x
Skip to main content
Golf Logo
InsideGolf Join Now  / Log In
Putting on sloped greens? Here’s the secret to make more putts
SHARE
  • Share on Facebook
  • Share on Twitter
  • Share by Email
Golf Logo
  • News
    • Latest
      • News
      • Features
      • Shows
      • PGA Tour Schedule
    • Series
      • Tour Confidential
      • Monday Finish
      • Hot Mic
      • Rogers Report
    • Shows
      • The Scoop
      • Subpar
      • Seen & Heard
  • Instruction
    • Game Improvement
      • Driving
      • Approach Shots
      • Bunker Shots
      • Short Game
      • Putting
      • Rules
      • Fitness
    • Series
      • Top 100 Teachers
      • Rules Guy
      • The Etiquetteist
    • Shows
      • Warming Up
      • Play Smart
      • Short Game Chef
      • Pros Teaching Joes
  • Gear
    • Clubs
      • Drivers
      • Irons
      • Hybrids
      • Fairway Woods
      • Wedges
      • Putters
    • Other Gear
      • Balls
      • Shoes
      • Apparel
      • Golf Accessories
    • Series
      • ClubTest
      • Winner’s Bag
    • Shows
      • Fully Equipped
  • Travel & Lifestyle
    • Travel
      • Course Finder
      • Courses
      • Resorts
    • Lifestyle
      • Accessories
      • Celebrities
      • Food
      • Style
      • Betting Advice
    • Shows
      • Super Secrets
      • Destination Golf
  • Shop
    • Shop
      • Clubs
      • Shafts
      • Training Aids
      • Balls
      • Bags
      • Technology
      • Apparel
      • Accessories
      • Our Picks
      • Shop All
    • Collections
      • The GOLF Collection
      • The Birdie Juice Collection
      • The Fully Equipped Collection
      • Shop All
  • Newsletters
    • Sign Up for GOLF’s Newsletters
      • Hot Mic
      • Monday Finish
      • Play Smart
      • Our Picks
      • Top Stories
      • Sign Up for All
  • News
    • Latest News
    • Features
    • Shows
    • PGA Tour Schedule
  • Instruction
    • All Instruction
    • Driving
    • Approach Shots
    • Bunker Shots
    • Short Game
    • Putting
    • Rules
    • Fitness
  • Gear
    • All Gear
    • Drivers
    • Irons
    • Hybrids
    • Fairway Woods
    • Wedges
    • Putters
    • Balls
    • Shoes
    • Apparel
    • Golf Accessories
  • Travel & Lifestyle
    • All Travel
    • All Lifestyle
    • Course Finder
    • Courses
    • Resorts
    • Accessories
    • Celebrities
    • Food
    • Style
    • Betting Advice
  • Series
    • Tour Confidential
    • Monday Finish
    • Hot Mic
    • Rogers Report
    • Rules Guy
    • The Etiquetteist
    • ClubTest
    • Winner’s Bag
  • Shows
    • The Scoop
    • Subpar
    • Seen & Heard
    • Warming Up
    • Play Smart
    • Short Game Chef
    • Pros Teaching Joes
    • Fully Equipped
    • Super Secrets
    • Destination Golf
  • Shop
    • Clubs
    • Shafts
    • Training Aids
    • Balls
    • Bags
    • Technology
    • Apparel
    • Accessories
    • The GOLF Collection
    • The Birdie Juice Collection
    • The Fully Equipped Collection
  • Newsletters
    • Hot Mic
    • Monday Finish
    • Play Smart
    • Top Stories
    • Our Picks
    • Sign Up for All
InsideGolf Join Now  / Log In
InsideGolf

Over $140 of value - Just $39.99

InsideGOLF
Putting

Putting on sloped greens? Here’s the secret to make more putts

By: Nick Dimengo
February 24, 2023
  • Share on Facebook
  • Share on Twitter
  • Share by Email
In today's Play Smart, PGA professional Glen Haynes provides helpful tips for golfers who are putting on sloped greens

In today's Play Smart, PGA professional Glen Haynes provides helpful tips for golfers who are putting on sloped greens.

Getty Images

Welcome to Play Smart, a regular GOLF.com game-improvement column that will help you play smarter, better golf.

For any golfer looking to take the next step in their game, understanding how to putt on sloped greens will go a long way in accomplishing your goals. It’s simple: when a green is flat, it’s easier to putt on. Golfers can simply look at the distance to the cup and adjust their swing appropriately to get the right speed.

Instruction
Brad Faxon
What’s the biggest putting mistake amateurs make? One of the best putters dishes
By: Nick Piastowski

But when you’re faced with putting on sloped greens, things become much more challenging. Not only does a player need to look at the distance from ball to hole, but a slew of other factors come into play when reading the green — like where the break is, what the speed should be like and any consequences for leaving the shot either short or way past the hole.

