The Art of Putting

"The man who can putt can play anybody." Tom Sayers

This shows the importance of putting to the game of golf.

Golfing success demands the composite of a great player and a great putter.

Putting on the green is an art in itself. Putting is an art to be cultivated and acquired through your own individuality or personality. These personal traits may include the power of your imagination, the finesse of your touch, and the accuracy of your judgment. Of course, all these qualities may seem too abstract to most golfers, but, after all, golf is an intellectual and mental game, isn't it?

A good putter requires excellence in accuracy and strength, and, above all, an abounding confidence to pull it through during the last few moments of the game.

The art of putting requires four basic elements in a putter.

First of all, a good putter must have the capability to assess the green. A good putter must have the vivid imagination and sharp eyesight requisite in a good survey of the green to predetermine the amount of break on side-hill putts, thereby instrumental in determining the "line" of the putt. A good putter must be able to analyze the unique characteristics of a green, such as the speed of the green - fast, hard, slow or soft, and to determine the contour of the green - sloping one way or the other. An acute awareness of the particular characteristics of the green may help you decide on the strategy before you even step on the first tee.

Second, a good putter must be able to gauge the distance consistently, especially on long putts. Your accurate judgment may help you strike a "specialized" stroke.

Third, a good putter must be able to control the stroke and the placement of the ball. A good putter must putt the ball consistently and confidently, such that the ball is put within an inch or two of the targeted spot. Such confidence is often reflected in the positive attitude, the targeted concentration, and relaxed mentality of the putter.

A good artist relies on his or her tools, and this is also true of a good putter, who needs to experiment different equipment before "feeling good" on one that will inspire confidence in delivering the perfect putt.

Fourth, a good putter must know how to choose his or her equipment. The art of choosing the right size of the equipment depends on the physique, height, and arm length of the individual; while the choice of the weight of the equipment is contingent on the individual's preference for power deliverance or delicacy of touch. A heavier equipment may give you more power at the expense of being more difficult to exercise control on a slick green. You must learn the art of arriving at a compromise between power and touch in your choice of your equipment, such that your equipment may become an asset, not a liability, in your putting.

Putting green is an art because there are no hard and fast rules regarding how one should deliver the perfect putt. Putting is an art because it is a reflection of the philosophy of the putter. As such, most golfers have come to believe that "putters are born, not made." No matter what, putting is an art that can be improved on simply by changing the way you think about putting.