Mid-range putting is a critical area in golf. On the professional tours the player who wins does so because he or she was the best in this area. The difference in your best scores was that you holed several putts from mid-range. To me, mid-range is from 9-25 feet (3-7,5 m). It is the area where you hope to hole out but are not as positive as with a 3 foot (1 m) putt. Try these games to develop a better mid-range putting game.
Pick a flat putt on your practice putting green. Place three balls on the green five paces away from the hole. Your goal is to putt those three balls into the hole in six strokes. Pay attention to the speed. You need to learn how to control the distance. Look again at the technique in the Lesson Section. See how many groups of three you can do in a row. When you can do five in a row from five paces away from the hole, change the line and do seven paces away from the hole.
You cannot do this exercise often enough. Turn off your computer and keep practising until you are no longer in the high handicap section! GO
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Useful TipsWhen making your mid-range putt, I want you to imagine that the hole has a two foot (½ m) radius. Roll your putt at the imaginary hole. If you miss the real hole, you should still be within about two feet (½ m) of it, from which distance you should expect to make the next putt. Concentrate on the rhythm of your stroke. Make two practice strokes to rehearse the length of stroke you will need to roll the ball the correct distance. You should never feel rushed or tense on these putts. |
As a better than average player, you should be working hard on your short game. By using this exercise you will start to hole more long putts and eliminate those expensive three putts. Take three balls and your putter and resolve to work on your putting for an hour. Put three balls down five paces from a hole. Your goal is to get all the balls in the hole in six strokes. If you leave a putt short of the back of the hole you lose and have to start again.
To win the game you have to complete five sets of three balls without leaving one short of the back of the hole. When you win, take two paces back and repeat the exercise. The purpose of this exercise is to develop good distance control. I have never seen the hole go to the ball so you had better work hard on finding the feeling for getting the ball to the hole every time.
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Level 2Try the following exercise to develop your skills even further. You need three balls and your putter. Put a ball down four paces from a hole. Do the same for five paces and six paces so that you now have three balls at three different lengths. To win the game you have to hit each ball past the back of the hole and then knock it in if you missed the hole. You have to do this successfully five times. When you win you can start off at five paces, then six paces and seven paces and repeat the exercise. See how far away from the hole you can get. But remember, when you lose you start all over again from the beginning. |
Try some of these variations. You should also be developing putting games so that you can compete against yourself and your friends.
Take three balls and your putter. You will also need one tee. Start off three putter lengths from the hole and put a tee in the green to mark your spot.
From your three putts, you must hole one and leave none short of the back of the hole. When you hole one and leave none short out of three you advance away from the hole by one putter´s length. See how far away you can go.
Remember you leave one short and you start all over again.
This game is less regimented but is another good game for developing feel. Take two balls and putt from random positions in the 9-25 foot (3-7,5 m) circle. See how many you can hole from 20 different attempts without leaving one short of the back of the hole. Keep a record of your personal best and try to beat it next time.
Another good practice game is to putt into a box to test your distance control. Have a go at this exercise:
You need five balls, one tee and three long irons. Create a box with your long irons around a hole in the following manner.
From four paces away from the hole, putt the balls keeping them inside the box. Every time you achieve all five, move back one pace and repeat the game. See how far away you can get. But if you touch the shafts or leave one short of the back of the hole, you start again.
As I mentioned to you before, there is no substitute for practice. When you watch the professionals on TV roll a long putt inches past the hole, they are using the experience they have gained from thousands of hours of practice.
This is the feeling you need to cultivate. You must be able to feel the speed on a 20 foot (6 m) putt and roll the ball down the line so that the ball is travelling at the correct speed when it hits the hole.
Work on the lessons and then play the games.