How to Get Into the Top 10% With Your Putting: Why People Just Can’t Line It Up!
Putting is one of the most important elements of your golf game, as well as being one of the leading sources of frustration for many. We all know that we need to work on it if we want to have any hope of finally getting our score where we want it (as well as our sanity).
However, many of us are missing very critical elements of our game as a result of starting off on the wrong foot. Working on distance, speed, green reads and all of that is very important, but if you don’t focus on this one thing first then your short game will never be quite right!
This key element is being correctly lined up over the ball.
So many people think that they are positioned correctly over the ball, yet when we actually look at it using modern-day technology (the SAM Putt Lab in the Super Shop here at Haggin Oaks), many of them (including the pros) are way off, causing the face of their club to not be square and your putts to inevitably go off course.
Some sources have said that up to 90% of putts are hit when the golfer isn’t correctly over the ball and the reason that this is so detrimental is that it screws up your perspective and causes you to not be aimed straight at the hole, and in most cases, fairly far from it general direction surprisingly!
So, how can join the elite top 10% of golfers by just lining yourself upright to the ball? Here are a couple of ways to work on this.
1.) Get Fitted at a SAM PuttLab
The SAM PuttLab is a type of machine that shoots a small laser at the face of your putter and shows you how accurately lined up you are to the hole. Having this testing done allows you to better understand your putting game, train more efficiently by training exactly what you need to work on, and give you key insights into what putter would be best for you.
2.) Try a SeeMore Putter
If you want a putter that will let you know exactly when you are square over the club and actually hitting the ball at center, the SeeMore putters are the perfect thing for you.
These putters have a unique red dot on the toe of the club that will disappear from your vision if you are standing perfectly over the club allowing you to putt more consistently and with more confidence.
So many people go in blind with their putting and never know when they are actually lined up. Don’t be like those people. Do everything you can to be able to consistently tell when you are over the ball.
As they say, “be consistently good instead of occasionally great.”
3.) Practice the Two Ball Putt Drill
Another great way to make sure that the face of your putter is square to the ground and that you are accurately lined up is by practicing the 2 ball putting drill where you hit two balls at the same time and if you can make them go the same speed and distance without hitting each other then you know that you are lined up correctly.
To learn more about that drill and see exactly how to do it, click here.
4.) Get a Coach
Lastly, if you really want to make sure you learn how to stay lined up to the ball then you should invest in lessons and work with a coach on your putting game. These lessons are often not as expensive as you think and have incredible benefits on your game!
Overall, that is how you can start to make great strides in improving your putting game by working on just one foundational thing. Let us know how it goes and if being aware of this common problem helps your game!
