From Nick Faldo (pictured over) in his heyday, through Ben Crenshaw, Brad Faxon Tiger Woods and, most recently, Chris Riley, all great putters have at least two things in common concerning their eyes.
First, their eyes are directly over the ball when they putt. You may think this is the case for you but very many handicap - and professional - golfers do not look directly down on the ball and it's something you need to check from time to time.
Second, and Chris Riley is a particularly good example of this, they do not allow their eyes to start tracking the ball immediately after it leaves the clubface but rather wait to hear it drop, rather than look up to watch it fall in the cup.
The act of looking is very natural but turning your head moves your shoulders which can cause all sorts of irregularities in the putting stroke. Next time you're on the practice green, see if you can discipline yourself not to look after the ball until it falls into the hole. Once perfected and taken onto the course it is a habit that could cause you to hole out with much greater consistency.
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 1 - OCTOBER 2004 |
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