Never putt short again putt over shaft (Video) - by Pete Styles
Never putt short again putt over shaft (Video) - by Pete Styles

There are occasions that you'll see a golfer on the course and they'd say they don't make enough putts. But the problem is they don't get enough putts to the whole. If you don't get a putt through the hole, it's got no chance of going in. So, here's a really lovely exercise that you can practice just in the comfort of your front room or on the putting green before you go out and play that would always encourage you to hit your short putts a little bit harder, be a bit more assertive, get all of your short putts to the hole, then they've got a chance of going in.

So, I want to hit my ball to stop just in the tray at the edge of this mat here. So, I'm not worried about line here. This is much more about pace and length. What I've done is I've laid a shaft on the floor. I've just taken my wedge and I've just placed it on the floor. So, if I dully this putt and try and get it to go in into the tray, it won't get over the shaft, it's just going to hit against it and stop. I can't get the ball to the hole unless I hit it a little bit harder.

So, this time I'm going to try and be a little bit more assertive, a short backswing but a really positive follow-through. I'll give the ball a little bit more aggression and see if I can get it to hop over the shaft and try and get it to run down towards the tray, so, maybe even a little bit more aggressive than that. If I can be a little bit more positive, I can get it to run down into the tray.

Just by the process of that sort of slowing and giving the ball resistance, I then view a three-foot putt in a much more positive, aggressive stroke than a little dullying action. So, next time you go out and practice your putting, if you feel that you're not being aggressive enough and you just can't convince yourself to hit the ball to the hole, just lay the shaft down in front of the hole and make sure you've been a little bit more assertive to get the ball to hop over the shaft, run out to the hole.

When you take this three-footer on the course, you'll find your swing naturally as a bit more aggressive then you should be leaving anything short. If it doesn't get to the hole, it's got no chance of going in.

 2013-01-23

There are occasions that you'll see a golfer on the course and they'd say they don't make enough putts. But the problem is they don't get enough putts to the whole. If you don't get a putt through the hole, it's got no chance of going in. So, here's a really lovely exercise that you can practice just in the comfort of your front room or on the putting green before you go out and play that would always encourage you to hit your short putts a little bit harder, be a bit more assertive, get all of your short putts to the hole, then they've got a chance of going in.

So, I want to hit my ball to stop just in the tray at the edge of this mat here. So, I'm not worried about line here. This is much more about pace and length. What I've done is I've laid a shaft on the floor. I've just taken my wedge and I've just placed it on the floor. So, if I dully this putt and try and get it to go in into the tray, it won't get over the shaft, it's just going to hit against it and stop. I can't get the ball to the hole unless I hit it a little bit harder.

So, this time I'm going to try and be a little bit more assertive, a short backswing but a really positive follow-through. I'll give the ball a little bit more aggression and see if I can get it to hop over the shaft and try and get it to run down towards the tray, so, maybe even a little bit more aggressive than that. If I can be a little bit more positive, I can get it to run down into the tray.

Just by the process of that sort of slowing and giving the ball resistance, I then view a three-foot putt in a much more positive, aggressive stroke than a little dullying action. So, next time you go out and practice your putting, if you feel that you're not being aggressive enough and you just can't convince yourself to hit the ball to the hole, just lay the shaft down in front of the hole and make sure you've been a little bit more assertive to get the ball to hop over the shaft, run out to the hole.

When you take this three-footer on the course, you'll find your swing naturally as a bit more aggressive then you should be leaving anything short. If it doesn't get to the hole, it's got no chance of going in.