Stop Trying To Hole Putts – Do This Instead

Stop trying to hole putts.

Isn’t that what you’re meant to do?

Well, yes and no.

When you’re putting your goal should be for the ball to go in the hole.  But here’s the thing…

Have you ever hit a putt that you thought was perfect but for some reason the ball didn’t fall in?

So what happened — didn’t you try hard enough?

Maybe if you tried a bit harder the ball would have gone in.

Obviously that’s stupid thinking.

But when I watch a lot of people putting, they are trying really hard!  I’m not pointing fingers either, because recently I’ve been guilty of this too.

Everyone knows with putting that there’s luck involved.  You can hit a perfect putt and the ball may not go in.  You can hit a putt that you swear was going to miss and it goes in.

So why do we steer putts?

When you watch the pro’s on T.V, very rarely do you see them steer putts.  They put a nice stroke on the ball, hold their finish, and watch the outcome.

But most “average” golfers stroke the ball, never hold their finish, and are trying to guide the ball into the hole with their putter and body.

Or in other words, trying too hard.

Look, when you putt you shouldn’t over emphasize that you are trying to hole the putt.  You shouldn’t say things like “I need to hole this” or “come on, try really hard to hole this”.

That sort of thinking creates tension.  And when you’re tense while putting, for some reason the ball does not fall in.

Instead, here’s what I want you to do.

Pick a line and pace for each putt and focus on hitting the putt along the line you’ve chosen with good speed, then let the outcome take care of itself.  Instead of trying to hole the putt you should be trying to do the task of putting as well as you can.  Then again, let the outcome take care of itself.

What I’m talking about is focus.  Focus on something you can control, e.g. your putting routine, your putting stroke, your mental attitude, your line, your speed.  Don’t focus on something you can’t control, i.e. trying to hole the ball.

Do this the next time you putt and you will hole more putts without trying.

And one more thing, relax and enjoy putting.  It’s just a game after all.  If you miss a putt life will still carry on as normal.