Anyone ever take a break or think of quitting because of putting?

[Kale_m]

Try putting left handed? 

[goaliedad30]

Maybe the answer is just to break out the old Billy Baroo putter ..... 🙂

 

[Unteachable]

I struggled with this for the last year and am finally starting to get on the other side of it.  I completely lost my feel for putting last year.  Left so many putts short and right.  

It all started last summer when it was blazing hot and humid and i literally felt like i could not hold on to the club because my hands were sweating so i stared gripping too tight.

2 Sam fittings at different places confirmed my stroke was actually good (with nothing on the line-mostly mental).  I remember the 2nd SAM session I got so irritated because i had putted horribly for 2 months straight.  I got there, probably hit 70 putts total, and no lie made over 60 of them.

Its both mental and feel/physical.  I have had to learn to release the putter again and also learn to get the line and get up and let it fly and not stand over it too long.

 

I have been through almost 10 putters since this started in search of what I feel and prefer and I have figured out:

1.  I need a sightline on top

2. I prefer a milled head/face that is on the firm side.

3.  If Im playing anything over 360 grams i need some counter weight.

4.  I switched from a superstore 2.0 back to a traditional grip and have got a lot of feel back.

 

I still dont have my ideal putter (playing a PLD ds72 now which is just a little too soft and doesn't have a top line).  Im probably going to get a phantom x 5 because of the toppling and slightly firmer feel.  I also prefer the overall look to the half moon shape of my current stick

 

There is light at the end of the tunnel.  It started to get better when I quit practicing so much

[mrpriceisright]

13 hours ago, nikeblades00 said:

I think you should seriously try side saddle putting. There was an awesome post in the instruction

 forum recently. He made a nice video explaining it. I think it's so different from standard putting that you could maybe start over. Good luck. 

Both Sam Snead and Bryson Deschambeau (more recently) did this for a while.  Snead even held the putter shaft way down near the head w right hand.   Trying different methods sometimes helps by itself. 
 

[mrpriceisright]

You are not alone.   I can't think of anyone I know who has not had a problem putting.
My own putting is just so inconsistent and usually poor -  recently after 5 holes I'd had 6 putts, the next week same course after 6 holes had had 5 three putts!

I have found myself watching the putter head going back (a definite no-no) and tend to do better when I focus on a spot on the ground 9 inches in front of the ball, try to roll it over that spot and just think stroke tempo.  I also try to keep arms/elbows locked into the torso and use the torso to make the swing (no hands or wrists), with a slight forward press.   I also tend to take the club back way too far on short putts (which leads to deceleration) and have to consciously go back only a few inches on putts under 6 ft. The youtube channel "AXYS golf" w Eric Kaplan has some great putting videos and he explains his 5 body locks method for putting. 
The long putter doesn't work for me (to date),  but has worked well for a good few pro's who struggled w putting. 
I've certainly closed my eyes sometimes, particularly on longer putts,   seem to remember Johnny Miller saying he'd done that at tour events at times.
Putted ok cross handed for a couple of years,   then this year, on the first hole one day, switched back to regular grip as it felt more natural (and proceeded to make a few that day).   The short putts are the worst,  missing a couple from 3 feet can wreck an otherwise good round and it sure is tough to score really well if you don't make anything outside 6 feet all day.

 

If its any solace,  quite a few golfing greats (including Hogan) struggled putting at times.

This thread has a lot of ideas and different things to try......   good luck.
 

[Christen_The_Sloop]

22 hours ago, hammergolf said:

You’re trying too hard… Let me ask you this, how tight, tense, technical, and cerebral are you about your ball striking? How much time do you spend hitting balls versus time spent on time spent putting.  In your post, I counted 14 negative words about your putting. It’s mental. Either you are not letting your body do what is natural, or you are overthinking the activity. Don’t make the process harder. There are only two things that matter with putting. Pace and line. Not trying to be a jerk, but you may want to talk to a sports psychologist about it. Sounds like you have become so focused on mechanics and fear that it’s blocking your natural hand eye coordination. If you can hit the ball that good in your golf swing, you have more than enough talent to make a putt. You just need to start seeing the ball go in. Literally just practice 2ft putts. After you make 12 in a row, move to 3ft. Then to 4ft. Don’t practice outside 4ft. The PGA Tour average make rate from 5ft is 80%. As you see more putts go in you become more confident. After you get 12 in a row from 4ft, find a spot on the green without a hole. Start at 20ft, then try to make each putt go shorter than the one before. Try to get to 12 putts. If you don’t get to 12, start over. Once you start to control your pace you will become a better putter. One thing is for sure, I’ve never seen a good putter who didn’t think he was bad, and I’ve never seen a bad putter who thought he was good. In the words of one of my favorite movies, “don’t think meat, it can only hurt…”

agreed.

