My putting problem

[kylesilk]

I've got a putting issue I have been battling for a little too long.  I'll preface it by stating that overall I'm still putting pretty well.  My issue is starting the backswing.  I always take 2 practice swings then place the putter behind the ball, look at the target, the  acknowledge to the ball and go.  The go part is now stuck.  If makes distance control much harder.  Sometimes the putter head starts moving back and it feels like something else is doing it, I'm not even controlling it.  Any thoughts on this?

[CSagan]

Single malt scotch... 3oz/9 holes.

[Trippels]

11 minutes ago, kylesilk said:

I've got a putting issue I have been battling for a little too long.  I'll preface it by stating that overall I'm still putting pretty well.  My issue is starting the backswing.  I always take 2 practice swings then place the putter behind the ball, look at the target, the  acknowledge to the ball and go.  The go part is now stuck.  If makes distance control much harder.  Sometimes the putter head starts moving back and it feels like something else is doing it, I'm not even controlling it.  Any thoughts on this?

Little forward press before starting the backswing?

[kylesilk]

3 minutes ago, CSagan said:

Single malt scotch... 3oz/9 holes.

Lol.  Not a bad idea.

[kylesilk]

2 minutes ago, Trippels said:

Little forward press before starting the backswing?

I have a DF 2.1 with the press built in.  I've never really been a foward presser with any putter though.  Solid thought however and worth playing around with.

[Trippels]

21 minutes ago, kylesilk said:

I have a DF 2.1 with the press built in.  I've never really been a foward presser with any putter though.  Solid thought however and worth playing around with.

If you've resorted to that sort of putter then you're beyond my help.

Godspeed and good luck to you.

[Fuscinator]

"It feels like my heart is beating on its own!"🤢

[jomatty]

Try not being completely still.  If I let myself get too stagnant I have trouble pulling the trigger.  I very slightly tap the putter head up and down behind the ball until I’m set and ready to go and it make is much easier for me to do one last tap, settle the putter and go.

[CSagan]

Yeah I just ordered a midlock putter....hence my scotch suggestion. I'd say just embrace your quirks and be comfortable with them and roll with it being more target focused instead of mechanic focused.

[kylesilk]

Just now, CSagan said:

Yeah I just ordered a midlock putter....hence my scotch suggestion. I'd say just embrace your quirks and be comfortable with them and roll with it being more target focused instead of mechanic focused.

Ha, I'm thinking armlock.  Wife says I have too many putters to begin with.

[golftech]

If you don’t want to forward press, then maybe a tap tap type press.  That’s what Greg Norman and Jay Haas did.  There a video on YouTube with Stan Utley talking about Haas’ (and I played in a pro-am with Jay and saw in person).  The key is to keep some type of motion going at all times before starting the putter back.  Faxon has always kept his feet moving slightly until he forward presses, at no time becoming stationary.   

[llewol007]

Totally agree with the previous post. Your body is ready to go and your holding it back. Same thing with a back swing. Now I keep myself from keeping from completely stopping by either tapping my putter and my irons. Kinda resets my body from settling in too much. Give it a try. 

[MelloYello]

I second the drinking suggestion above. It's helped me a lot and quite frankly, I've put a flask in the bag so I've always got a little something there when I'm stiff or just need to calm down a bit. 

 

Your problem is obviously mental so screwing with your stroke or your equipment won't solve it. 

 

I started doing a couple sips of something on the first tee or when I'm warming up on the range this winter and it really calms the nerves (not to mention dulling the back ache). My mind is often racing out there so I've had to really work to play more calmly. I do a lot of things but I wouldn't ignore the idea of ingesting something. I spend too much time thinking about golf when I'm off the course and so do a lot of people. 

 

I would seriously recommend something small to try and take the edge off. People have been finding ways to do it (responsibly) for years. 

[Peter_b]

tap the grass twice then go. Read somewhere someone on tour is doing this to get going.

[EatingASalad301]

Hit up 1-2 degrees to put overspin on it. That'll fix your stroke in general.

[bladehunter]

Read this thread.  There’s everything from putter shaming to AA worst nightmares…. 
 

im cruising putting threads myself , and it seems allot like trying to pick peanuts from squirrel poo…. A losing battle.  Goes to show how mystical putting still is.  It’s so simple. Yet so damn hard.  And it’s always roughly 45-50 % of any good players game.  
 

i truly believe that any juniors starting this game should be required to attend a putting school.  That’s the game that needs to be mastered.  I don’t know a single person who has mastered it.  

[jholz]

I'm very certain that my current putting woes are all between the ears - and it really stems back to expectations and the pressure that I put on myself on the greens.

 

The pressure right now is coming from two factors:

 

1. I've cleaned up my game from tee to green, and putting seems like the main thing holding my scores back.

2. I practice putting A LOT.

 

So, I feel like I should be performing better on the greens. I also feel that I need to be performing better on the greens. My disappointment when I don't is palpable. It hurts me. It creates negative energy.

 

Go through this for a couple of months (or like seven) and before you know it, I'm a complete headcase once the cover comes off the putter. Tentative. Fearful. Second guessing. Ugh.

