hkga academy
Perfect Your Putting By National Coach Brad Schadewitz Set-up: Bend from the hip, with the arms hanging out over the toes to give a “suspension point ” straight down from the shoulders (photo 1). This allows the arms to swing like a pendulum. I believe this is key to keeping the putter on a consistent path. Your shoulders, forearms and eye line should be parallel to your target line, with your left eye directly over the ball. Put your weight on the middle of your feet (not the heels or the balls) with a fraction more weight on your left foot (for a right-handed player). Two great practice drills for developing a pendulum stroke are the right arm-only drill (photo 2) and the belly wedge drill (photo 3). Both drills encourage a longer stroke with a smooth tempo.
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s my role with the national team now i nvolve s sp end i ng more time with our elite players, one of my first objectives is to work on improving their short games. Generally speaking, Hong Kong golfers have traditionally struggled in this department partly because of the lack of short game facilities available. Working on your putting and shots around the green will lower scores more quickly than spending the same amount of time spent on your long game. The oft-quoted stat that putting is accounts for around 40-50% of your shots is entirely correct – so this is where I will spend the majority of the time with the national team members. Once they combine improved putting with chipping and then pitching exercises and greenside bunker play the effect on their scores should be substantial. The first thing I evaluate in a player for any shot is the ability to set up and aim correctly. Here are some keys I look at in putting.
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The most important thing when addressing those longer putts of 20 or more feet is getting the correct pace. Pros only make around 10% of their putts from this range, but they’ll rarely threeputt because their speed is normally so good. To improve your distance control you need to visualize. Try looking at the hole when you make your practice strokes. This will give you a much better perception of the length of backstroke required. Drill: Practice with four balls from 30-feet. Putt the first two with your eyes up and looking at the target (photo 4) and then putt the next two with your normal set up.
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HK Golfer・OCT/NOV 2009
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HKGOLFER.COM
HKGOLFER.COM
The “money” putts are from 10-feet and in. These are the putts you have to make. When practicing these length putts, I believe it’s very useful to use some type of directional aid (be it the shaft of a club, a chalk line or an alignment string (photo 5). These tools will help give your set up and aim more consistency, which will in turn build a more confident and repetitive stroke. Confidence is everything from this distance. HK Golfer・OCT/NOV 2009
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