Golf!!!2!

[CorsiHockeyLeague]

I'm not necessarily the greatest putter but I've gotten a lot better and frankly my biggest issue is reads. I recently played a round with my coach and while I have lots to work on, in his words I don't need to change a thing about my putting process. I switched to armlock a while back and it took longer than I expected to get really comfortable with it but it has paid off long term as I very rarely miss my line.

Most important thing is practice before your round. Show up early and spend at least 20 minutes just hitting putts. Preferably a half hour. First 5-10 minutes, just hit putts to get a feel for the greens and how fast they're rolling. The remainder, go through your whole routine on each putt. Make sure you hit a bunch from various distances, and everything outside of 10 feet focus entirely on speed. If you make a putt on the practice green that would have gone 8 feet by if it had missed the hole, that's a bad putt.

Next thing that works for me, I use the alignment tool on the ball (triple track is best in my opinion) to line up with the line I want to hit it. Check that you've got it lined up on the line you want, check it again. Even slightly off and it's a miss. Take the extra 5 seconds to get it right, preferably while others are lining up their own putts or even while they're chipping on if you're first to the green. Then all you have to worry about is speed, which is the thing to focus on anyway... Every putt is a speed putt.

The third thing is kind of part and parcel with the second, but being consistent in using the same ball does actually matter. But even I don't practice that very well as I always end up with somewhere between 3 and 6 balls every round that I've found that are perfectly good balls but are just randoms. If I just played with my tried and true ball every round, that's probably worth a stroke on the greens or maybe more.

[Lubicon]

My pregame warmup for putting is to putt 4 balls at 90° (ie a cross shape) to the hole. Start at about 2' and work out by a foot each progression. Stay at that same distance until you hole all four balls consecutively.

My game was similar to yours (it has regressed again the past few years sadly) and I usually track driving and approach accuracy and # of putts as a gauge for how well I am playing. At first my putting average was pretty decent, and my goal was to average 2 putts per hole. As my approach game got better (ie I hit more greens) I found my putting average got worse which had me stumped until I realized it was because my initial putts were from longer distance now. When my iron game sucked I was missing the green but my chipping got me closer to the hole than my longer irons were as I began missing fewer greens. That made my putting seem better. Perhaps there is some of that in your game and your putting is not as bad as it seems, you are just starting with longer putts.

[DoubleK]

I'm flying to Phoenix tomorrow. Hoping to play on Friday, the temperature is supposed to be near 40C.

[PepsiFree]

Originally Posted by CorsiHockeyLeague

I'm not necessarily the greatest putter but I've gotten a lot better and frankly my biggest issue is reads. I recently played a round with my coach and while I have lots to work on, in his words I don't need to change a thing about my putting process. I switched to armlock a while back and it took longer than I expected to get really comfortable with it but it has paid off long term as I very rarely miss my line.

Most important thing is practice before your round. Show up early and spend at least 20 minutes just hitting putts. Preferably a half hour. First 5-10 minutes, just hit putts to get a feel for the greens and how fast they're rolling. The remainder, go through your whole routine on each putt. Make sure you hit a bunch from various distances, and everything outside of 10 feet focus entirely on speed. If you make a putt on the practice green that would have gone 8 feet by if it had missed the hole, that's a bad putt.

Next thing that works for me, I use the alignment tool on the ball (triple track is best in my opinion) to line up with the line I want to hit it. Check that you've got it lined up on the line you want, check it again. Even slightly off and it's a miss. Take the extra 5 seconds to get it right, preferably while others are lining up their own putts or even while they're chipping on if you're first to the green. Then all you have to worry about is speed, which is the thing to focus on anyway... Every putt is a speed putt.

The third thing is kind of part and parcel with the second, but being consistent in using the same ball does actually matter. But even I don't practice that very well as I always end up with somewhere between 3 and 6 balls every round that I've found that are perfectly good balls but are just randoms. If I just played with my tried and true ball every round, that's probably worth a stroke on the greens or maybe more.

