Fewer thoughts. Better pace.
Putting Lessons: What Can Change in One Focused Session?
Start line, pace and a routine you trust: the useful parts of a putting lesson without a full swing rebuild.
The short answer
A focused putting lesson can identify whether misses come mainly from aim, face control, strike or pace. You should leave with a simple setup, a repeatable pre-putt routine and one drill matched to your pattern. The goal is not a decorative putting stroke; it is a ball that starts where you intend at a useful speed.
First, separate direction from pace
A putt can miss because it started on the wrong line, travelled at the wrong speed or was read incorrectly. Those problems can look similar when the ball finishes beside the hole. A lesson begins by watching several putts from different lengths to identify the pattern rather than reacting to one miss.
Once the main issue is clearer, practice becomes simpler. A golfer struggling to start the ball online needs different feedback from someone who repeatedly leaves long putts six feet short.
Build a setup you can return to
Small changes in ball position, eye line, grip pressure or alignment can alter the face at impact. The coach is looking for a setup that makes it easier to aim and move the putter without unnecessary tension.
It does not need to look identical to another golfer’s stance. It needs to be comfortable, stable and repeatable enough that you can judge pace instead of rebuilding your address before every putt.
- A comfortable distance from the ball
- A clear method for aiming the face
- Grip pressure that allows a smooth stroke
- A consistent ball position
Learn whether the ball starts where you aim
A simple gate or straight putt can show whether the face returns squarely enough to the chosen line. The purpose is not to create a laboratory. It is to give you feedback you can reproduce with two tees and a few balls.
If the ball starts consistently, you can turn more attention to reading and pace. If it does not, a small adjustment to setup or stroke can be tested without changing several variables together.
Practise pace with a useful target
Trying only to hole putts can hide whether speed is improving. For longer putts, define a safe finishing area around or just beyond the hole and learn how the length of the stroke changes while the rhythm stays comfortable.
Pace practice should include uphill, downhill and side slopes when available. The objective is fewer second putts that still feel like a full challenge, not a perfect make rate from every distance.
A long putt that finishes close is a successful first putt even when it never threatened the centre of the hole.
Leave with a routine, not a pile of mechanics
A short routine can include reading the putt, choosing the start line, one look at the target and a committed stroke. Repeating that order reduces the last-second changes that appear when pressure or doubt arrives.
Ronnie can build the routine in plain English and give you one drill for the main issue. A focused 30-minute tune-up is £18, while a full hour at £30 gives more time if putting is part of a wider short-game problem.
Choose a focused tune-up or ask whether a full hour makes more sense.
See putting and short-game lesson optionsWhat to bring to a putting lesson
Bring your usual putter if you have one, plus the ball you normally play when practical. More importantly, bring the problem in ordinary words: short putts pushed right, long putts left short or a stroke that feels different every time.
You do not need to diagnose the technique. A reliable description of the result gives the lesson somewhere honest to begin.
A short message is enough to decide whether the 30-minute tune-up fits.
Tell Ronnie about your putting missMake it personal
The article cannot see your shot. Ronnie can.
Send the problem in ordinary words. A full one-to-one hour is £30, and you will leave with one clear thing to work on next.
Published by
Ronnie Tudhope Golf Coaching
Practical, plain-English coaching guides from Ronnie’s independent service at Ravenspark in Irvine.