 

I will say, we focus too much on holing putts in practice. best drill i have is rolling the ball up to the edge from 4 feet. making a positive, accelerating stroke that doesn't quite go in builds feel, surprisingly quick and it can be done anywhere.

 

Something I've done recently is incorporate Ben Hogan's idea of swing sequence to my putting. It has really solidified my approach.

[A.Princey]

Buy a lefty putter for cheap and go with that, or a double sided bullseye! That could be the trick.

[ChipNRun]

Have you had a putter fitting?

 

Is your dominant eye left or right? Some find this helps with alignment and set-up.

 

Also: You might post video of you hitting putts in the Instruction & Academy zone.

 

Suggested matrix:

 

Use tripod if possible to get "equal perspective" in all shots.

Center up frame on belt buckle of golfer. (This is for putting shots only. Will not work on full shots, as clubhead would be above top of frame during follow-through.

 

Certain golf instruction shops may already have a set-up like this especially for putting.

[Bdck]

Stop trying so hard.  Smile when you're over the ball and just stroke the b****.

[cgasucks]

Me quitting the game because of crappy putting?!?  No..not for me.  Years ago, I was shanking the ball all over the place and it got so bad that I ready ready to sell my clubs on Craigslist until I took a step back and approached the golf swing differently and totally rebuilt it with great results.  Despite the improvements, I am a below average putter at best and I'm totally fine with it since I never practice putting in the first place so my expectations were low in the first place.  I think the OP takes putting more seriously than most people but coming from Canada the best ball strikers from my country such as George Knudson, was a crappy putter by his own admission and he did ok on the PGA tour back then.  He should just take his putting seriousness down a few notches and putt to the best of his ability. 

 

If it goes in, it goes in, if it doesn't, it doesn't.  

Edited May 1, 2022 by cgasucks

[Stonewalled]

Lots of knowledge lurking on WRX, hopefully someone's suggestion can  help you out.   Shame to be so frustrated, very impressive that you can  maintain a 7 handicap thru out the experience.   I have never been a good putter, 3 putt king unfortunately, developed the yips as well. That didn't help.  Left hand low with a modified claw grip solved the yip issue.  My miss was always left, I started using a construction laser to beam a line to a target on the carpet in a spare room.  I like using a putter with a very long sightline, the laser showed me I was aiming left  every time. After a few adjustments  I'm now at least aiming somewhat near my intended line😜   My putting has improved, and I'm not switching putters every week.   Best of luck in your search.   

[holmes0412]

Try different styles and weights. I suck with blade style, and like a heavy head to help me control speed.  Good luck

[philly2kuk]

5 hours ago, ChipNRun said:

Have you had a putter fitting?

 

Is your dominant eye left or right? Some find this helps with alignment and set-up.

 

Also: You might post video of you hitting putts in the Instruction & Academy zone.

 

Suggested matrix:

 

Use tripod if possible to get "equal perspective" in all shots.

Center up frame on belt buckle of golfer. (This is for putting shots only. Will not work on full shots, as clubhead would be above top of frame during follow-through.

 

Certain golf instruction shops may already have a set-up like this especially for putting.

This is a good point. I’m right eye dominant but I’m left hand dominant when it comes to putting. So I adapted my stroke/grip so my right hand has minimal input. If you Google for “hand dominance in putting” there’s usually drills you can do which show you. I’ve putted much better since I did everything in my previous post and changed how I hold the club so my left hand is in more control.

[indianagolf2]

Highly recommend you go see craig Farnsworth in california...Google him and contact him. 90 mins 300 dollars and well worth it. You can do additional hours as well...email him. 

[b.mattay]

Use the foolproof "snail method" 🙂

 

[indianagolf2]

Aimpoint express green reading...that,should help alot 

[Righty to Lefty]

On 4/30/2022 at 12:44 AM, JermWRX said:

Doesn’t matter what kind of putter I try. I’ve tried them all. Doesn’t matter how I grip the club. I’ve tried them all. Doesn’t matter what my stance is. I’ve tried them all. I’ve taken lessons. I putt on a practice mat every night. I’ve tried using a mirror. I’ve used putter gates and other practice devices. Nothing works. I strike the ball so well. Hit fairways and greens all day long. Good out of the sand, and a very good chipper/pitcher. However, none of that matters because I can’t hole a putt. My lags could be 8’ short or 8’ long. My short putts are an abomination. My playing buddies know to never give me putts. Ever. Even if it’s 6”. It’s so frustrating, and honestly I feel like stepping away from the game that I love. Maybe just become a driving range guy, because I absolutely love striking the golf ball. Anyway, I guess this is just a venting post. Sorry. Lol.

