Kurt Pugh
This book shares a simple putting technique the author discovered that cured his putting yips and also offers some helpful tips for avid golfers and beginners on how to lower their scores and improve their game.
The book is written to help two groups of golfers: 1. Golfers who suffer from the yips. 2. Avid golfers and beginners who want to improve their game.
For you golfers who are currently suffering from some form of the yips, I hope my putting technique will be as effective for you as it has been for me. I discovered this technique in 2006 and I am still putting "yip-free" today and enjoying the game like never before.
And for you avid golfers and beginners, the book offers some helpful tips on a variety of topics that include how to eliminate common swing faults and how you can become a better putter.
Kurt Pugh has a 30-year career in advertising and marketing with a B.A. in Economics from Hope College and an MBA from Wake Forest University.
He taught himself how to play the game, never had a "formal" lesson, but picked up the game quickly and became the Captain of his college golf team at Hope College his senior year. He got his golf handicap down to a 7.3 in 2006 and that was also the year that he discovered the putting technique that cured his yips.
Kurt became a member of the "Hole-in-one" club on August 8, 1979 (while in his 20's) when he sank a 9-iron shot on the par 3, 128-yard hole at Milham Park Golf Course in Kalamazoo, Michigan. The longest shot he ever made happened recently (while in his 50's) when he made an eagle 2 on the par 4, 407-yard 18th hole at We Ko Pa (Cholla course) near Phoenix, Arizona. He holed a 4-iron shot from 193 yards.
That's the great thing about golf, it's a challenge to play well, but you can enjoy the game your whole life. And no matter what age you are or what skill level you achieve, you can always improve. And isn't that alot like life? Life is a challenge, and no matter what level of success you achieve or what age you are...you can always improve.
Tips on how you can become a better putter.
The purpose of this section will offer advice to help you become a better putter. The key topics will include:
Why distance is more important on the green than off the tee.
Do not move your head or eyes during (and after) your putting stroke.
Determine your putting line as best you can - then all your focus must be on the distance you have to stroke your putt to roll it just past the hole.
Do what works for you - results are more important than style.
When you come right down to it, putting is simple. It's about getting your ball in the hole consistently in 2 strokes or less. If you can do that, you will be a great putter - whether you are just a weekend golfer or a tour Pro. So putting sounds simple enough, yes? Well simple it ain't. But if you stick to some basic fundamentals about putting you can become a better putter - so let's get started.
Distance is priority one!
Most of the time when you think about "distance" on a golf course - you are thinking about "distance" off the tee. Everyone wants to drive the ball 300+ yards - and distance off the tee is important - no question about that. But to me, in the overall context of golf - "distance" is more important on the green than off the tee. Because the key to putting "distance" is not about how far you hit it...it's about how far you have to hit it. Distance my fellow golfers, is what putting is all about.
To make my point, let's examine a 15-foot putt. Now this putt happens to have some break in it - it will break 2 inches right-to-left. And being the "seasoned" golfer that I am, I read the putt correctly for 2 inches of break right-to-left, stroke my putt and hit it right on line, but...I only hit it hard enough to go 14 feet - 11 inches. Regardless of reading the putt correctly, if I don't stroke it hard enough to get it to the hole - it will never go in. "Never up - never in" is a fact!
Putting is about line and distance - but distance is more important than the line - distance rules! To prove my point about distance in putting - consider this:
Did you know that I can misread and miss-hit a putt at the same time - and it still can go in the hole if I stroke my putt hard enough to roll it just past the hole? How's that, you ask? Well let's go back to that same 15-foot putt.
Let's say instead of reading the correct line (which is a 2-inch break right-to-left - I read a break that is 4 inches right-to-left. So I will be aiming my putt too far to the right. However, when I stroke my putt, I accidentally "pull" my putt to the left side of the line I intend to hit. Miss-hitting putts by pushing or pulling them off line happens all the time - and by accidentally pulling my putt to the left - I now have pulled my putt on the correct line - and as long as I stroke my putt with enough speed to roll it just past the hole - it will go in.
Let's just think about what just happened there. Even though I did two things wrong with that putt - I misread it AND miss hit it - it still went in because I hit it with enough speed to roll it just past the hole. And when I accidentally "pulled" it to the left - I accidentally hit it on the correct line and it went in.
Distance is the crucial part of putting that YOU can contol. Remember, the key to putting is not how far you hit it, it's how far you have to hit it.
One final thought on putting - do whatever works for you. Putting is not about "style" - it's about consistently getting the ball in the hole in 2 putts or less. If you find you putt better using a longer putter - use it! If you find you putt better by looking at the hole instead of the ball - do it! If you find something that works for you - stick with it. Remember, "if it ain't broke...don't break it."
