Should i forward press when putting

There is a theory out there that since most putters actually have degrees of loft, you have to counteract that with leaning your hands forward a little bit.

The thought is that it will help you make solid contact and prevent the ball from hopping. Whether or not this is completely true can be debated forever. But I think leaning your left hand forward is helpful because it will help maintain your wrist angle through impact. The number one mistake of the amateur golfer when they putt or chip is not maintaining their wrist angle with their lead hand.

This leads to inconsistent strikes, one of our biggest enemies for losing strokes. I have suffered from this mightily over the years. Rory McIroy had one session with Dave Stockton a couple of years ago that immediately had him holing more putts, and the main focus was having him introduce the forward press as a trigger right before he started his stroke.

Watch this video and notice what he does at around 7 seconds. He leans his hands forward a little bit right before his stroke. If you watch any tournament on TV you will see a ton of pros doing this. Many of them have made it part of their routine. Aside from the technical benefits of having your hands ahead of the ball at impact, the main reason this could help you is from a mental perspective. One of the hardest things for any golfer to do is commit to a shot.

You can always modify it later. If you are hitting fat or thin shots, try an extreme adjustment in your posture. I had an interesting conversation last week about the best way to approach your short-range scoring shots that require something less than a full swing.

The question you must ask yourself — and be honest with the answer — is how much time will you really give it? You want good extension back, and almost a full shoulder turn at this shortened end-of-backswing position.

This is not about power, but rather repeatable swing length and speed, so that you get consistent results. Once you learn this half-swing, experiment hitting shots with all your wedges and maybe even your 9-iron, to see what distances you get with each and what kind of ball flight and release each club delivers.

With this simple exercise, you now have new dialed-in distances and ball flights to take to the course. I like to think of feel as it relates to my swing speed, which is ideally governed by the speed of my body core rotation. Less than the speed of a full-swing 7-iron shot for sure. It will produce a distance result with each club that is measurably less than your Country Road speed, giving you another batch of distances you can dial in.

A great practice routine is to actually see how slow you can swing. Driver: Titleist TSi2 10 degrees 9. Connect with us. Share Tweet. Your Reaction? Related Topics: putting. Up Next The differences between your full-swing and putting grips. Tom Stickney II. Myths as Facts? Aug 6, at am. Reply Report comment. EgdewRich Feb 27, at am.

Jan 5, at am. Steven Jan 3, at pm. Alfredo Smith Jan 2, at pm. Deadeye Jan 1, at am. Tcope Dec 31, at am. PineStreetGolf Dec 30, at am. Putting your hands forward is not the same thing as proper loft at impact. JH Dec 29, at pm. RichEwen Dec 30, at am. Lowell Dec 29, at pm. Mr B Dec 29, at pm. Prime21 Dec 29, at pm. MR B Jan 3, at pm. Job Dec 29, at pm. Dill Pickleson Dec 29, at pm. Double Mocha Man Dec 29, at pm. TexasSnowman Dec 31, at am.

Just point the butt of the grip at the penguin logo on your shirt. Darrin Dec 29, at pm. Jason Dec 29, at pm. I would love to know your two cents.. Dave R Dec 29, at pm. Jay Dec 29, at pm. Philip Dec 29, at pm. Tom Dec 29, at am. Leave a Reply Cancel reply Your email address will not be published. You may like. How much arc should you have in your putting stroke? Well, it depends…. Want better speed control on the greens? Download a metronome app. The basics of putting and how to improve your stroke.

Instruction Clark: The value of quick fixes. Published 2 days ago on Oct 30, By Dennis Clark. Continue Reading. Instruction The Wedge Guy: Which is better — method or feel?

Published 5 days ago on Oct 27, By Terry Koehler. Instruction Clement: Load up the full power package in the backswing! Published 2 weeks ago on Oct 18, By Shawn Clement. Whats in the Bag 2 weeks ago. News 2 weeks ago. Whats in the Bag 9 hours ago. Whats in the Bag 1 day ago. Whats in the Bag 3 days ago. To forward press, move them an inch or two up the target line left. Although the forward press in putting is a matter of preference, it has always been my style to use one, and I recommend you give it a try.

By nudging your hands toward the target a couple of inches before starting your takeaway, you'll find it easier to return at impact with your hands ahead of the ball -- a real key to maintaining the ideal amount of clubface loft and making the ball roll smoothly.

The forward press also will signal you to keep your hands moving toward the target during the forward stroke, instead of stopping and allowing the clubhead to pass your hands, which adds loft and often changes the face angle.