Thanks, as I admittedly do like… none of these things. I’ll hit the range beforehand and hit 30 but I’ll go on the practice green and hit <5 and think I’ve got a “feel” for it, so I meant it when I said I need tips lol.

I also switch balls around all the time and will play just about anything. Someone gave me a bunch of Kirklands which were fine to me at first but now I just feel like they hit weird. I don’t know why. What’s your “tried and true”?

Arm-lock looks interesting. I don’t think I’ve ever seen someone do it (in the groups I play in). I should probably buy a new putter, too, right?

Originally Posted by Lubicon

As my approach game got better (ie I hit more greens) I found my putting average got worse which had me stumped until I realized it was because my initial putts were from longer distance now. When my iron game sucked I was missing the green but my chipping got me closer to the hole than my longer irons were as I began missing fewer greens. That made my putting seem better. Perhaps there is some of that in your game and your putting is not as bad as it seems, you are just starting with longer putts.

Ah you know what, that thought hadn’t even crossed my mind but you might have hit the nail on the head. When I started out I was definitely in a lot of situations where I was chipping it on from not too far away which let me get closer to the hole before my first putt and I feel like I’ve been seeing a lot longer puts now instead.

The closer putts still feel harder, but maybe it’s some sort of psychological thing based on how I’m thinking about my putting in general.

[Slava]

^ I used an armlock for a year and it was good and bad. Inside of say 15-20 feet it was so good. Once you have to hit longer putts or putts say off the green on, it was a struggle. Like to really hit a hard putt was difficult to gauge the distance for me.

I switched back, got fitted, and my putting has been better. It’s still the worst part of my game and costs me too many strokes. I’m really working on this and it’s just slow progress (god, I hope I’m making progress).

[GioforPM]

Originally Posted by PepsiFree

What do you guys do to work on your putting? I’ve been playing more, and while I’m still terrible, I find the more I play the better my drives and approach shots get but… somehow, the worse my putting gets. When I started I used to be able to two putt most situations (after taking forever to actually get on the green), now I’ll get on the green with a chance for par and end up four putting the #### out of it.

The thrill of actually being able to get on the green in a timely fashion now fades pretty quickly as soon as I take my first putt and realise it’s happening again. I’m not really overthinking about it nor do I take it that seriously that I’m stressing about it, it’s just comically bad lol. Maybe I’m under-thinking it?

Any tips that helped would be great.

Watch any first putts from your group. Even other angles give you a read on the green. And weight is more important than line most of the time on your first putt. Pay a lot of attention to the slope.

[Slava]

I should say that my major issue overall is weight. A guy I know gave me a great tip this year and I quite like it. On the putting green, I get lined up and set to putt, bring the putter back for a putt as far as my big toe and hit a couple downhill that way. I pace that out and have a good idea what that stroke gives me for distance. Then I do the same for the uphill putt.

It helps me to gauge the proper weight. If I hit the downhill it goes around 11 paces, and the uphill is about 9 paces then I have a good idea of how hard to hit those kind of putts on the course. Obviously those 35 footers are more difficult, but it still helps me set up more two putts this way, and I've felt more comfortable putting because it's not based just on "feel".

[Winsor_Pilates]

Had a matchplay today and got smoked 8&7.
I'm an 18 and played against a 13 so I had strokes on the 5 hardest holes, he still beat me on 2/3 of those we got to (match was over before the last 2).

He was 2 over par with 4 birdies after 11 holes. I don't know if he was just having the round of his life or he sandbagged me and is way better than a 13.
I was awful as well though, so can't complain.
Golf is so hard.

[Weitz]

Originally Posted by Winsor_Pilates

Had a matchplay today and got smoked 8&7.
I'm an 18 and played against a 13 so I had strokes on the 5 hardest holes, he still beat me on 2/3 of those we got to (match was over before the last 2).

He was 2 over par with 4 birdies after 11 holes. I don't know if he was just having the round of his life or he sandbagged me and is way better than a 13.
I was awful as well though, so can't complain.
Golf is so hard.

Sandbagger.

[jayswin]

Sanbaggers are some of the biggest losers on earth. Like why? Do you feel good about yourself for what basically amounts to straight up cheating?

