December Teaching Zone – Putting Drill

We love helping you improve, so each month we’ll be offering an idea to help your golf or a simple practice drill. We’ll be looking to freshen up your practice or make you think differently about the game and the challenges it presents. We’ll be covering all areas of golf from tee shots to putting, and also a look at warming up and playing the course. This month Tom is going to help you with your putting.

Tom Richardson

This drill is designed to encourage you to hole out more assertively. It’s a great way to practice or to prepare for playing the course. I regularly use it when I’m warming up for a tournament. It’s a real confidence booster.

On a flat area of the green set three tees up in a triangle as shown below. The first two tee pegs, one either side of the putter head, will form a gate that the putter head will pass through. The third tee needs to be about a foot behind and central to the first two.

Put a ball between the first two tees and set up to it. Make your backswing so you avoid hitting the tee behind your putter head. To ensure the ball gets to the hole you’ll need to accelerate into the ball and through.

This drill helps in two ways. The tees either side of the clubhead encourage you to keep your stroke in line. Secondly the tee at the back will encourage you to accelerate through the ball giving your stroke a better rhythm.

As you practice the drill you’ll get a feel for where the third tee peg needs to be placed to encourage gentle acceleration. If it’s too far away you’ll probably be decelerating through the ball which so many high handicap golfers do. A decelerating putter head is very unstable and it will lead to inconsistency. If you place the third tee peg too close to the first two, then you’ll be forced to accelerate too aggressively and you’ll lose control and feel.

As you get more confident with the drill and your stroke becomes repeatable, challenge yourself by bringing the first two tees slightly closer together to make the gate smaller. Or you could set yourself a target of holing 10 in a row from 3 feet and moving back a little further if you achieve it. Applying some pressure in practice will stand you in good stead in competition.

Let me know how it goes!