Putting...distance vs line

I have a very up and down putting stroke. (pendulum if you will) This allows me to be true to the line I read on the greens. My problem is without any wrist action, it is difficult for me to "feel" distance. Generally my putts are online, but if I miss, it is because they are going to fast, and they can often roll over the whole. Any suggestions to improve feel?

Greg Willlis has an excellent putting lesson that will address what you want. I've had very good results with it.
http://members.cox.net/gregjwillis/LESSON4.htm

The "Willis" lesson is very good information.

As for your putts going past the hole, you might want to try the opposite of what golfers do who have the problem of not getting the ball to the hole. They focus on a spot past the hole, so that the ball will get there. In your case perhaps if you were to focus on a spot before the hole, while keeping your line, the ball might not run as far past the hole.

Couple of questions. Is this problem on all the greens you play on? Fast? Slow? What is the weight of your putter? Light? Heavy?

I saw a putting instruction drill on TV once where the person giving the instruction (right hander) put their right foot behind the ball about 12". The back stroke went as far as the right foot, touching it, then the follow through length, after impact, helped to determine the distance the ball traveled. .....GJS

Certainly fast greens make a difference. It's just easier to blow by the hole. I use a medium weight (ping) putter. I just have trouble with feel, because I don't break or hinge my wrists at all. I agree, that drill looked useful. I'll try it.

Divot

Divot,

Interesting thread something I have given much thought to myself over the past few months.

Firstly, IMO there should be no wrist break in putting. Shoulders, arms, hands and putter work as one.

Now line v pace. This is what I've been giving much thought to the past few months.

Short putts - 75 percent of time should be on line.
Long putts - 75 percent of time should be on pace.

Long putts I'm now inclined to try and leave the ball within a couple of feet of the hole. My line for such a putt is if I was going to miss I want to miss it a foot past. So I choose that line for that miss.

Short putts I aim for centre of cup or inside lip (recently read on gto little if nil break in 6 feet or less putts - this is true).

When I putt I say to myself - trust and brush it (like painting stroke). My putting stroke is accellerating through. Ratio of stroke, is one part back in length and two parts forward in that length (know what I mean).

What's helping my putting though is I'm working harder on my short game so I don't leave myself with longer putts and I'm spending more time assessing my putts.

__________________
VP

The most improtant thing about putting, is sinking those 4-5 footers too save par or bogey, that can often be the difference between a great round or otherwise. Most of the time though the most important thing in a putt is distance, nothing more annoying than having the line but being 2foot short.

In addition to some of the other suggestions that have been made, a loose grip will also promote better "feel" in putting.

Lately, I have started making mistake is judging the correct line for the putt on green with sloopy gradients. Please advise what are the best ways to judge the "lie of the greens"?

The first thing you need to do is figure out "how" you miss. Do you miss to the low or high side of the hole? Do you read too much break, or not enough? Or is it a speed problem on breaking greens?

If you can figure out how you miss, there are some very good people up here that know drills and tips for just about any issue.

Sounds like your putting very well. Keep target focused and focus on a small target - blade of grass small spot on the green, area in the hole. My guess is you need to develop more feel for the break in the greens. IE your hitting through the break to the hole which requires too much speed for the ball to drop. you may need to change your target area to a point before the hole to allow for more break.

I can hit the ball, generally, to the correct distance and line and good putting had been my strenght. But, presently I have started making mistakes in judging the break. Even at one stage I thought that my eyes were playing tricks with me and I needed to change my glasses (middle age blues)

Just some more info on mis-reading breaks. I have seen people read the green from the front of the hole, the back of the hole and from the sides. They will do this facing the hole from those areas. Where some of the problems start is when they take their address position over the ball. They then will look at the hole, by turning their heads, which lets the front eye ride up a little higher than the back eye. Since they originally found their line with level eyes, the break will look different when they look at the hole at address when turning their head for one last look. They then change their line due to this confusion. They key is to trust your original level eye decision, and not let that last look cause confusion. Also I have found that when I find the point on the high side of the hole, I always make more putts when I add 1 or 2 ball widths depending on the severity of the break, to my original decision. That is just my way dealing with my own problem of poor green reading. Another plus is I am also giving myself more hole to work with. GJS

Absolutley correct golf junkie.. i did this for a long time till i learnt that you must trust you first assesment not when your over the ball. When youre standing over the ball there appears to be less break then when you crouch down too have a look. The most important thing too remember when putting, though i dont allways do it is to put for distance, try too get it within two foot... youll often find you sink many more by doing this. As for distance i try and look to see where the putt will roll out. I try and aim for a spot where i think it will slow down and out too that.