Joe,
I hit the ball better than my buddies, but I never seem to score lower because they putt better than me. I hate too much putting practice because my back gets sore if all I do is putt for awhile. Other than more practice, are there any tips I can try?
Patrick

Hello Patrick,
You must be the poster child for the old saying "Drive for show and putt for dough". There are no guarantees, but here are several ways that might help - Let’s assume Golfer A and Golfer B have similar putting strokes and they can both seem to read a green equally well, but Golfer A makes more putts and 3-putts less often than Golfer B. How can this be?
Golfer A uses a putter design that is weighted at the toe and at the heel, but not in the center. Golfer B uses a straight blade. Since they both have similar strokes, they both miss the sweet spot on the putter by the same amount. Golfer A gets more consistent results due to a larger sweet spot.
Golfer A has confidence in the read and can concentrate fully on executing the stroke. Golfer B changes the read as he/she stands over the ball (why bother with the original read in that case?). This can result in a tentative stroke due to worrying about the read instead of executing the proper pace of the stroke.
Golfer A putts at a spot on the green on the way to the hole, a spot that is close enough to hit every time. Golfer B does not use an intermediate target.
Golfer A improves touch for distance control during practice by noticing how far the backswing goes for certain distances, and then steps off those distances. Golfer B just relies on feel without thinking about the exact distance. As a result, Golfer A’s second putt is usually 1-2 feet long, while golfer B’s second putt is usually 3-4 feet long.
Golfer A’s putter has a fat grip, Golfer B’s putter has a skinny grip. In both cases, any accidental hand rotation will cause the putter face to rotate off line. Due to the fatter grip Golfer A’s putter face will rotate less than Golfer B’s putter.
Golfer A observes the terrain while walking up to the green from 100 yards on in, and can see which way water would most likely drain off the green, because this is the way all putts will break if you are not sure of other reads. Golfer B only reads putts after he/she gets on the green.
Golfer A uses a posture that does not cause back pain, and also uses a longer putter to avoid hunching over too much. Golfer B, you might as well try that, you have nothing to lose.
Joe


Joe,
I am thinking of getting a video lesson, but that is a bit expensive. Does video golf instruction always work?
Jeremy
Hi Jeremy,
It seems like a valid concept, right? Compare your swing side by side with a pro who has a similar build as yours. On the surface, that seems to make sense, and it has helped many people improve to a certain level. Others, however, have not been able to benefit as much from this. If you are built like Jim Furyk, would you try to copy his swing? Consider the following factors. Human beings have inner workings that are as different as fingerprints, even for people that have similar builds. Their hinges all behave differently, hands, wrists, elbows, shoulders, hips, knees, ankles, etc. It may be asking too much to assume you someday will make your swing a carbon copy of a pro’s swing. The pro swings every day, and probably hits more balls daily than you ever will in a week. The pro is probably blessed with better than average athleticism, eyesight (depth perception), and hand-eye coordination. Some instruction seems to take this for granted. Even if you are a pretty good athlete and you have good eyesight, you still can’t assume that your depth perception and hand-eye coordination are the same as anyone else’s. Just as good eyesight is a gift, hand-eye coordination is also a gift. The two gifts are related, but are not exactly the same. A person can have good eyesight, but poor hand-eye coordination. The only way to improve hand-eye coordination is to practice, practice, practice. However, golf is an expensive game, so unless you make a lot of money, your opportunities to play or practice may be a lot more limited for you as opposed to others who can afford to play or practice every day. As a result, your ball striking pattern on your clubs is going to be a lot more random than the pros, who can hit the sweet spot on the clubface almost every time. Meanwhile the rest of us, even when we think we are swinging well, are still occasionally hitting it fat, thin, off the toe or heel, etc. So are we all doomed to mediocrity? No, just try to understand that ball striking is more important than making your swing look pretty. You may not want to take the same full backswing as your body-type pro. The further back you go, the more trouble your hinges can get you into. Look at the way Dana Quigley, Allen Doyle, and Moe Norman have become successful with much less than a full swing, almost a half swing. Even Tiger has his "stinger" swing when he needs to keep the ball in the fairway. When all else fails, the shorter swing is a good way to begin improvement.
Joe


Joe,
Why do they make drivers that have the face lined up for a pull when you rest them on the ground, what good does that do?
Pedro

Hello Pedro,
The idea is to help cure a slice. If you take your normal grip while the driver is resting on the ground, and then you raise it off the ground and line up the clubface to the target line, you have effectively rolled your hands to a stronger grip, which eliminates one of the main reasons people tend to slice. Of course there are other reasons for slicing too, but many people find this to be helpful.
Joe