When It Comes to Putting, The Eyes Have It. Golf (Video) - Lesson by PGA Pro Pete Styles
When It Comes to Putting, The Eyes Have It. Golf (Video) - Lesson by PGA Pro Pete Styles

So one tip you will often hear when you are playing golf, is you have got to keep your head still and most of the time I disagree with that completely particularly in a full swing actually the head needs to move you don’t need to keep your head down when you are making your full swing, it’s detriment to your technique, but when you are putting keeping your head down, keeping your head still, is a really good little tip. So here’s how you should do that when you are putting.

Once you have taken your address position you are lined up, trying to feel like your eyes are setting directly over the top of the ball, but also the eyes are leveled we don’t have a tilt in the head position this way this lines everything up a bit awkwardly. Keeping your eyes level and over the top just make sure that the putter face is even as well, if you can see too much of the putter face this way maybe your head is in front of the ball and you are looking back at the putter likewise you might be looking from behind the putter, so you want to make sure that you are looking nicely down at the front face, some putters actually have little alignment aides on them to make sure the shaft is lined up, make sure the head is lined up. So if you have got one of those putters just have a little check to make sure that your head is lined up really evenly. And then as you make your stroke we don’t want to let the club head wander back and let the eyes follow it, turning your head when you are making your putting stroke is really a poor thing to do, some people do that because when they have been practicing they have been so intently watching the putter head to make sure that putter head is up and down on the right line we don’t want you to be watching the putter head during your stroke, your head should stay still, and fixed and you should be looking at the golf ball the whole time. So just make sure you are practicing by keeping your head still not even letting your eyes follow the putter head the putter head just comes in and out of your focal point but you don’t watch it.

And then if you bring the ball into position as I hit the putt, you will see that I don’t immediately watch it with my head, I will let it roll and then I tilt my head to see where it’s gone. So two thing there I don’t immediately watch it after I have hit it and when I do watch it I tilt my head rather than lifting my head, lifting my head changes my spine angle changing your spine angle is quite detrimental to the angle of your stroke, so we want to kind of fix the spine angle in position, fix the head in a stable vertical position the shoulder is rock and rotate, I let my eyes look but I don’t lift that out of the shot. So when I have made my stroke I am looking down, I am not following the putter, I don’t follow the ball, I keep looking at the spot where the ball was and then I would look and it might be six or eight feet away by the time I look, and actually on the short put I might never actually see the ball going, it might be just in the corner of my eye, but I wouldn’t turn to it, I have been listening forward to go and as much as anything, so when you are making a good putting stroke make sure your eyes are doing the right thing, staying nicely fixed over the top of the ball, not watching the putter head not watching the ball too much as well and that should help you hold more close and be more consistent with your strike.

 2012-07-12

So one tip you will often hear when you are playing golf, is you have got to keep your head still and most of the time I disagree with that completely particularly in a full swing actually the head needs to move you don’t need to keep your head down when you are making your full swing, it’s detriment to your technique, but when you are putting keeping your head down, keeping your head still, is a really good little tip. So here’s how you should do that when you are putting.

Once you have taken your address position you are lined up, trying to feel like your eyes are setting directly over the top of the ball, but also the eyes are leveled we don’t have a tilt in the head position this way this lines everything up a bit awkwardly. Keeping your eyes level and over the top just make sure that the putter face is even as well, if you can see too much of the putter face this way maybe your head is in front of the ball and you are looking back at the putter likewise you might be looking from behind the putter, so you want to make sure that you are looking nicely down at the front face, some putters actually have little alignment aides on them to make sure the shaft is lined up, make sure the head is lined up. So if you have got one of those putters just have a little check to make sure that your head is lined up really evenly. And then as you make your stroke we don’t want to let the club head wander back and let the eyes follow it, turning your head when you are making your putting stroke is really a poor thing to do, some people do that because when they have been practicing they have been so intently watching the putter head to make sure that putter head is up and down on the right line we don’t want you to be watching the putter head during your stroke, your head should stay still, and fixed and you should be looking at the golf ball the whole time. So just make sure you are practicing by keeping your head still not even letting your eyes follow the putter head the putter head just comes in and out of your focal point but you don’t watch it.

And then if you bring the ball into position as I hit the putt, you will see that I don’t immediately watch it with my head, I will let it roll and then I tilt my head to see where it’s gone. So two thing there I don’t immediately watch it after I have hit it and when I do watch it I tilt my head rather than lifting my head, lifting my head changes my spine angle changing your spine angle is quite detrimental to the angle of your stroke, so we want to kind of fix the spine angle in position, fix the head in a stable vertical position the shoulder is rock and rotate, I let my eyes look but I don’t lift that out of the shot. So when I have made my stroke I am looking down, I am not following the putter, I don’t follow the ball, I keep looking at the spot where the ball was and then I would look and it might be six or eight feet away by the time I look, and actually on the short put I might never actually see the ball going, it might be just in the corner of my eye, but I wouldn’t turn to it, I have been listening forward to go and as much as anything, so when you are making a good putting stroke make sure your eyes are doing the right thing, staying nicely fixed over the top of the ball, not watching the putter head not watching the ball too much as well and that should help you hold more close and be more consistent with your strike.