This, in turn, will help you in improving your score in the game. It is the square putt that makes all the difference between holing that much-needed birdie and walking off the green with a dreaded three-putt. At times, perfectly aligning your putter can be pretty tricky. Fortunately, practicing purposefully and using some effective alignment putting drills can greatly help to raise performance on the green.

In this post, we'll cover the best putting drills to perfect your alignment and give you some putting stroke tips that will set you on a path of being a putting pro. Whatever level of experience, whether it be a total novice or an accomplished player, these are the techniques designed to help anyone learn how to putt better and get consistent results.

Understanding the Importance of Alignment in Putting

But before getting into all the drills, let's start by talking about why alignment is such a crucial factor. Good alignment guarantees that your putt starts on the right line. Being only slightly out of alignment can cause the ball to veer off course very easily and, thus, make it much tougher to make putts consistently. You will be perfectly aligned to have the best chance of success with your putt by aligning your body and your putter.

Your eyes, shoulders, and hips should all align properly with the target. The face of your putter also must be square to your target line. Master this set up, and it will be the difference between a smooth two-putt and an agonizing three-putt.

Drill 1: The Alignment Rod Drill

What You Need: Two alignment rods or golf clubs and a putting ball.

Steps:

1. Lay two alignment rods on the floor, parallel to one another, forming a "railway track" in toward your target.
2. Place your flat golf ball between the rods.
3. Align your feet, hips and shoulders with the rods. Ensure everything is parallel to the target line.
4. Go ahead and do some putting, placing focus on the way the ball rolls straight along the track from the rods.

Benefits

This drill helps you build a consistent setup and reinforces good alignment habits. The rods give you real-time feedback whether your stroke is online or not.

Drill 2: The Mirror Drill

What You Need: A putting mirror, a putting ball.

Steps:

1. Place the putting mirror on the green and set your putting ball up in front of it.
2. Align eyes, shoulders, and your putter face using the mirror.
3. You can stroke now while maintaining the setup and everything aligned.

Benefits:

Then, of course, there's the mirror and the putting mirror, which is a really good tool to give you some actual visual feedback. Now you know, relative to the target line, exactly where your eyes and shoulders are, so you can really dial in your setup. Now, that is particularly good for those golfers who are always misaligning their shoulders or have real problems trying to see the right line.

Drill 3: The String Line Drill

What You Need: A piece of string, two stakes, and a flat golf ball.

Steps:

To do so, take the string and tie it between two stakes with the string hovering just above the ground, directly over your target line. Place your flat golf ball underneath the string. Align your putter face against the string. The shoulders and feet should also be parallel to the string. String line drill using a putting string to guide your stroke on the correct line. 

Benefits:

What's great about this string line drill is it gives you a nice, clear visual indication of whether your putter face is square and if your stroke is straight. It's a great way to train your eyes what the correct alignment looks and feels like.

Putting Stroke Tips for Better Alignment

• Eye position: The eyes should be directly over the ball, or just inside the line of the ball. This will provide a clear view of the line and enable you to make more accurate judgments.
• Square Shoulders: The shoulders must be square to the target line. If the shoulders are open or closed, the stroke will more often than not follow the wrong path.
• Bringing It All Together: Integrate with the overall pre-putt routine involving a check of alignment. This practice will achieve not only continuity for your game but also heightened states and focus under stress.

Putting Better Using a Flat Golf Ball

Try putting with a flatter golf ball. If you are honest with yourself, putting is instant feedback. If you are off-alignment or have an off-stroke, the ball will wobble or fall to one side. It shows you exactly where you went wrong.

Drill 4: The Flat Golf Ball Challenge

What You Need: A flatter golf ball and a straight path in putting.

Steps:

1. Orientate your square golf ball directly to your target.
2. Align your body and putter face perfectly.
3. Make some putting, observing the rolling of the ball. If the ball wobbles, position alignment and stroke in a manner that it would roll smoothly.

Benefits:

This drill makes you pay attention to the subtleties of your stroke and alignment. The design of the flat golf ball amplifies any mistakes so that you can easily diagnose where to improve on.

Distance Control Putting Exercises

While proper alignment is important, so is distance control. Let's have some exercises to hone in on your feel for speed:

Exercise 1: Ladder Drill 

1. Set up tees or markers at various ranges from where you are going to set up. Then, with these as targets in a sort of "ladder" on the green, try putting to each one, with a mind to hit the correct distance each time.
2. Spend time with a putting ball to see how various strokes impact distance.

Benefits:

This will enhance your judging of speed and distance so that you will avoid those costly three-putts. It is very good if you are learning how to adjust your stroke on various greens.

Exercise 2: Circle Drill

1. Set up a circle of tees around a hole, each tee about 3 feet away.
2. Practice putting from each tee working your way around the circle. Try to make each putt in one stroke.
3. Repeat the exercise, this time slowly moving your body away from the hole.

Benefits:

The circle drill would give you confidence regarding short putts and increase your chances of holing down crucial two-putts. It would not only be an easy but also a sure means to develop your short game.

Conclusion

Mastering putting alignment is devoted work, but with these alignment-putting drills and tips, improvement in your game will be quite pronounced. Give all attention to setup, using visual aids, putting exercises that will challenge your stroke and your mental game. Work at it with a flat golf ball and other training aids to fine-tune.

With practice and the right approach, you will be making putts and shaving strokes off your score in no time. So, get your putter and head to the green; now is the time to start putting these methods into practice. Never again will you miss a putt, for on its way to you is confidence, precision, and success.

Start practicing these exercises right now and experience for yourself the incredible difference they can make!

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