Copy what most good putters do!!!!

What good putters normally do is simple….

The key to good putting is not singular, it is the combination of good fundamentals combined with imagination and confidence. Putting fundamentals are essential to good consistent putting. Please don’t become one of those players that think a good putt is one that goes in. A good putt is one that starts on the line you intended with the speed you intended. After achieving these fundamentals then you must learn

The proper mental-set up process. There are three distinctive steps to the proper pre- shot putting process.

Albert the Scientist – Judging slope, speed, environmental conditions, playing situation and the understanding or your skill at the time of the putt without losing confidence and judging the most effective speed to play the putt.

Bob the Set up guy – Aligning feet, knees, body and shoulders. Setting the proper spine angle, rounded at the top, grip and grip pressure. . Aiming the putter at the target and putting your mind in the proper state of relaxation and concentration before the putt.

Rocco the jock – Turning from target to pure feel. Using your eyes and absorbing the visual information and turning this into a feel not a mechanic.

Albert the Scientist responsibilities

Reading the putt – Reading a putt is making your best guess as to how the ball will curve if hit a certain speed over a desired distance. Reading a green is using your scientific mind considering all factors and making your best guess as to how the ball will react.

Bob the Set up guy needs to aim

Aiming – The average student I work with cannot aim the putter inside the hole from 10 feet. In fact about 2 percent of my amateur students can accomplish this feat. Unfortunately most players never practice aiming or even have the ability to aim. When we aim the putter we must have our eyes over the ball on the line of the putt to aim accurately. The way your brain works in processing aiming is very simple. If your eyes are inside the line of the putt this will optically curve how the putter is pointed and make you aim right of the hole. The farther inside the line the more to the right you will have a tendency to aim. The opposite is also true if your eyes are on the other side of the line. Having your eyes on the other side of the ball is rare because it is so uncomfortable at set up. The easiest way to test if your eyes are aligned over the ball is to take your set up position over the ball, take a second ball from this position and place it against the bridge of your nose, drop the ball and see where it lands. Continue to drop balls from the bridge of your nose until the ball drops directly on top of the ball, now your eyes are over the line of the putt. It is not necessary to have your eyes over the ball while putting but it is advantages. With that said, unless your practice allot try to keep your eyes over the ball during the stroke. If you don’t you will probably aim correctly and then adjust your aim when your head moves off the line. If you can’t aim inside a 4 ¼ circle from ten feet don’t expect to make too many putts from this distance.

Golf for the other 80%: The answers to why you can't improve by [PGA, Jim Hartnett, Hartnett, Jim]