Rather than fear putting on sloped greens, PGA professional Glen Haynes offers his favorite piece of advice in today’s Play Smart lesson.

How to putt on sloped greens

In the video below, Haynes doesn’t mince words when it comes to the challenges of putting on sloped greens, even saying that the greens at a course like Augusta National are “so severe, so fast, and the amount of break is so difficult to visualize that you’d basically feel like you’re playing mini golf or crazy golf.”

Take a deep breath, though, because there aren’t many courses out there that resemble Augusta National — at least not many that amateur golfers play.

Haynes goes on to remind players that it’s all about confidence, like most things in golf. With the proper preparation and guidance, every golfer can approach a difficult sloping green without worry.

Standing on the second green at Monash Country Club in Australia, Haynes demonstrates what he often sees from amateurs faced with putting on a green that stimps at 10.5.

“I have a putt here of around 12 feet with a left-to-right break. Most club golfers when faced with this putt would give it one cup, maybe two cups of break,” he said. “… Let’s watch this, I’m going to give it one foot of break.”

As Haynes hits his ball, he demonstrates how the ball breaks more than expected, gathering speed as it gets down the hill.

Haynes continues: “Elite golfers, the tour pros, are trying to hole these big, breaking putts. But they’re good enough that they can try to hole them, and that’s what I want you to do eventually. But to start, I want you to miss on the high side. I want you to give it a three-foot break, but let’s make sure that we’re high enough that the ball is trickling in.”

A common mistake Haynes sees with amateur players is that, maybe even subconsciously, they tend to think the ball is going straight, and then curving from the apex. However, he reminds viewers that’s not how it actually happens.

“On a breaking putt, on steep greens like this, as soon as this ball starts rolling, it’s swinging … even though the ball only travels two or three feet, it’s going to have a big impact on what happens when it gets to the hole.”

Finally, Haynes closes by reminding players to aim higher on the break. By doing this, golfers may still not make the first putt, but they’ll leave themselves in a much better position, finishing the hole with a closer putt to clean up.

“I guarantee you if you can break that habit of missing on the low side all the time, you’re going to find the speed control much easier. You’re going to leave yourself second putts that are a lot shorter, and you’re going to have fewer putts out on the golf course.”

Latest In Instruction

24 minutes ago

The 4 keys for pitching off wet lies

3 hours ago

The nerdy tech behind Bryson DeChambeau’s resurgence

8 hours ago

Find the center of your stance for better contact with your irons

23 hours ago

You need to do this drill if you want crisper short-game shots

Nick Dimengo

Golf.com Editor

Related Articles

Driving
jordan spieth points to the right during the 2014 ryder cup

Improve this key skill if you want to shoot lower scores

By: Zephyr Melton
Driving
Smooth out your swing with Rose Zhang’s tempo keys

How Rose Zhang’s simple tempo keys improved my swing

By: Maddi MacClurg
Putting
man demonstrates how putts of different speed break differently

Fascinating video shows why speed is so important for making putts

By: Zephyr Melton
Putting
The putting trick pros swear by for reading grain on bermuda greens

The putting trick pros swear by to read grain on Bermuda greens

By: Maddi MacClurg
Instruction
driver teed up with golf ball on tee

Why proper ball position is so important in the golf swing

By: Zephyr Melton
Instruction
pga tour pro justin rose swings during the 2025 rbc heritage

This major winner's swing thought can cure your early extension

By: Zephyr Melton
Driving
Develop your fairway finder drive with this easy range drill

Develop your fairway-finder drive with this easy range drill

By: Maddi MacClurg
Instruction
golf club with golf ball teed up

1 simple trick for perfect ball position with every club

By: Zephyr Melton
Approach Shots
justin thomas' setup for his favorite ball-striking drill

Justin Thomas' favorite ball-striking drill for flushing your irons

By: Zephyr Melton
Sign up for GOLF's Newsletters
Get the latest news, the hottest instruction tips, new product releases, golf media insider reports and more delivered directly to your inbox. Choose your favorites now.
Sign Up
Categories
  • News
  • Instruction
  • Gear
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
Services
  • Masthead
  • GOLF Media Kit
  • GOLF Magazine Customer Service
  • TERMS OF SERVICE
  • PRIVACY POLICY
  • Opt-out of Ads/Sharing
  • Your Privacy Choices
Social
  • facebook
  • x
  • instagram
  • youtube
Membership
InsideGOLF Logo
More than $140 Value for JUST $39.99

INCLUDES 12 SRIXON Z-STAR XV GOLF BALLS, 1 YR OF GOLF MAGAZINE, $20 FAIRWAY JOCKEY CREDIT - AND MUCH MORE!

LEARN MORE

© 2025 EB Golf Media LLC. An 8AM Golf Affiliated Brand. All Rights Reserved. All of our market picks are independently selected and curated by the editorial team. If you buy a linked product, GOLF.COM may earn a fee. Pricing may vary.

Go to mobile version