PUTTING, FIND YOUR PERSONAL STROKE, FEEL. TECHNIQUE, INSPIRATION, I FEEL YOUR PAIN, WWW.GOLFTEACHER.COM

 

what about it?

WHAT I HAVE LEARNED... As a novice golfer I made more long putts, I mean long putts, than anyone I ever saw, including Tiger Woods. I could chip and putt lights out, using an old Otey Crisman H34 wooden shafted putter. Basically, I never thought about it, I just aimed at the hole took a look at the line and stroked the ball. I had no fear of three putting because it really did not matter. Score was irrelevant. I loved to play and loved to see that ball go into the hole. Well here I am a good many years later. The funny thing is that score is totally irrelevant and at the same time score is all that matters. The two edged sword is really contained in the one blade. Not play and all work wreaks havoc on your golfing nervous system. I have been through many years of searching for a stroke that worked. Lately, the last year or so, it became painfully clear to me that there is something wrong with my perception as it translates into the physical action of making a putting stroke. In other words, I cannot see the line most of the time, and what has become worse, I cannot translate the distance into the force of the stroke. There is really something wrong with my brain putting synapse: I cannot translate feel for distance into my body in order to put the proper amount of force into the stroke given the particulars of each individual putt. With a putter in my hand I feel as though I am under a general anesthetic or that my brain has just been injected with a massive dose of novocaine. In other words, I get totally numb from the neck up when I have to putt. I am somewhat better with the long putter where I can just stand there and put a stroke on the ball, but I still make too many mistakes on the green, which is a testament to how good I really did strike the ball this year on the way to shooting some really good scores while for the most part putting like a fool. I tried a long putter for a year or so and had some real good success. I have tried standing tall, bending over more, flat putters and upright putters in combination with high hands and low hands all over the board and in every combination imaginable. When you cannot translate perception (line and distance) into physical action (the putting stroke) you are in real trouble. My arms refuse to swing the putter at the proper pace. It was driving me crazy. I used a different stroke on every putt. Sometimes it would work but the feel would vanish as quickly as it came. It was kind of like putting in a dark room in the light of day. What a nightmare. Finally I started to hit some good putts consistently by putting my feet closer together, which on further reflection putts my head a little behind the ball and my hands up higher with no tension at all in my body. Almost intuitively I have come to hold the putter lighter but still firm enough to make a good arm and shoulder stroke. There is no tension in my body now no matter how important the putt. I may not make them all but at least I am putting a good stroke on the ball with a real intent, that is I can translate the idea into the physical action of putting the ball. Once in a while a will still hit instead of stroke and the ball goes ten feet by the hole but for the most part things are much better. At least I feel a mind body connection and some control over my muscle system as regards stroking a putt. Entrance_Page.html