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One of the most common errors made when putting is the lack of consistency in controlling the distance your putts travel.

No matter the running speed of the green or the length of the putt, most amateur golfers dont have the right formula to get their putts to finish close enough to be inside tap in range. There are a couple of things you need to work on to create this formula, these are:

Tick-Tock Tempo

The tick-tock tempo is designed to help you maintain a constant tempo of both the backstroke and forward stroke through to the finish. In the modern age of the smart phone, what you need to do is download a metronome app and listen to the tempo of its tick-tock. The great thing about using a metronome is that you can control the speed of its tick-tock to match the smooth, controlled putting stroke you are looking to make.

Trail Foot Formula

The trail foot formula is designed to help you control the distance your putt travels to within 6 to 12 inches every time. This is impossible to put in place without great tempo which is why the tick-tock tempo must be in place first.

Firstly, place a tee on the ground on the putting green and take three large paces away from it. This will see you approximately 10 feet from the tee. Switch on your metronome, take your set up and make a backstroke that moves no further than the instep of your trail foot. As long as you keep your tempo to the set speed of your metronome, you should see your putt finish within 6 to 12 inches of the tee.

Take a further three larger paces back so youre around 20 feet. Take your set up and make a backstroke that moves back to the outside of your trail foot. You should see your ball finish within the same distance of the tee as long as your tempo is good. Move back now to 30 feet and make your backstroke a couple of inches (the width of your putter hea outside your trail foot. If you keep your stroke matched to the beat of your metronome then all of your putts should be in a very similar area, waiting for you to just tap them in.

Counting in your head to can be a benefit to your putting as it will help you maintain a good tempo within your stroke, but this will only benefit one length of stroke. This means that you will struggle to have any consistency in your distance control if you try to judge your stroke by your count.

The last thing you want to do is change the width of your stance every time you putt. Although in theory, using your trail foot as guide is a good idea, it wont produce any degree of consistency in your speed control if you dont know by how much your stance is changing on each putt.

The more you practise your putting, the more improvement you will see, as long as you are practising in the right way. That means you must be consistent in the things that you practise if you are to see the improvement transfer on to the course. If you are almost guessing what length your backstroke is by hoping to get the same feel each time then you will continue to struggle once you get a scorecard in your hands.