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Greetings,
I read recently that a good way to practice is to emphasize success, not failure. I agree with that. One way to do that, as I read, is to practice only three foot putts and thirty foot putts. Nothing else. The purpose of the three foot putt is to practice success. The purpose of the thirty foot putt is to send the ball to within three feet of the hole. The principle here is that once we master the three foot putt and the thirty foot putt, we can finish any hole with two putts or less from anywhere on the green. No more three putts or worse.
I wanted to try that at home so I use a carpet. After a while, I noticed that the ball grooves a line within which it likes to stay. That's cool but it sort of defeats the purpose of becoming good at holing putts. So I suggest that you find a carpet with very short and/or stiff fibers so that the ball doesn't groove itself a line.
Anyway, I roll the end of the rug on one end and put a ball there as my target. Then I set up and aim at that ball. I try to hit it head on with the other ball. I repeat as often as I like. I usually do that about an hour a day or so. I've become quite good at it. When summer gets around, I'll get to practice the thirty footer.
Things I've learned.
When I say I've become good at it, I mean that I've learned a lot about putting in general. For instance, I putt best when I strike the ball on the sweet spot. It took some practice just to find the sweet spot but once I found it, it became much easier to judge distance and direction. It's easier to judge direction because the putter head doesn't twist when I strike the ball so I'm not tempted to twist back. It's easier to judge distance because I know how much force I must apply to produce a specific distance. When I struck the ball anywhere on the face, I didn't know how much distance I would get. Then once in a while I'd hit the sweet spot and send the ball about 10 feet past the hole.
A round grip.
I learned that I prefer a round grip without taper and without any particular shape that either helps or hinders how I grip the putter. I prefer round because then I can grip and align the putter any way I want. Just for that reason, it makes it easier to use the putter. I'm free of the restrictions of odd shaped grips. Also, with a round grip, I can make the grip as long or as short as I want (if I use electric tape for example) so I can hold the club at the exact length I prefer and that makes it easier to use as well.
A short stroke.
I experimented with all kinds of strokes and found that I prefer a short back stroke with a controlled and deliberate forward stroke. A long and/or slow back stroke only made it more difficult to control the putter's alignment and I was not striking the ball precisely that way. A long slow back stroke is somewhat unnatural to me. I don't mean that I jerk the club back and forth like I have the yips or something. I make a deliberate stroke without hesitation or undue delay. A short back stroke makes it easier to keep the putter head aligned.
Striking the ground.
All through practice, at times I'll get the putter head stuck on the rug. I even do that when I play or practice on the green so it's not a surprise to me. So I looked for a way to prevent that snag from affecting my stroke. In part, the problem is that I try to strike the ball on the up stroke. So no more up stroke for me. I strike the ball on an even stroke from now on. The problem was still there so I found a way to eliminate it altogether. This is what I do. I set the putter head behind the ball as I address it. When I've aligned it to my liking, I tap it once gently on the ground behind the ball to feel the ground height and raise it back up to strike height, then I make the stroke. Not only does this prevent me from striking the ground to keep the putter head aligned properly, it helps me strike the ball on the sweet spot height wise.
Swing path versus face alignment.
I found that it's much more important to align the putter head properly and strike the ball that way than to swing the club in the "correct" path. I found that the swing path only affects the ball if it's in a groove (like the one the ball made as it rolled on the rug). Brushing the ball with the putter head will impart side spin that will affect how the ball rolls. If the ball rolls on a surface that has edges on it such as a groove, it will get caught up on that edge and begin to zigzag as it rolls towards the target. If the side spin is sufficiently strong, the ball will miss. But only by a small margin. Conversely, when I strike the ball with a misaligned putter face, I miss my target by a lot because the ball starts on the wrong line from the start.
All these things combined make quite a difference. I've improved my skill. I've gained confidence in my ability. I've learned all this from practicing a three footer. Perhaps the three footer is the best and most productive distance to practice, who knows.
Anyway, try that drill and see if it makes a difference for you. Let's call it the 3:30 drill.
