Let’s be honest. A lot of us show up 10 minutes before our tee time, rush through a couple of putts and then wonder why we three-putt the first few holes. Your putting warm-up matters as much, maybe even more, than your full swing warm-up because you use your putter more than any other club.
Here’s a putting warm-up routine that takes about 15 minutes and will have you rolling the ball beautifully by the time you reach the first green.
Start with short putts for feel
Don’t start your warm-up trying to make putts. Find a relatively flat spot on the practice green and hit some three-foot putts but don’t aim at a hole. Just stroke the ball and watch how it rolls.
This gets your hands loose without pressure, gives you immediate feedback on green speed, and lets you check your stroke without worrying about results.
Hit a few of these short putts. Focus on making a smooth stroke with good tempo. Your backswing and follow-through should be pretty balanced, with the follow-through just slightly longer. Listen to the sound of the putter hitting the ball. A good strike sounds crisp.
Dial in your distance control
This is the most important part of your warm-up. Distance control will save you more strokes than making a few extra putts. Find a hole about 30 feet away and hit five or six putts to it. Try to get them all to finish within three feet.
Pay attention to how hard you need to hit the ball. Are the greens faster than last week? Slower? When you get on the course, you’ll already have a feel for the speed.
After several 30-footers, move to different distances. Maybe some from 20 feet, then some from 40 feet. You’re calibrating your internal distance computer.
Work on breaking putts
Now that you have a feel for speed, hit some putts with break. Find one that breaks about six inches and hit several. Pick a specific target on your line and try to start the ball over that target.
This gets you comfortable reading greens while building confidence. When you see a few putts break into the hole during your warm-up, you’ll trust your reads more on the course.
Hit putts that break both ways: some right-to-left breakers and some left-to-right breakers.
Make some short putts
Time to build confidence by making some putts. Find a straight three-footer and make five in a row. Miss one, start over. This might sound like pressure but it’s good pressure that forces you to focus and execute.
Once you’ve made five three-footers in a row, move back to five feet and make three in a row. When you step onto the first green, you want to feel like you can make anything inside five feet.
Hit a few lag putts
For your last few putts, find the longest putt on the practice green and hit three or four pure lag putts where you’re just trying to get it close. This reinforces your distance control.
Long putts are all about pace. You’re not trying to make a 60-footer. You’re trying to give yourself a tap-in. These last few lag putts help you avoid the three-putts that kill rounds.
The mental component
Throughout this entire warm-up, go through your pre-shot routine on every putt. Read the putt, pick your line, take your practice stroke, execute. This gets your routine grooved so it’s automatic on the course.
Build positive thoughts, too. When you hit a good putt, acknowledge it. When you make a putt, let yourself feel good about it. You’re programming your brain for success.
What if you only have five minutes?
Sometimes you’re running late. The abbreviated version: hit three or four lag putts from different distances to get a feel for the speed and then make five three-footers in a row. Not ideal but way better than no warm-up at all.
Why this works
This warm-up works because it covers all the bases. You groove your stroke with short putts. You dial in distance control with lag putts. You build confidence by making putts. You practice your routine so it becomes automatic.
Get to the course a little earlier, hit some balls on the range and then go through this putting practice routine. Eventually, it will become automatic. Tour players do almost the exact same warm-up before every round, not because they need practice, but because the routine itself is calming and helps them focus. Putting makes up roughly 40 percent of your total shots you make in a round so it deserves at least that much time in your warm-up.
Show up early, do this routine, and watch your putting improve immediately. It’s the simplest way to lower your scores without changing anything about your stroke or your putter.
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