You have lost track of the real reason that a putt goes in the hole and that is to read it correctly and hit the ball along that line.  If you don't read it correctly then I doesn't matter how good your stroke is or what putter you are using because you are going to miss. If you hit the correct line at the correct speed the putt will go in.  The same goes for people that don't realize that understanding impact and ball flight is orders of magnitude more important than having a pretty golf swing.  

[Feelingofgreatness]

Get yourself a puttout system for home and go get fitted at titleist for a Scotty Cameron... Hit 100 putts a day... You'll be money! 

[J.Bex]

On 4/29/2022 at 8:24 PM, JermWRX said:

How far back to take it? Path? Eyes over the ball?

That was me.  How far back vs my right foot?  Eyes too.  But.... bet you could hit the pin and scare the hole with a lot of chips even if eyes are way inside the ball.

 

I actually got better watching my wife who has a smooth stroke and rolls the ball in a way that people envy despite shooting high scores.  I figured f* it.  I'm gonna "putt to the picture", forget everything else, and swing the smoothest stroke my playing partners have ever seen.  Whatever the outcome, I'm gonna look good doing it 😎.  Lo and behold....

 

I like the compete mental reset approach, and that was mine.  I like the lefty (or opposite hand) suggestions, and also going on a practice green and messing around putting with a driver like a kid having fun.

[ChaosTheory]

On 4/29/2022 at 8:40 PM, JermWRX said:

I do this. Maybe I’ll try the opposite. Lol

 

George Constanza agrees!

 

 

[Soloman1]

I took a 14 year break after I became the worst putter in the history of golf. You don’t want to know the gory details.

[parmark]

[huskydawg]

Doing the gate drill showed me that I sprayed the putts all over the place, maybe hitting an exact straight line 30% of the time. 

 

It became apparent that the putterhead was outracing the grip end of the club which leads to either pulls or blocks when trying to compensate for the pull.  I added a forward press to lean the shaft forward and it mostly fixed it.  I was against it for a long time because I thought it would open the blade, but it doesn't have to.  Many famous putters in history have done it.

[mikpga]

On 4/29/2022 at 5:44 PM, JermWRX said:

Doesn’t matter what kind of putter I try. I’ve tried them all. Doesn’t matter how I grip the club. I’ve tried them all. Doesn’t matter what my stance is. I’ve tried them all. I’ve taken lessons. I putt on a practice mat every night. I’ve tried using a mirror. I’ve used putter gates and other practice devices. Nothing works. I strike the ball so well. Hit fairways and greens all day long. Good out of the sand, and a very good chipper/pitcher. However, none of that matters because I can’t hole a putt. My lags could be 8’ short or 8’ long. My short putts are an abomination. My playing buddies know to never give me putts. Ever. Even if it’s 6”. It’s so frustrating, and honestly I feel like stepping away from the game that I love. Maybe just become a driving range guy, because I absolutely love striking the golf ball. Anyway, I guess this is just a venting post. Sorry. Lol.

Ever practice on an actual practice green?

[MelloYello]

On 4/29/2022 at 8:24 PM, JermWRX said:

My swing is very simple. Set my shoulders and hips in my intended direction, coil and turn through. The putter is a whole different story. I’m thinking of a million things. How far back to take it? Path? Eyes over the ball? Don’t track it with your head? Rock the shoulders? These are a few of the questions that go through every putt

 

As others very quickly identified, yours is a problem that has at least something to do with your mind and your confidence. 

 

I once took a putting lesson from our pro because, well, I sucked as badly as anyone could. He began by saying, "it's all about confidence," which (I won't lie) I hated hearing because that's so meaningless to someone in your position. That seems circular. Confidence comes from seeing outcomes. How the heck do you make those outcomes happen?! It feeds into this idea that good putters are just naturally born being good putters. But that's not true. 

 

Confidence isn't a feeling that you're always going to be successful. Confidence is a willingness to act without regard for the outcome. Think about talking to a woman at a bar. What is confidence? Confidence is being the guy that's willing to go up and flirt with her without a second thought. Having confidence certainly doesn't guarantee that your flirting is going to work or that you'll be so smooth she'll love you. Confidence doesn't guarantee success but lacking confidence (shyness, hesitation) is definitely bad for you. A lack of confidence in putting is seen in the nervousness we feel when we get all wrapped up in our thoughts. 

