Golf instruction is ever-evolving, but the best advice stands the test of time. In GOLF.com’s new series, Timeless Tips, we’re highlighting some of the greatest advice teachers and players have dispensed in the pages of GOLF Magazine. Today we have a putting tip from legendary short-game coach Dave Pelz from our October 1999 issue.
The game of golf has evolved in many ways throughout history, but one thing has remained constant: putting is a crucial skill. From Old Tom Morris and Harry Vardon all the way to Scottie Scheffler and Bryson DeChambeau, putting has always been a premium skill.
If you’ve stumbled upon this article, there’s a good chance you’re looking to improve your own putting. If that sounds true, you’re in luck.
Back in the 1999 issue of GOLF Magazine, Hall of Fame instructor Dave Pelz explained a simple game for improved putting. And it’s so easy to implement, you don’t need to be a pro to benefit from it. Check it out below.
Dave Pelz’ brilliant putting game
Last month, I explained that the optimum path for holing a breaking putt is usually higher than you think. Based on my studies of putting speed and direction, I learned that this optimum line for starting your putts is about three-quarters of the way between the lowest and highest possible lines that will let you find the hole. I call this optimum line the “high road.”
Taking the high road — playing more break rather than less — makes sense for many reasons: A ball is more likely to fall down into the hole from the high side than fall up from the low side; it also encourages rolling the ball at a slower speed, meaning it is less likely to run too far past should it miss the hole.
However, knowing what you should do and actually doing it are often two different things, especially in golf. So to help you learn to visualize this optimum break and speed on the greens you play, try a game called “Too-High.”
On the practice green, find a putt of 10 to 20 feet with four to five inches of break. Stretch a piece of string from behind the hole and pointing toward your ball, passing exactly over the center of the cup. The string should extend at least six feet on either side of the hole. (Elevate the string at least two inches above the green by tying it to two pencils and using them as stakes.)
Grab a friend and choose who putts first. (While you can practice by yourself, you’ll learn much faster by competing, although your friend’s putting also will improve.) Putter A chooses a spot to putt from anywhere along the line indicated by the string, between six and 20 feet away, and from this spot tries to putt his ball as close as possible to the hole but stopping it above — on the high side — of the string. If any part of the ball touches the string or rolls below it, of if the ball goes in the hole, that player cannot win.
If Player A finishes below the line in any way, Player B, putting from the same spot, only has to leave the ball above the string to win. While that might seem easy, players who try to hit “good” putts often let heir ball drift below the line. Then there is no winner. If both balls finish above the string, the one closer to the hole wins.
When a player wins, he gets the honor, chooses another spot six to 20 feet away along the line, and they go at it again. If neither player wins, whoever putted second the last time gets the honor. So there’s only one simple rule: Whoever leaves the ball closest to the hole and above the line wins. (That’s why a ball that falls into the hole is a loser: It’s actually touching the line.)
When you first play “Too-High,” the winner is the first player to get six holes ahead. As you improve, play until one player gets nine up. Remember, the point of playing isn’t to make putts, but to learn how putting too high looks and feels.
When you get on the course, you’ll sense, feel, and see where the “Too-High” lines are, which are almost the same as the highest possible lines for making your breaking putts. If you play three-quarters of that break (up from the lowest possible line), you will be playing the optimum break for all your putts.
