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Missing Putts - Why?

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JB

JB

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I had a conversation this morning with someone speaking about putting in general and we talked about missing putts. Why do people miss putts.

Does their putter fit?
Do they have a good repeatable stroke?
Misreading greens?
Poor technique overall?
Poor alignment?
Do not practice?

We all miss putts, heck we miss a lot more than we should. So why do you miss them?
 
I see two of those things that really resonate with me:

Misreading greens & lack of practice

I believe that my stroke is fairly repeatable and consistently feel like I put a good stroke on the ball and it holds the line and does not break as I thought it would. My greens are pretty easy at my home course so I struggle more when going somewhere else with an increase in undulations, etc.
 
I would say that 90% of the putts I miss are because I misread the green or the speed. I practice putting quite often and think I have a repeatable stroke, so I can't blame it on that.
 
I think alot of times for me, it is rushing. Not taking my time to get a full read on the green and getting myself ready to make a good stroke on the ball.
 
I would say the majority of mine would be misreads and not executing the proper stroke to put the ball on the correct line.
 
For me, I can honestly say that when I miss a "makeable putt" it's usually because I either misread it slightly or pulled it slightly. The long bombs your aren't going to make on a regular basis, those require some luck....but putts inside 10 feet I feel like I should make the majority of them.

I have a tendency to over read the break, I was taught to always read more break than less.....if you read more break you still have a chance to make the putt if you miss your line to the inside slightly....if you underread your break you almost never make the putt at all.
 
My swing coach told me that more putts are missed due to misreading the speed of the putt rather than the line. Anyone else ever get that advice?
 
Because I'm a headcase. LOL. Seriously though, I would say the most likely culprits are reading, practice and my big dumb melon. I know how to make a good putting stroke, but it's like sometimes by brain refuses to let me do so...
 
I think my putter fits me well so i'll eliminate that from my misses:

15% Do NOT have a good repeatable stroke
30% Misreading greens
5% Poor technique overall
30% Poor alignment
20% Do not practice

I think the majority of my misses come from a misread line and poor alignment with my body to stroke path. My lack of practice leads to the lack of a repeatable stroke. I dont really believe there is a poor technique to get the ball in the hole but I'm sure I could use a quick putter lesson to tweak a few things.
 
I have a horrible time reading putts, I make a good deal more when I have someone helping me make the read, when I'm on my own I have a hard time reading which way the putt will move.
 
I would say 95% of the putts I miss are due to misreading the green, which also goes with not enough practice. I almost always get the right distance on my putts, but they take turns I didn't think they were going to
 
v.man said:
My swing coach told me that more putts are missed due to misreading the speed of the putt rather than the line. Anyone else ever get that advice?
Click to expand...

Yes, that's why most pros try to die the ball into the hole, it has a much better chance to go in the hole if it just catches the edge if the ball is moving slowly, that goes right into the reading more break than less break.....you hear the high side of the hole called the "pro side"
 
v.man said:
My swing coach told me that more putts are missed due to misreading the speed of the putt rather than the line. Anyone else ever get that advice?
Click to expand...

I think that is so true!

I think speed is one of my biggest problems and rushing would be second. When I take my time and line up my ball, I do much better.
 
There are so many courses that we play up here and each green is different. How manicured they are in relation to the amount of play they get and the type of weather over the course of a few days. Generally speaking,speed is the factor for me as I know most of the greens where I play. New courses are a whole other situation.Hopefully you're playing with someone who knows the breaks!
 
I have a tendency to not finish my stroke on shorter putts which results in a push. I think that is why I miss most of my putts, personally.
 
I know one of my main reason is missreading greens, I usually think it's going to go one way and then it goes the opposite.

Does their putter fit? Yes, I feel it does, I can't wait to do an in person fitting, but I feel it fits me well.
Do they have a good repeatable stroke? Yes, I need to work on pace of swing to not swing too fast.
Misreading greens? Yes, Yes and Yes
Poor technique overall? No, I fell I'm pretty solid in my technique.
Poor alignment? No, the RST on my FGP won't allow it.
Do not practice? Some, I know I need to practice more, but I don't blame that entirely!
 
I've held a few demo days for SeeMore and two in particular stand out to me:

1. Clueless as far as their aim. Often, their aim has very little to do with where the ball goes, ie they can't start the ball on the line.
2. Can't read/gauge greens.

If you can't find the line and can't start the ball on the intended line...well, you'll have a hard time making putts.

Personally, I putt well within 8 feet but struggle on putts outside of that. The longer my stroke gets, the more of a pull-tendency I get.
 
jank1434 said:
I have a tendency to not finish my stroke on shorter putts which results in a push. I think that is why I miss most of my putts, personally.
Click to expand...

I can honestly say watching you play twice, that your putts inside 5 feet or so you do get a little "stabby" at the ball....you need to practice following through the same length as you took the putter back....nice rthymic stroke......just my opinion.
 
I've played with a lot of members on THP, and I have been known to leave a putt just a bit short of the hole a time or two. That's my biggest struggle, speed and the fear of blowing it past the hole.
 
Not having a consistent stroke is my down fall when it comes to putting. It's my goal for next season to figure it out and become a better putter.
 
I spent a lot of time practicing last year and it really did wonders for my pace, but I still struggle with reading putts, even on shorter putts like 8-10 feet. Once I get beyond that 8 foot mark I just can't seem to ever get the right read.
 
INgolfer said:
I spent a lot of time practicing last year and it really did wonders for my pace, but I still struggle with reading putts, even on shorter putts like 8-10 feet. Once I get beyond that 8 foot mark I just can't seem to ever get the right read.
Click to expand...

Not to be "intrusive", but how do you know it's the line?
 
Confidence.

Not trusting what I think the line is, not trusting I know the correct speed. I can line a put and feel good til I get ready to hit it, and I start to doubt it at that point due to lack of, anyone?.... correct: CONFIDENCE.
 
I'd say I miss more on miss reading the break more than anything, speed and repeatable stroke are next cause I do not practice putting. But I feel my speed is generally good.

I definitely need to practice more but besides the course their isn't any place to practice and I'm not comfortable just to go use the practice green at my local course for free.

Putter fit? I'm not sure I have a 20+ yr old ping and have just recently thought about changing it out. I'd like to try out some SeeMore's as I like their alignment aides but don't know where to do that at.
 
TripleBogieTim said:
I can honestly say watching you play twice, that your putts inside 5 feet or so you do get a little "stabby" at the ball....you need to practice following through the same length as you took the putter back....nice rthymic stroke......just my opinion.
Click to expand...

Thanks, Tim. I appreciate the input. I really need to work on my putting. I've gotten a bit lazy with it over the last few months.

I'm still working on getting in with SeeMore, but the guy in Conroe is a little slow to respond. He e-mailed me yesterday though, so I'll keep my fingers crossed that I can get in by next week. 5-8 foot putts scare the crap out of me.
 
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