 

Think about how you chat with your friends versus how you might speak with a new boss at work. In one setting you're happy to go back and forth, spit out whatever comes to mind and even interrupt your buddy with a joke. With a new boss, you're careful and guarded. You speak with a filter. You foresee an issue and think, "should I speak up," "is it my place," "could I be stepping in it by saying something wrong" and "how should I say it?" By the time you decide what to say, someone else has raised the issue. How often do we see bad putters stand over the ball for an eternity waiting for some feeling of readiness? 

 

Putting with confidence is putting without all the worry. You want a good tip? Go get drunk. I'm not kidding. It's a good place to start because it'll dull your senses and slow down your thinking. That's just what you need for putting. See if that doesn't help you on the greens a bit just by giving you a sense of what "good putters" are experiencing. Then the question is simply, how do I recreate that carefree attitude without having to take shots of liquor before and during every round, LOL? 

 

You asked if anyone thought about quitting because of putting. Yeah, a million people, including myself. I was a range rat for years and putting was the bane of my existence. I'd shoot 80 with 40 putts and couldn't go a round without a couple 3-putts. I was the king of missing tap-ins. I struggled for years until finally last year I said, screw it, I'm going to figure this out. 

 

There are literally a hundred things I could share with you. Here are a few:

 

#1

Count other peoples' putts, not just yours. Don't kick yourself for putting 37 times on a course where it's really hard to have fewer than 35 putts. Some greens are very sloped & undulating in which case making long putts is almost out of the question. Always compare yourself to your competition, not to your fantasies. I used to think putting 37 or 38 times was losing me 5-6 shots but then I realized a lot of my competitors were putting 34-35 times so it was really just 2-3 strokes I was giving up. Being realistic about the problem definitely helps. 

 

#2

If you can't roll a ball straight, there's no sense even trying and your natural / instinctual sense of distance will get all fogged up. Drop a chalk-line on a green marking a flat putt and see if you can make an endless string of 6-footers. I bet you can. Putting problems are usually not an inability to roll a ball. 6-footers on a chalk-line are usually so easy we can make 10/10. That's pretty easy because you can literally see the right answer (the line) right there on the ground. It's usually alignment being off and the stroke pushing/pulling the ball that goes awry when the line isn't there. Realizing that you can do something with a line and that you struggle when it's gone gives you a sense of what the challenge really is. It's like learning to be confident bowling without the bumpers. You just have to get used to them not being there. Same with the line. You have to train yourself to line up correctly without a line. 

 

#3

You have to believe you're smart enough to find the answer. TW showed us how emotional we can get rolling in clutch putts. Big putts are as fulfilling as big drives or perfect iron shots. If you believe you can be a ball-striker, you need to believe you can be an equivalent putter. I went from putting 35-40 times per round a year ago to now putting 30 and 32 times pretty regularly. It's not hard to fix your flaws if you're willing to work on your problems. You just have to find the wrinkles and iron them out. Most of it is in setup & alignment. 

 

#4

Putting might be a skill you learn but it feels more like an ability you're bringing out of yourself. Your brain controls distance. You don't train yourself to know the difference between 16-ft and 17-ft. That's touch. Your hands and your mind take care of that. If we had to learn 40 different stroke lengths we'd all suck. If ball-striking is the constant rehearsal of this move and that, putting is kind of the opposite. It's trying to not do terrible things while letting your hands and mind perform on their own without conscious input. What's the difference between a 61-yd and a 66-yd wedge? Call it feel. Call it talent. It's not purely swing length. 

 

#5

Distance control is not about any one variable such as the velocity of the putter, the length of stroke, the pressure in our fingers or the duration of the movement. It's all of those things. If you want to move the putter over a longer arc while maintaining a steady tempo the putter must therefore move faster. Moving the putter faster requires a bit more pressure in the fingers. A putter moving faster is what generates more momentum with which we can move the ball.

 

Do not try and use just stroke length or just putter speed to control distance. People who say "I use stroke length to control distance" are (at best) misinformed about their own putting. Everyone uses all aspects of the stroke because they're inter-related: stroke length, putter velocity and subtle things like grip pressure to manipulate distance. 

 

#6

The best putters are the ones who don't think. And they don't have perfect strokes. Nobody does. That's ridiculous. People set up differently. They hold the putter differently. They use different amounts of wrist motion. It's a skill unique to everyone. 

