With much of the country buried under a blanket of snow we thought this would be a great time to look at some indoor drills to keep your putting skills sharp until we thaw out.
1. The Clock Drill
Place a golf ball around the hole in the shape of a clock. Start putting at the 1:00 position and go clockwise until you finish at the 12:00 position. The clock drill is a favorite of Phil Mickelson who starts in a 3' circle, moves to a 6' circle and then 10' circle. Obviously space limitations will confine you to 1.5'-3' for indoor practice, but this drill will teach you mental focus.
2. The Ladder Drill
Set-up a ball 1' from hole and then add an additional ball every foot as far back as your putting green will allow. While this drill is designed to improve distance control it also helps with mental focus. The key is to apply the same level of focus on the last putt as the first.
3. The Gate Drill
Every golfer knows that 3-4 foot putts are where your round goes from good to terrible based on your make/miss percentage from this distance. Made famous by Tiger Woods, the gate drill will help you deliver the putter straight through the target line to make this important length putt. You will need two uprights set just slightly wider than the width of your putter. Our putting mirror with moveable uprights allows every golfer in your household to configure the gate to their respective putter head size. Place the mirror 3 feet from the hole, adjust the gates to the width of the putter and practice draining putts by going straight back & straight through without hitting the gates. Need a mirror and uprights click HERE.
4. Starting Line Drill(s)
Did you know missing the starting line of a 10' putt by 1-2 degrees can cause you to miss the putt. There are many ways to work on starting the ball on the correct line, here are two of our favorites for indoor practice.
Putting Gates help you putt to a spot insuring you are starting the ball on the correct line. Place the ball 10' from the hole, or as far as your green will allow, then place a gate about 1' from the ball directly in the line to the hole. Practice putting through the gate without hitting it to improve your make percentage. There is no need to pay $45-$66 dollars for a set of gates, our gates will do the same job for less than $20 bucks.
Designed by Michael Breed, the putting sword is also designed to teach you to start the golf ball on the correct line. The great thing about he sword is that you don't need an indoor green to use it. You can practice with the sword on any floor in your home. Place the ball at the end of sword and strike the ball keeping it on the full length of the sword.
5. Square The Face Drill
Do you pull or push your putts, or worse, miss on both sides of the cup? Then you most likely do not have the putter face square at impact. Another drill that does not require a putting green is to use the AccuBall to help you deliver a square putter face to the ball. When you strike the AccuBall flush you will see a continuous line on the ball with no off-axis wobble. However strike the ball with the putter face closed and the ball will have a clearly visible left wobble and a right wobble if you have the face open. You can do this drill on any carpeted area in your home.
6. Dave Pelz 18" Drill
The short game guru says that any putt traveling at the proper speed should go in the cup or travel no farther than 18" past the hole. Why? Because any putt that comes up short of the hole never had a chance to go in, while the one traveling past the hole does. An 18" come backer is a low stress putt that you should feel you can make 99% of the time. Measure 18" past the hole and place a piece of masking tape at the spot. Practice trying to make the putt or going no farther than the edge of the tape.
Want to feel comfortable making 18" putts with your eyes closed try this drill. Line-up 3 balls on the 18" line and hit them in the hole in rapid succession. Do this drill 3 times and then the 4th time close your eyes and see how many you make. Do this drill and eventually you will be extremely comfortable with any putt from 18".
Do you know why PGA professionals suggest putting to a 3' circle around the hole on really long putts? Because regardless of where you end up in the circle, short or long, you will always be less than 18" to the hole and now you got that putt!
Don't have an indoor putting green? Golf Gear Box has an indoor green to match every golfer's budget, see our greens HERE.