As a serious golfer, you already know the importance of practicing your putting stroke. The better you can get at putting, the easier it is to score. It is as simple as this. Even if you are a golfer that does not enjoy putting practice, you should find a way to incorporate just a bit of time on the putting green.
Sometimes a putting drill can help make you feel as though you are enjoying your practice and effectively working towards your goals. Let’s look at the top ten best putting drills around; there is an option on this list that will make your weekend practice session much more enjoyable!
1) Around The World
Around the world is one of the more favored putting drills on the PGA Tour. The great thing about this drill is that you will be able to practice putting from a variety of angles. It’s great to learn how to hit a straight putt, but what happens when your alignment changes and you have to readjust your stance?
The around the world putting drill essentially has a player make a circle around the putting hole with about six or eight golf balls. Place the golf balls at an equal distance from the hole in a circle shape.
Try to make one putt in your circle and if you do, move to the next putt. There are varying levels of difficulty on this around the world drill. For instance, some players insist on making a putt before moving to the next ball. Others will go around the entire circle and see how many they can make.
2) Through The Gates
With the through the gates drill, you will be working on your alignment and your ability to hit a solid putt that stays on the line. With the through the gates drill, you can set up two tees halfway between you and your intended target. The idea is to hit your putt so that it travels between these two lines.
Many golfers see the ball and see the hole, but they struggle to picture the line that the ball takes on the way to the hole. This line is essential for players to follow, and it will help you start to learn to read putting greens.
The through the gates drill can be set up so that there is one gate the ball must pass through or several. Ensure the width of the gate is just a bit wider than the ball.
3) Club Behind Hole Distance Lag Drill
Have you heard of the concept that you can’t get a ball to go in the hold if the ball never gets to the hole? This is absolutely true and an issue that many players struggle with. If you miss a putt, you are going to want it to be a foot or so behind the hole. Only when the ball misses past the hole like this do you know that you gave it a fair chance to fall into the hole?
Place a golf club about two feet behind a golf ball and start practicing some long putts. Try to ensure that if you miss the hole, the ball makes it all the way to the golf club that is lying on the green.
4) String Over Ball and Line
Another issue that golfers have to work on is their putting stroke in relation to the line that they are putting on. If you choose a line to putt down, the impact position of your putting stroke will need to cross over this line.
To set this drill up, put a tee in the ground directly behind the hole. Pick a very straight putt, and then put a tee just behind where your putting stroke will extend to (so that you are not restricting your stroke in any way). Then take a string and tie it from one tee to the other. Ensure that your string is high enough that your putter and the ball fit under it.
Now you can practice putting with this visual aid in place that allows your putting stroke and your golf ball to stay on the proper line.
5) Alignment Rod Heel Guide
Alignment sticks or alignment rods have proven to be one of the most effective golf training aids on the market. An alignment rod heel guide will have you place the alignment rod at the heel of your putter, and you will then swing the putter on this track.
This is a good drill for those with a straight back and straight-through putting stroke. If you take more of an arc stroke, then you may need a training aid that is built with more of an arc style, like this one.
Overall the alignment rod heel guide is just one more way to use your alignment rod on the putting green to make progress in your game.
6) Putting While Looking At The Hole
One of the unique golf drills out there is the one where you look at the hole instead of the ball while you putt. We will give you fair warning here that you may putt better than you ever have in your life. In fact, some people will try this drill and then completely switch to putting like this. There have even been professionals through the years that have changed to looking at the hole while they putt.
Many golfers get hung up because the ball needs to be in their view while they are putting. If the ball is no longer visible, golfers think they will miss it. This is not the case. Once you pass the real beginner stages of the game, you should not experience any issues with making contact with the golf ball.
Simply set up to hit, aim and then start watching the hole as you make your putting stroke. Looking at the hole helps players to develop a better feel and precision on the putting green.
7) One-Handed Putting
One-handed putting allows golfers to get the hands a bit more out of the equation and start using the bigger muscles in the putting stroke. So many golfers will kind of slap at a putt while trying to get their hands involved in the stroke. However, with one-handed putting, you will be able to focus more on the movements that your hands, wrists, and arms are making.
The idea with putting is to have minimal movement and more of a pendulum-style putting stroke. One of the best ways to do this is by focusing on putting drills that help lessen movement and make everything more intentional.
There is no question that most of these putting drills will teach you that less is more in the world of putting.
8) Ladder Drill
The ladder drill is one of our all-time favorite putting drill options. The idea here is to set yourself up with a ladder of putts on the putting green. Take one ball and put it about two feet from the hole. Then take four or five more golf balls and place each one about two feet from that hole. The ladder drill is a way to get players to learn to control distance. With a ladder drill, you can learn what it takes to hit a putt four feet and what it takes to hit a putt eight feet.
Similar to the around the world putting drill, there are two different ways that players will work on the ladder drill. The first is to try and see how many putts you can make a total of the golf balls you set up. The other is to force yourself to make one putt before moving to the next one. This is the more challenging way to practice the drill, but it tends to be more effective.
9) Chalk Line Putting Drill
Chalk line putting has become quite popular. With a chalk line putting drill, you can mark off exactly the line that you want to practice and then hit putts on this line. The chalk line will disappear after some time, and the golf course typically does not mind you using these lines.
With the chalk line putting drill, you can practice both rolling your putt correctly and ensuring that your putting stroke is on the proper line. Remember that any putting drill with a line involved will be made more for the straight back straight through putting stroke.
For the best putting drills for arc style, you may want to look into some specific putting aids that can help the process.
10) 10 Putts In A Row Drill
Last but certainly not least is using a bit of self-challenge and motivation to work on your putting green. With the ten putts in a row drill, you will set yourself up about four feet from the hole. From this position, you will make a putt. Once you have made a putt, you can then try and make another. The goal is to get ten in a row without missing.
Of course, you may wonder why you would continually practice the same length, but this putting drill has everything to do with confidence. The more times you can stand on the putting green and make a four-foot putt, the greater your confidence will be.
The next time you step up to a four-foot putt on a green, you can tell yourself that you have just recently made ten of these in a row! That is some pretty strong mental motivation to become a better player.
Final Thoughts
Hopefully, you now feel as though you are prepared to head out to the putting green and work on some new putting drills. These top ten best-putting drills can make a significant impact in your putting game. If you want to improve the quality of your stroke and learn how to become a great putter, you will need to invest the time. The more time spent on putting green will directly correlate to your abilities as a golfer. The quickest way to lower that handicap is around the green; get started with these putting drills today.
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