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My story originally appears on PGA.com on 8/28/22
On Thursday, South African Paula Reto shot a remarkable 9-under-par 62 that was led by a very hot putter. Not only was that 62 a course record, it was also the low round of Reto’s LPGA Tour career and tied the lowest round in CP Women’s Open history.
The key was Reto’s putting.
“It was a good putting day. A lot of putts went in, and that kind of makes the round easier,” said Reto, who needed just 24 putts on Thursday. “Seeing my lines and the speed was pretty good, so made it a lot easier. I was like, just get on the green. So, it was a good putting day for sure.”
The putting green is a place that can cause frustration and disappointment for some but by following these tips, it can become a place that brings inspiration. Paula clearly found a great deal of confidence on the greens in Thursday’s opening round. Good putting is almost always the catalyst for a low round. Hitting greens is important for sure, but you have to make the putts in order to make the birdies.
And a great day on the greens takes a lot of pressure off of other aspects of your game so it’s vital to work on your putting so head over to the practice green and start applying these tips!
Good, Inspiring Putting Comes from Solid Fundamentals
LINE: Working on getting your line correct and focusing your attention to the apex point of that line is key. Getting the ball started on your intended line is critical. Mark your golf ball with a line on it so you can set it to your intended line of the putt.
PATH: Making sure you are swinging the putter head back and through, on your intended line & path is a must. Golfers often struggle with either an out-to-in, or in-to-out path with their putter, much like they do with their full swing. By simply using alignment sticks as a guide, you can train your path to swing back and through correctly.
TEMPO: This is probably one of the most critical fundamentals in putting. Did you know that the best putters in the world putt at a 2:1 ratio, regardless of the length of the putt? That is, the rate of their downswing is twice as fast as their backswing. What changes with the length of the putt is the length of the stroke. The tempo, or rate remains 2:1. Downloading and using a metronome app on your phone can help you smooth out your stroke and get it to become repeatable and consistent.
CONFIDENCE: While this may sound cliché, you must be confident when putting. Great fundamentals can produce confidence, but not always. Your mind can still help or hinder your performance, especially in the heat of competition, even if your fundamentals are solid going in. So choose confidence & work on your fundamentals to back it up.
Strong fundamentals + Practice + A free flowing stroke = Confident, Successful & Inspirational putting.
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