As golfers we all want to lower our scores – it seems we are never quite satisfied. At the end of the round we see where those extra strokes came from and it's usually from the short putts we missed.
It's a fact in 18 holes of golf 40% or more of our score is from putting. It only stands to reason that the easiest and the quickest way to lower our scores is to improve our putting by eliminating the three putt greens. This can be done simply by adjusting your set up position.
1. The Grip: To become a good putter you have to start with a good grip. Do not grip your putter the same as you would your other clubs. We're taught to grip these clubs more with our fingers and this grip does not work too well with the putter. The correct way to grip a putter is in the palms of your hands right along your life lines with your fingers wrapped around the putter handle. This will cause your arms from the elbow to be directly in line with the putter shaft. Light grip pressure is also real important. On a scale from 1 to 10 it should be around a 5. I found that oversized putter grips work very well in developing the correct grip and pressure.
2. The Eyes: In the set up position your eyes have to be lined up inside your target line. If you get your eyes too far over the golf ball, this will cause you to make a bad stroke, you may pull the putt or push it but the ball will not go where you intend it to end up.
To check this, take a golf ball, position it under your right eye (if your right handed) drop the ball, the ball should land somewhere behind the hossel of the putter. If it does, this is where you should be every time you put the ball.
3. Putter Shaft Position: The shaft of your putter should lean forward just left of your belly button (if you're right handed). This will cause the ball to roll with over spin, this in turn will enable you to control the distance of your putts with more consistency. When you lean the putter shaft back in your putting stroke this adds loft to your putter, which creates back spin on the ball and it makes it hard to control the distance.
You are now ready to make smooth and accurate putt. Hold the putter in the palms of your hands, make sure your eyes are in position then lean the shaft forward a little and make the putt.
Practice these simple set up tips and you will become a much better putter in no time at all.