I read recently that a good way to practice is to emphasize success, not failure. I agree with that. One way to do that, as I read, is to practice only three foot putts and thirty foot putts. Nothing else. The purpose of the three foot putt is to practice success. The purpose of the thirty foot putt is to send the ball to within three feet of the hole. The principle here is that once we master the three foot putt and the thirty foot putt, we can finish any hole with two putts or less from anywhere on the green. No more three putts or worse.
I wanted to try that at home so I use a carpet. After a while, I noticed that the ball grooves a line within which it likes to stay. That's cool but it sort of defeats the purpose of becoming good at holing putts. So I suggest that you find a carpet with very short and/or stiff fibers so that the ball doesn't groove itself a line.
Anyway, I roll the end of the rug on one end and put a ball there as my target. Then I set up and aim at that ball. I try to hit it head on with the other ball. I repeat as often as I like. I usually do that about an hour a day or so. I've become quite good at it. When summer gets around, I'll get to practice the thirty footer.
Things I've learned.
When I say I've become good at it, I mean that I've learned a lot about putting in general. For instance, I putt best when I strike the ball on the sweet spot. It took some practice just to find the sweet spot but once I found it, it became much easier to judge distance and direction. It's easier to judge direction because the putter head doesn't twist when I strike the ball so I'm not tempted to twist back. It's easier to judge distance because I know how much force I must apply to produce a specific distance. When I struck the ball anywhere on the face, I didn't know how much distance I would get. Then once in a while I'd hit the sweet spot and send the ball about 10 feet past the hole.
A round grip.
I learned that I prefer a round grip without taper and without any particular shape that either helps or hinders how I grip the putter. I prefer round because then I can grip and align the putter any way I want. Just for that reason, it makes it easier to use the putter. I'm free of the restrictions of odd shaped grips. Also, with a round grip, I can make the grip as long or as short as I want (if I use electric tape for example) so I can hold the club at the exact length I prefer and that makes it easier to use as well.
A short stroke.
I experimented with all kinds of strokes and found that I prefer a short back stroke with a controlled and deliberate forward stroke. A long and/or slow back stroke only made it more difficult to control the putter's alignment and I was not striking the ball precisely that way. A long slow back stroke is somewhat unnatural to me. I don't mean that I jerk the club back and forth like I have the yips or something. I make a deliberate stroke without hesitation or undue delay. A short back stroke makes it easier to keep the putter head aligned.
Striking the ground.
All through practice, at times I'll get the putter head stuck on the rug. I even do that when I play or practice on the green so it's not a surprise to me. So I looked for a way to prevent that snag from affecting my stroke. In part, the problem is that I try to strike the ball on the up stroke. So no more up stroke for me. I strike the ball on an even stroke from now on. The problem was still there so I found a way to eliminate it altogether. This is what I do. I set the putter head behind the ball as I address it. When I've aligned it to my liking, I tap it once gently on the ground behind the ball to feel the ground height and raise it back up to strike height, then I make the stroke. Not only does this prevent me from striking the ground to keep the putter head aligned properly, it helps me strike the ball on the sweet spot height wise.
Swing path versus face alignment.
I found that it's much more important to align the putter head properly and strike the ball that way than to swing the club in the "correct" path. I found that the swing path only affects the ball if it's in a groove (like the one the ball made as it rolled on the rug). Brushing the ball with the putter head will impart side spin that will affect how the ball rolls. If the ball rolls on a surface that has edges on it such as a groove, it will get caught up on that edge and begin to zigzag as it rolls towards the target. If the side spin is sufficiently strong, the ball will miss. But only by a small margin. Conversely, when I strike the ball with a misaligned putter face, I miss my target by a lot because the ball starts on the wrong line from the start.
All these things combined make quite a difference. I've improved my skill. I've gained confidence in my ability. I've learned all this from practicing a three footer. Perhaps the three footer is the best and most productive distance to practice, who knows.
Anyway, try that drill and see if it makes a difference for you. Let's call it the 3:30 drill.
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