One of my best attributes as a golfer was sinking putts inside of 10 feet. I was so good at it during my prime that I actually didn’t feel much pressure at all when chipping around greens. I knew if I could just get the ball within 10 feet of the hole I’d have a pretty high chance of sinking the putt.
You see this on the PGA Tour a lot also. These guys never seem to miss the putts inside of 10 feet.
It’s a really fun skill to build and it’s very important. You can easily cut 3-5 strokes off your golf score instantly by simply improving your putts within 10 feet of the hole.
So today I’ve got a few putting drills you need to practice for a month or two and you should start seeing improvement!
#1: The Clock Putting Drill
The clock putting drills works on your short putt skills, helping you make anything from 3 to 9 feet.
Take 12 balls to the putting green and place 3 balls on each side of the hole so that you cover North, South, East, and West forming a cross. Split the balls up about 3 feet apart.
For example, ball 1 is at 3 feet, ball 2 at 6 feet, and ball 3 at 9 feet.
Start with the closest balls and go around the clock making all 4 three footers. Then move back to the 6 footers and make all 4.
If you miss, start over from the beginning with the closest 4 balls.
#2: Tiger Wood’s Gate Putting Drill
Start this drill by measuring out 3-4 feet away from the hole and place two tees just wider than the head of your putter. This creates a gate for your putter to swing through.
Alternate hitting 12 putts with your right hand only (right handed golfers), then 6 putts with both hands.
Set a number of putts that you need to make in a row before ending the drill. For Tiger it was 50 or 100 depending on the day.
The key for this drill is to make sure that your putter head is going straight back and straight through to the hole.
Seeing the short putts drop over-and-over will build your confidence and you’ll start saving yourself strokes that usually got away from you.
#3: 100 Breaking Putts Challenge
I like to end every practice by attempting 100 breaking putts and recording how many I’m able to make out of 100.
For this putting drill, you can split up the breaking putts into two sets of 50. Perform one set on one side of the whole to practice that type of break, and then the other set on the opposite side of the hole to get good at both types of breaks.
For me, I was stronger on the right to left breaking putts as a right handed golfer than I was with left to right breakers. But I was pretty good at both types of break because of this drill.
Each week pick a new distance to practice from. So in week 1, try 4 foot putts the entire week for this golf drill. Then the following week pick a new distance like 7 feet.
Try to beat your scores each day for that particular week since you’re putting from the same distance all week.
#4: Hit the Tee Putting Drill
Start off placing the tee a few feet away and move it further back as you improve your putting stroke.
Aim at the tee on the ground, trying to hit the putt so it stays straight and rolls on a line to the tee. If the golf ball hits the tee, this gives you feedback the putter was aimed correctly and kept a straight putting stroke to hit the ball on line.
Work on hitting the tee from longer distances to really test your putting skills.
Here is my favorite putting program that builds your skills quickly and builds a strong foundation that you can rely on over time when you’re struggling in other areas of your short game.
Putting should always be your most confident area of your game and excite you to get onto more greens.
Thanks for reading our blog post today on 3 golf drills to make more putts inside 10 feet.
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Work hard,
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