Hello Golf Nut... I've been having big-time problems with putting in the past few summers, and it's really getting out of hand.. For some reason, I can't keep the club face straight to my intended target on my putts... I always end up pulling the ball to the left of the hole or pushing it to the right. I have tried everything and nothing works. Because of my poor putting, I can't progress at all. It's almost an automatic 3-putt on every hole. Any tips would be appreciated.

Many times problems with pulling the putt have to do with the line of the putt. On putts that are not straight, many golfers tend to pick a mark that is on the line that they want to putt the golf ball. But then as they start the putter back and forward, their eyes tend to drift to look at the hole which causes them to pull or push the putter head and the golf ball.

This may or may not be your problem, but I have a couple of golf tips that can help even if that isn’t your problem.

The first one involves using pennies to help you practice keeping the club face straight. Take several golf balls and about a dozen pennies to the putting green. Line up the pennies just outside the width of your putter head, six on each side. Make the distance between pennies on each side enough so that when you putt, your putter head will stay within this “track” created by the pennies.

Then practice putting from various distances and various lines, working on keeping the putter head straight and even between the lines of pennies for the entire putting stroke. This will help you focus on keeping the club face straight on the line of your putt.

Second, both while practicing this drill and when putting in a round of golf, I would suggest picking a mark much closer to your golf ball. A lot of times, golfers pick a mark on their putting line that is far enough away that it is actually difficult to look at the mark and your golf ball at the same time. The result is that you look up to the mark as you are putting and the club face turns. So pick a mark that is close enough to see the golf ball and the mark without moving your head or eyes while putting.

Putting is so key to good scoring in golf. Check out this extra help for your putting.