for ever.

These are seldom the really good puts.
The really painful ones always remain
don’t they?

Grooved Golf Swing Series: How To Deal With Those Putting Problems

If it starts to rain while you are out on the course, how will the
ball would run on a wet green?
Do you hit the ball harder?
Will it break less? Will it stop sooner?
It totally depends on how much rain has fallen and how wet the
greens have become.
If they are very wet, the ball will not roll as far, will not break
as much and you will have to hit your puts a little harder meaning
a longer back stroke.
However, the usual thing is that the greens are still firm but the
grass is wet from the recent shower.

Believe it or not, the wet grass will have very little effect on
your put.
The break and roll will be the same and the put will not
have to be hit differently from a put on a dry surface.
This is because the grass is so short that it can not hold much water.
The ball may stop a few inches shorter if the rain has made the green
wetter than a light shower, but the difference will be very small.

Grooved Golf Swing Series: Grain Factors explained and How To Read Them

Grain is the direction of the growth of the grass on the green.
It can either be away from you or towards you.

Determine direction by looking at the grass in front of you.

If it is light with a slight sheen, it is away from you.
If it is dark, it it towards you.
The dark colour is due to the
grass tips pointing towards you and showing
the dark area between
the blade and the ground.
These tips act as a brake to your ball and it will pull up short.

If you have a problem determining the direction of the grain, it
will help to know that grass will grow towards the nearest water,
or in the direction of drainage.
It will often also grow towards the setting sun.

Grooved Golf Swing Series: Miscellaneous Putting Tips

Squatting is the best method to see the lie of the land.

You will be able to see each and every little slope to the right or left
along the line to the hole.
If you are in doubt even after this,
have a look at the lie of the land around the green.
Does it slope in a particular way?
From the front of the green to the back or
from back to front?
Does it slope from the sides? If it does, it will be a good bet
that the ball will break this way.

If you have a long or middle distance put, once you have worked out
the line of the put, the only thing that remains is distance.

This is so important as you have to get the ball up to the hole to
make sure you only have two puts.

So have a couple of practice puts while looking at the hole and
determine how much back stroke you need to hit the ball to the
hole.
Make your back stroke very slowly to make sure it is enough,
even stop briefly and then make a purposeful put.

Don’t try to sink these put, but concentrate on getting the ball
close to the hole.
You could three put if you try to sink your put.

Grooved Golf Swing Series. Believe In Your Putting And Succeed

You should have a routine that you go through for every golf shot.
This includes putting too.
Incorporated into this routine should be your assessment
of the breaks and line to the hole.
Is the grass dull or bright between your ball and the hole?
If it is bright, it means the light if reflected
from grass that is growing in the direction of the hole.
The grass is growing towards the hole
and light is being reflected from the back of the blades.
If the grass is dark, it means the light
is being reflected from spaces beneath each blade
and this will not shine as does the bright look
from grass growing away from you.
The blades are growing towards the ball
and do not present a shiny surface and will slow the ball down.
With this in mind, you can work on assessing the speed of the put.
This will tell you how far to take your putter blade back.
Then commit to the put and hit it.
Picture the ball dropping into the hole,
and picture the route it must take to do so. Never think about missing.

With a totally positive attitude, you will sink more puts.

Grooved Golf Swing Series. How To Hit Your Puts With a Square Solid Hit

You want your ball to roll to the hole in a head over heels manner.
End over end don't you?
You do not want back spin side spin or any other spin.
You want your ball to roll truly to the hole.
To do this, you must keep your putter head close to the ground on the back stroke and the forward stroke.
This means you do not lift your putter head on the back stroke.
To do so causes you to hit with a chopping down stroke which can cause back spin and side spin.
Also keep your putter head close to the ground after you have hit the ball. To lift the head after hitting the ball is to lift it while hitting the ball, resulting in a thin or topped shot.
When you keep your putter head close to the ground on the back and forward stroke, there is a totally different feel.
You are hitting the put in the sweet spot. This is almost impossible if your are hitting up on the ball or down on the ball.