Taking Dead Aim
By the Drill Sergeant - Mark Gibson

Most players afflicted with missing too many putts from close range will never improve, because they aim up to their putts poorly.

Aiming poorly is the base cause of most bad putting strokes. If you are aligned incorrectly, your putting stroke becomes a complicated series of compensations to overcome poor aim.

You can overcome this problem with some quality time on the practice putting green.

Select a straight putt of about two metres. Lay two clubs on the ground so that they are parallel to the target line (pic 1). They should be set about six centimetres wider than the length of a putterface (about three centimetres from the toe and heel side
of the putter).

The shafts are not there to help the stroke line – they are only an aid to help you aim correctly. Each putt should follow the same process of walking in from behind the ball, setting the putter behind the ball first (pic 2) and then setting the body to the correct alignment of the putter (pic 3). This will ensure you have a better chance of swinging the putter on a good line towards the hole.

The most common fault I see when it comes to aiming poorly is that players will set their body and feet line before aiming the putter up and setting it behind the ball (pics 4 & 5).

Devoting entire practice sessions just to correcting poor aim will have an immediate effect and you will make more putts (pic 6).




You should approach each putt individually, which means walking in and setting the putter for every putt. This will not only help with your alignment, but it will allow you to stretch and straighten your back between putts. Remember – prolonged bending in a putting position is not recommended for the health of your spine.

Mark Gibson is a teaching professional at Lakelands GC, on the Gold Coast, Queensland. He is available for lessons on (07) 5579 8700.

This tip is from the September 2005 issue of Golf Australia magazine.