 

I feel like I may have correctly diagnosed the problem at this point, but still searching for the cure. Might be as simple as flipping a switch in my brain. We will have to see.

[Krt22]

1 hour ago, bladehunter said:

 

i truly believe that any juniors starting this game should be required to attend a putting school.  That’s the game that needs to be mastered.  I don’t know a single person who has mastered it.  

What if someone were to say putting simply can never be truly mastered (same about the swing as a whole). I know "golf isn't a game of perfect" is a pretty cliche saying, but I think a lot of folks would benefit from taking that mental approach. 

[baudi]

One can master the stroke but one cannot master the result of that stroke.

 

 

 

[bladehunter]

1 hour ago, Krt22 said:

What if someone were to say putting simply can never be truly mastered (same about the swing as a whole). I know "golf isn't a game of perfect" is a pretty cliche saying, but I think a lot of folks would benefit from taking that mental approach. 

Right.  I get that. And I agree. But. I’m fresh off a -4.7 strokes gained putting round.  Where I had 5 birdies and shot 73. I hit it that good and putter that bad.      I’m -3.16 putting for the last 10 rounds total.   -2.97 putting for as long as I’ve kept the stat.   I oscillate between -1 and +2 ish approach as a range.  , and same with tee balls.  I stay around +.5 to +1.5 all around the green wedge shots.  
 

but I’ll be damned if I can get it positive with a putter. It has happened for singular rounds. Most days I can do one of two things. Lag and not 3 putt. Or - make a few and 3 putt alot. And I’ve had some of the best help the game has ever heard of. It’s not stroke. Or start line. It’s speed.  

I guess to be clear. I’d just love to match the rest of my game as far as consistency.  
 

i have a mental block against it. And I cannot find my way around it.  Anyway.  Rant over.  It is what it is.  Work won’t make 1 putts happen. If it would , I’d be doing it.  

18 minutes ago, baudi said:

One can master the stroke but one cannot master the result of that stroke.

 

 

 

i agree with you. But I don’t suppose that those that are great putters would  be happy with my results? That’s not a snarky comment.  It’s a question. Isn’t there a line where you have to stop pretending it’s ok ?   To accept this result feels like defeat to me.  I’m all ears if you really want to discuss/help.  I’m speaking to the mental side.  I can stand and make straight putts. I can “ putt “. . i do a 5 foot drill where I’ve made in the high 30s in a row before.   I can’t seem to manage to do this on fresh breaking putts on course. 
 

It’s like this. Some putts I feel like I know I’ll make. And most of the time I do.  Which means I’m certain of the line and feel for how hard to hit it. Then I’ll have others where I know I can’t make it. I’ll get this feeling over it that basically says “ this isn’t right , you’re going to miss”.   And I’ll proceed to power lip it out , or hit it too high usually. 
 

anyway. I don’t know why I do this. ( rant here ) In all my years of putting like this , I’ve yet to find relief.  Thanks for listening.  

[bladehunter]

2 hours ago, jholz said:

I'm very certain that my current putting woes are all between the ears - and it really stems back to expectations and the pressure that I put on myself on the greens.

 

The pressure right now is coming from two factors:

 

1. I've cleaned up my game from tee to green, and putting seems like the main thing holding my scores back.

2. I practice putting A LOT.

 

So, I feel like I should be performing better on the greens. I also feel that I need to be performing better on the greens. My disappointment when I don't is palpable. It hurts me. It creates negative energy.

 

Go through this for a couple of months (or like seven) and before you know it, I'm a complete headcase once the cover comes off the putter. Tentative. Fearful. Second guessing. Ugh.

 

I feel like I may have correctly diagnosed the problem at this point, but still searching for the cure. Might be as simple as flipping a switch in my brain. We will have to see.

This ^.  This is me.    I know it’s mental.  

[Krt22]

1 minute ago, bladehunter said:

Right.  I get that. And I agree. But. I’m fresh off a -4.7 strokes gained putting round.  Where I had 5 birdies and shot 73. I hit it that good and putter that bad.      I’m -3.16 putting for the last 10 rounds total.   -2.97 putting for as long as I’ve kept the stat.   I oscillate between -1 and +2 ish approach as a range.  , and same with tee balls.  I stay around +.5 to +1.5 all around the green wedge shots.  
 

but I’ll be damned if I can get it positive with a putter. It has happened for singular rounds. Most days I can do one of two things. Lag and not 3 putt. Or - make a few and 3 putt alot. And I’ve had some of the best help the game has ever heard of. It’s not stroke. Or start line. It’s speed.  

I guess to be clear. I’d just love to match the rest of my game as far as consistency.  
 

i have a mental block against it. And I cannot find my way around it.  Anyway.  Rant over.  It is what it is.  Work won’t make 1 putts happen. If it would , I’d be doing it.  