 

#7

Excess putter arc/rotation is usually the killer in the stroke. It's really 100% of the problem for most Ams. Between bad alignment and an over-arcing stroke, it's impossible to be consistent and transmit through the putter exactly what distance your brain is feeling.

 

As someone said earlier, you have to try and eliminate all the excess face rotation in the stroke--I mean face rotation relative to the path. The path is an arc but there's no reason to open/close the face relative to that arc.

 

As far as the arc goes, that should be minimal. Rocking the shoulders creates a minimal arc and feels more straight-back, straight-thru. That's what people are talking about when they build a shoulder-based stroke. You can use your hands/wrists more if you want but it'll increase arc. I'm kind of a wristy putter myself. That's always been my tendency. It's why I struggle on faster greens where I tend to hit the ball too hard. Let's talk about that...

 

#8

The stroke is really built based on the greens you play. If they're super fast you need to be really delicate which means eliminating the wrists and going with a more subtle motion based on rocking the shoulders which minimizes the arc and helps keep the face as square as possible with a soft grip. OTOH, if the greens are slow, you want a more wrist-heavy "pop" stroke. It actually helps. Rocking the shoulders on slow greens is a nightmare because you can't/won't generate enough energy without adding extra motion.

 

Players who are used to / dialed-in on fast greens HATE slow greens because their soft-hands, rock-the-shoulders type of stroke always comes up short and they spend the entire time trying to bash the ball. If you're used to fast greens, putting on slow greens will either ruin your stroke or ruin your putting stats. I've seen it a million times. If you putt on slower greens, don't listen to those guys who obsess about eliminating the hands. That'd be bad advice on slower greens. You need the hands on slow greens. Watch videos of what putting looked like in the 50s and 60s. Guys were very wrist-oriented on those greens. 

 

 

This is way longer than it needs to be at this point so I'll shut up, but please, for the love of God go practice your putting. If you put 1/2 the effort into putting you do with your ball-striking you'll fix your problems. You just have to apply yourself. 

 

Everyone gets tired of being a bad putter at some point. Yes, you can quit but that's no fun. 🙂

 

.

Edited May 2, 2022 by MelloYello

[Ghostwedge]

True story..... had 15 minutes before our tee time yesterday. Spent it on the practice green, rolling one ball various lengths to holes. This green is PERFECT, as are the course greens, line good, speed good, I'm ready.

1st hole birdie look from 10-11 feet, 1st putt goes 8 feet, 2nd putt misses the hole completely, bogey 5 W#T%F@.

This happened a couple more times during the round and that's why I'm not scratch. That 15 minutes spent practicing was more than I've spent on a practice green this year so far total. Got to still put in the work or the results will be the same. Quitting isn't an option.

[ChaosTheory]

31 minutes ago, Ghostwedge said:

True story..... had 15 minutes before our tee time yesterday. Spent it on the practice green, rolling one ball various lengths to holes. This green is PERFECT, as are the course greens, line good, speed good, I'm ready.

1st hole birdie look from 10-11 feet, 1st putt goes 8 feet, 2nd putt misses the hole completely, bogey 5 W#T%F@.

This happened a couple more times during the round and that's why I'm not scratch. That 15 minutes spent practicing was more than I've spent on a practice green this year so far total. Got to still put in the work or the results will be the same. Quitting isn't an option.

 

I'm real good on the practice green.  On the course, not as good, even if I know the read is good.  It's the same club, same ball, same grass, same weather.  Apparently my golf brain is the problem.

 

One book, can't recall which, advised to start being "aware" of your putting.  Build awareness of various aspects.  You have to be aware of something before you can change it.  Thinking about it right now, I have no idea if my stroke on the practice green is the same as the one on the course.   Probably not the same, but I have not tried to become aware of what might be different. 

 

So now I have something to work on.

[Ghostwedge]

Snow@  I've always been a streaky putter period. Will put together about four rds this summer where I will drain everything and look like Spieth (old man version).

[Ghostwedge]

Just now, Ghostwedge said:

Snow@  I've always been a streaky putter period. Will put together about four rds this summer where I will drain everything and look like Spieth (old man version).

Pretty sure my stroke is the same practice vs real play but I agree with you my "awareness" obviously isn't in sync with what I'm trying to do.

[Barfolomew]

So you suck at putting so what!  You love the game and you're an 8 cap 🐄

 

Your attitude is the only thing that needs to change.... you tried putting better

 

No one ever said you have to putt good to enjoy playin golf plus you still manage to be an 8 cap.... nice 

 

Have Fun.... F the details 🐒