September 17, 2024 7:02 pm

We are in an age of technological analysis.  But that doesn’t mean we need to turn the art of putting into a scientific exercise. If you, like me, were lucky enough to start playing golf as a 9-year-old kid, then you will have spent plenty of time putting. Both on the practice putting green and the golf course. In my day, I was pretty damn good at putting. I had to be as I was knee high to a grasshopper and not able to hit the golf ball past my shadow! So, to make a reasonable score, I had to hole putts. And I did.

Too many metrics

But I didn’t think of my arc, my angle of attack, the line up of my putter face, the place on the face of the putter that I hit the ball and the several other metrics that I can now check to see why I’m missing putts. I just looked at the slope of the green. I then aimed to allow for that slope, and trusted my feel to control the distance. Most importantly, I loved doing it. Over the years I have lost that fun factor in putting. Now I dread the feeling of missing when I should relish the feeling of the close miss. Or better still, the joy of holing from 20 feet.

Don’t fear missing

I know I am probably out on a limb here perhaps, but if like me you have fallen out of love with putting, don’t try to analyse the life out of it. Find the fun factor again and enjoy your putts. You won’t suddenly start holing all of them –  if only it was that easy – but fearing missing is no fun at all.

By Jon Woodroffe – Master Professional, World of Golf London

Categorised in: Tip of the month, World of Golf London