We all know the best way to shoot better scores is to make more putts, but finding time to work on your short game can be hard.
That’s why it is important to practice putting at home. We have some ideas to help you improve your stroke without leaving your house.
You can practice putting at home with little or no new golf equipment. No more excuses. Let’s get your golf handicap going in the “right” direction.
Why Should You Practice Putting At Home?
How often do you travel to the golf course or driving range to practice? When you do make the trip, what part of your game do you focus on?
We get it. It is much more fun to hit balls on the driving range than grind on the practice putting green.
The truth is that if you want to start breaking 90 and reducing your golf handicap you must work on your short game.
Practice putting at home is a great shortcut and you can do it anytime you have a few minutes.
Do you have 10 minutes before your next conference call? Hit a few putts. Does your kid get off the school bus in 20 minutes? Work on your putting stroke.
You can practice putting at home with simple household items or invest in some new gear. We cover both options below.
5 Ways To Practice Putting At Home
We know that you may not have an unlimited golf budget, so we have tried to provide some options for players that want to invest versus players that want to “keep it simple”.
#1: Invest In An Indoor Putting Green
Don’t skip this section because you think they are too expensive or you don’t have space in your house for a putting green.
At-home putting greens have come a long way in recent years – we think most golfers can find one that will fit within their budget and their living space.
An indoor green is the perfect way to practice putting at home. You can work on different length putts and perform drills to improve your stroke.
Do you have kids in the house that have some interest in the game? They will love the putting green and it might be the thing that gets them hooked on golf.
You will be amazed how often you and your family hit putts. You simply can’t beat the convenience of having your own putting green.
Did bad weather cancel your weekend round of golf? While your buddies are sitting on their couch you can be improving your short game.
It might just be the advantage you need to those winning those side bets!
#2: Different Surfaces, Different Speeds
To practice putting at home, you need to be creative. The greens are never the same speed from day to day or course to course.
Quick side note, you should always learn the speed of the greens before you tee off. Here is a quick drill you can use on the practice putting green before your round.
Grab 3 golf balls. Hit long putts from one side of the green to the other. Ignore the holes, your goal is to stop the ball as close to the fringe as possible.
This will allow you to get a feel for the speed of the greens on that specific day. Now, back to practice putting at home.
We bet you have several different “green speeds” in your house. Every carpet or hardwood flooring will roll differently.
This can allow you to work on your putting stroke for fast greens and slow greens. Hardwood floors will roll super-quick. You can pretend you are playing Augusta National!
Conversely, your carpets will be much slower. They can help you prepare for the course that hasn’t mowed its greens in a couple of days.
Use the different surfaces when you practice putting at home and you will be prepared regardless of what the stimpmeter says!
#3: Design A Mini-Golf Course In Your Home
Working on your golf game can get boring. This is true of practice putting at home. We recommend you try to make it fun.
Design a mini-golf course in your home. Get the family involved, create competition, and be creative.
Half of the fun will be designing the course. What can you use from around the house instead of a windmill?
Make sure your course goes through multiple rooms and across various surfaces – using stairs can be fun as well.
You can use stuffed animals, furniture, and doorways as obstacles. Get the kids involved and keep track of who has the “course record”.
The best way to practice putting at home is to have a good time. Have a few laughs when someone gets their ball stuck under the couch.
Every couple of weeks re-design your course. Come up with new challenges.
How cool would it be if “game night” at home started to include designing and playing mini-golf?
#4: A Coffee Mug And A Ball
Do you prefer simple? Do you want to hit a few putts when you have a couple of minutes but don’t want to invest additional time or money?
There is nothing wrong with the minimalist approach to practice putting at home. Simple grab a golf ball, your putter, and a coffee mug.
A standard coffee mug is very close to the size of a golf hole. Lay it down on its side and try to the roll ball into it.
Coffee mug practice putting has been a thing for decades. You can do it in your living room, your office, or even your kitchen.
We still recommend you use #2 above – try different surfaces in your home to get the feel of different speeds.
#5: Try Out Different Putting Methods In Your Home
Putting can be done well in many different ways. When you watch professionals play on TV you will notice that most of their swings look the same, but putting styles vary.
Tiger Woods and Jack Nicklaus are the two best players in the history of the game. Watch a video of them putting – they look nothing alike.
Practicing can help you improve your putting, but it also may make sense to try something different. Practice putting at home is the perfect way to see what feels great.
There is no one at home to judge you. No one cares if you miss the coffee mug. This is the perfect environment to experiment.
Here are a few alternative putting methods you can try:
- Cross-Handed – also known as “left-hand low” – you simply reverse your hands. For right-handed golfers, the conventional putting grip is to have your left hand above your right hand. Simply switch them.
- Armlock Putting – to armlock you let the shaft of the putter rest against your left arm when you putt.
- Long Putter – used by many players on the Champions Tour, this type of putt comes up to your chest and you putt with your hands separated. Bernard Langer has made this famous.
All of these alternative styles are designed to help you stabilize your stroke and avoid the yips.
The “yips” is when your hands/wrists flinch at impact and you can’t make a solid stroke. This will cause you to miss very short putts.
Do you struggle with short putts? If so, practice putting at home with one of these alternative grips and you might identify a better way for you to roll the ball.
Once it feels comfortable, you can bring it out to the course!