 

There is A LOT of space between being deficient and proficient (which you have put a number to via SG)...then from proficient to masterful. In your case it seems like simply being proficient would go a long way 😃 

[bladehunter]

Just now, Krt22 said:

There is A LOT of space between being deficient and proficient (which you have put a number to via SG)...then from proficient to masterful. In your case it seems like simply being proficient would go a long way 😃 

Yes sir. If I consistently lost 1 shot a round putting I’d do a blanking cartwheel .  I could at least plan around it.   But the perfectionist in me is mad that I’m better off the green with a wedge than  I am from 35 feet with putter. That seems unnatural.  And like @jholz said. I putt so much everyday. It adds insult to injury.    
 

 

im too aggressive.  I think that’s part of it. It serves me well in a lot of parts of the game. 

[Krt22]

You gotta get that worked out man, it's the easiest part of the game!  

[alittleoverpar]

I would look for another trigger.  Something simple like lifting your right big toe and putting it down or lifting your left index finger off of the grip and putting it back.  It gives you something completely different to acknowledge and gets you out of brain-lock.  

[jholz]

Man, @bladehunter all I can really do is empathize. The fact that I can clearly illustrates that I don't really have any answers for you. I wish I did - because then I probably wouldn't suck on the greens these days too.

 

But good lord - if I had a dime for all the lip outs I've had this summer, I could probably buy you a moderately priced dinner at Applebee's.

 

Except, of course, my lip outs have generally been low. I'm really good at leaving putts a millimeter short. After about 12 holes of that, I'll blow a few past - leading to a three putt or two. So frustrating.

 

Tricky downhillers are the one's I tend to make. Straight uphill putts get pulled to the left. Sidehillers, as I mentioned, consistently lip out low. AGGGHHH!

 

One drill that has been very illuminating for me lately is the gate drill - but doing it on longer breaking putts. I'll sit there hitting putts until I know the break and how the ball is going to enter the hole. I'll set up my gates and just stroke putts over and over.

 

Anything up to about 6 feet, and I can get to where I'm consistently rolling them into the hole the same way, over and over. If I get out to ten feet, it is so, so frickin' hard. I mean, I know the line. I know how hard to hit it. I have the gates to guide me. And yet still, if I can sink one of three, I'm doing pretty good.

 

These drills obviously help to hone my mechanics - and even my green reading - but more than anything they show me how hard it is to make these longer, breaking putts. The difference between making it and missing is so, so fine. And it's not always related to stroke or distance control. The longer the putt, the more the rub of the green comes into play.

 

All of this is telling me two things. First, I can never be perfect. Second, even if I am, perfection isn't going to be enough. I'm still going to miss putts.

 

So, I'm trying to take that weight of perfection off my shoulders and just start hitting putts naturally again. Que sera sera. We will see how this works.

 

 

 

[bladehunter]

2 hours ago, Krt22 said:

You gotta get that worked out man, it's the easiest part of the game!  

😂 So I’ve been told for years.  

[iceman1118]

I have gone down so many black holes with putting it is truly frightening. Fittings, buy random off the rack, even tried lefty for a round. ( really was no different I’m case anyone was wondering)

 

I have been a steady 2 and change handicap for almost two full seasons now. My game is simple and anyone who plays with me knows it. Strike it well, putt like crap. I average 32-34 putts per rounds. It is atrocious and it quite frankly sucks. 
 

I have done putter fittings and been told different things each time. LAB putters help but I don’t necessarily make any more putts. Just more tap in two putts. 
 

The scariest thing I see is when I practice putting and bering a few putters out with me to the green. I use a line on the ball for practice to make sure it rolls end over end. I can grab a flow neck blade, face balanced mallet or probably a hockey stick and I can get the line to roll end over end. It’s maddening because of all of the marketing BS with putters. 
 

I have come to terms with two truths that help me get through my putting nightmare. Hopefully it makes sense. 
 

1. There are so many variables on a green that I think it is near impossible to account for. Time of day, temperature, humidity, length of grass, how many people walked on it that day, small rocks or debris, sunny, cloudy, humid, rainy, wet, recently watered, I mean, I could go on and on it’s scary. But the fact remains whether it is from 2 feet or 100 feet, we have to roll a tiny white ball into a 4 inch hole. When you look at all the factors I listed plus probably the 100 more that could exist, the fact that putts drop is a minor miracle in itself. 
 

2. Putting is NOT binary. I used to believe a putt either went in or it didn’t and that what made it a “good putt “. I have totally changed my thinking here. One of the starters at my club works in FL over the winter and Denny McCarthy is a member where he works. They are pretty good friends so they play a lot and my buddy gets a lot of wisdom from him. Let’s be honest, Denny probably has the most pure roll on tour. His philosophy on putting is very, very simple. He says there are two things he can control and that is distance and direction. He picks his line, adjusts for speed, and says all I do from there is hit a “good putt”. Meaning the line and speed he determines is needed for the putt is the putt he hits. If it goes in, great. If not, all he can assess is whether or not he hit a “good putt”.
 

It is hard to accept these two truths but they are facts. I can hit a “good putt” from 5 feet or 50 feet and neither is guaranteed to go in. Sucks, but true. 

[NoTalentLefty]

Try cross hand for a while. 

[mikpga]

Sounds like you need to experiment with some new/different routines just to break it up a bit...

 

There's some value with "always staying in motion"...