In my 20-plus years of coaching golfers, I’ve seen the same scene thousands of times: a golfer lines up a routine six-footer with a perfect read and solid setup but the ball starts right and stays there, rolling past the cup without threatening to drop.
The golfer walks away frustrated. “I had that line perfect,” they’ll say. Then they’ll do it again on the next putt. What should have been simple pars turn into disappointing bogeys.
This pattern is so common I can spot it from across the practice green. The golfer genuinely believes they’re reading putts correctly but can’t understand why the ball won’t go where they’re aiming. They’ll blame everything except the real culprit.
This is the curse of the pushed putt, one of golf’s most maddening problems. After two decades watching golfers struggle with this issue, I can tell you it’s almost never what they think it is.
Your alignment isn’t the problem (What actually is)
Most golfers obsess over alignment sticks and drawing lines on balls, a complete waste of time when you’re pushing putts. I can set you up perfectly square to the hole but if your clubface is open when you strike the ball, it’s heading right no matter how good your aim looks.
The culprit? Usually ball position. I’d bet money that 80 percent of golfers who push putts have the ball positioned too far back in their stance. When the ball sits behind the center of your stance, you’re hitting it before the putter face has time to square up. Open face equals pushed putt.
The other major culprit? Your head. I see it constantly: golfers peeking at the hole before they’ve even hit the ball. That tiny head turn ruins everything. The putter face can’t release properly when your head’s already chasing the putt.
Three fixes that work instantly
Fix #1: Move your ball forward
Stop guessing where your ball should be positioned. Here’s how to get it right. Set up to a straight putt and place tees at each shoulder. Your ball belongs directly between those markers or slightly forward, never behind them.
I use this test with every student who pushes putts. Within five minutes, they’re hitting putts on their intended line for the first time in years. The difference is immediate and dramatic.
Fix #2: Keep your damn head still
This one’s harder to master but absolutely essential. Your head stays put until the ball is gone. Not “try to keep it still.” It doesn’t move. At all.
Here’s how to train this: practice putting with your eyes closed. Make 10 consecutive three-footers without peeking until you hear the ball drop. Sound simple? Most golfers can’t do it on their first try because they’ve developed such bad head movement habits.
Once you master this drill, you’ll never push another short putt. The face releases naturally when your head stays stable through impact.
Fix #3: Slow your backstroke
Rushed putting strokes kill more birdie chances than bad reads ever will. When you hurry the backstroke, you force everything else in the stroke to speed up too. The result? An open clubface and another pushed putt.
Try this rhythm change. Make your backstroke noticeably longer than your follow-through. I teach the “5-to-10 drill”: one tee five inches behind your ball, another 10 inches in front. Back to the first tee, through to the second. This forces proper tempo and face control.
The drill that fixes everything
Want to groove a perfect stroke path? Place one ball just inside your putter’s toe and another just outside the heel at address. Make strokes ensuring the putter fits between both balls at impact.
Touch either ball? Your path is off. This drill eliminates the inside-out stroke that creates pushed putts. I’ve never met a golfer who couldn’t improve their putting immediately using this setup.
Why these changes work so well
Most amateurs turn putting into a full-body event. Shoulders rotating, hips shifting, head moving—no wonder their putts spray all over the place. Good putting is about creating a stable base and letting your arms swing the putter.
Fix your ball position, lock your head in place and control your tempo. These three changes eliminate every mechanical cause of pushed putts. The triangle formed by your shoulders and arms stays intact throughout the stroke, creating consistent face control.
Ball forward, head still, tempo smooth. Master these basics and watch your putts start finding the center of the cup instead of sliding by on the right side.
The post Why You Keep Pushing Putts (And 3 Ways To Fix It Today) appeared first on MyGolfSpy.
