Nothing is more demoralizing than hitting a good putt only to
see it catch a lip and spin away from the cup.
Nothing is more demoralizing than hitting a good putt only to see it catch a lip and spin away from the cup.
At that time, you were already counting the stroke as being in and now you are faced with yet another putt. Often times, the next putt is missed also because your mind is still reeling from the putt before that you thought you should have made.
“Lip outs” aren’t just caused because the putt is slightlyly off line that it hits the edge of the cup and spins away. The spin you put on your putt could add to your chances of lipping putts out. Many players either “cut” or “skid” their putts, adding to the negative spin on the ball.
A cut putt is when you cut across the path of the putt hitting the ball with a glancing plow, thus putting side-spin on the ball. If the putt enters the edge of the cup with side-spin, the cup will spit the ball out.
A skid putt is caused when you have the ball too far back towards your back foot during your stroke. This will make it too easy for you to strike the ball as the putter is still on the way down, thus putting backspin on the ball for the first couple of inches. This backspin causes the ball to “skid” on the green and not allowing it to have a true roll right off the putter.
To ensure that you don’t do either of these negative things during your stroke, place the ball off the inside of your front foot when you putt. Then, when practicing, place a club shaft about one inch outside the edge of the golf ball, angling in towards your back foot slightly. This will train your stroke to be more inside out and not to cut across the ball. With a little practice, you’ll be dropping more putts in no time.
Remember when all else fails take a lesson. You’ll be surprised how much we can help.
To schedule a lesson with PGA-certified instructor Don DeLorenzo, call Gilroy GC at 848-0490.