[malcolmk14]

About a 1/2000 chance a 13 handicap plays that good. Round of his life. Lol

[CorsiHockeyLeague]

Originally Posted by PepsiFree

I also switch balls around all the time and will play just about anything. Someone gave me a bunch of Kirklands which were fine to me at first but now I just feel like they hit weird. I don’t know why. What’s your “tried and true”?

Nothing wrong with Kirklands. I use Callaway Chrome Soft X, now called Chrome Tour X, on the advice of a golf coach. The triple track that Callaway uses just works for me. I think the other good option for an alignment aid is the TaylorMade Tour Response - I actually find that even better for an aid hitting driver. Another option that I like the idea of is the Srixon tour divide, because if you use the divide line as your alignment aid you will immediately and without any doubt be able to tell if you hit your line and rolled it end over end.

Arm-lock looks interesting. I don’t think I’ve ever seen someone do it (in the groups I play in). I should probably buy a new putter, too, right?

It takes some getting used to because depending on the putter, you often have to hold an armlock in a counterintuitive way in order for it to lie properly. Once you get used to it, it is objectively superior in the sense that it takes wrist motion out of your stroke entirely, which helped me a lot. As Slava said, a lot of people find it helps them inside 15 feet but hurts them on longer lag putting, although like he said he tried it for a year. I think it was actually my second season using it that I really felt fully comfortable with it, so it's a process, and given that it's not even going to be the best option for everyone that's a lot of learning curve to commit to. I mean, objectively the broomstick has a lot going for it too but I imagine you'd have to use it for a long time to really figure it out.

[Winsor_Pilates]

Originally Posted by CorsiHockeyLeague

Nothing wrong with Kirklands.

Apparently Kirklands have changed 4-5 times.
The original was a Pro V1 knockoff, 4 piece ball but they had legal issues and had to change it.
I think the current ones are a 3 layer and lower spin than previous balls.
I can't verify any of this but it's the word on the streets.

[DoubleK]

I still have couple dozen of the OG Ksigs

[Weitz]

The current version of Kirkland balls are bad aren’t they? Like Canadian tire specials.

I play vice pro as an 11 handicap. Or whatever I get free that’s better from vendors.

[GioforPM]

Last year Kirklands were fine but got scuffed a lot. I have a box of this years but haven't used them yet. But I hear they are tougher. I play Srixons a fair bit because they are my firm's logo'd ball, along with ProVs. I've been trying Taylormades because I think they compression and spin might suit my game better.

EDIT: I read that consistency is an issue on the new Kirklands.

[Tron_fdc]

I played through a dozen pinnacle soft balls the last few rounds and I actually like them. The traditional pinnacle ball hits like a rock but gets a good roll whereas these soft balls have a good feel without sacrificing too much distance. $25 for 15 on Amazon.

It's a good poor POOR mans version of a ProV.

[CorsiHockeyLeague]

For a cheap "medium everything" ball the Strata Booms are often on sale for a buck a ball or less, they're made by Callaway and are a perfectly cromulent two piece ball. But you have to be willing to play the weird colours.

[Slava]

Originally Posted by GioforPM

Last year Kirklands were fine but got scuffed a lot. I have a box of this years but haven't used them yet. But I hear they are tougher. I play Srixons a fair bit because they are my firm's logo'd ball, along with ProVs. I've been trying Taylormades because I think they compression and spin might suit my game better.

EDIT: I read that consistency is an issue on the new Kirklands.

I've played a bunch of Srixon and ProV's over the past year. I like the Srixons quite a bit and I think that those and ProV's are extremely similar. I think that this coming month (right around Fathers Day) Srixon runs a 2 for 1 deal and obviously, that might be worth having a look at if you want a good discount.

[PepsiFree]

I’ve played some nice balls that I’ve found while looking for a crappy one I lost. Srixon was good luck, so was Titleist and Callaway. Most others have been trash for me (I do notice a difference between balls). I had a cool Nike one that I lost on the very next hole. Oh well, it must have sucked.