Truth be told, I don’t really even like typing the word ‘yips’. It isn’t something any golfer wants to think about, let alone talk about for any length of time. The yips are frustrating, annoying, embarrassing, and damaging to the scorecard. If you have ever had the yips – even for just one round – you certainly know how bad it can be. However, plenty of golfers still struggle with the yips, so I would like to offer my ideas on how to quickly and easily solve the problem. The first thing to understand is that the yips are a mental affliction, rather than a physical one. I’m quite sure you are capable of making a two or three foot putt, and you can probably do it over and over again on the practice green. The space between your ears in what is getting in your way, and these tips are designed to crack the code. Try any or all of these tips as you try to make your putting yips a distant memory – More Practice. Sometimes, the solution to the problem can be as simple as practicing more. When you don’t spend any time working on your short putts during a practice session, they can become far more intimidating on the course. Spending just five or ten minutes during each practice session on your short putts can make all the difference in the world. Quiet Your Eyes. It starts simply enough – you miss one or two shorts putts during a round, and don’t think much of it. However, during your next round, you miss a couple more and it starts to get in your head. Then, your eyes start to dart around during your stroke in an attempt to guide the ball into the hole. There is no need for your eyes to do anything but look at the ball during your stroke. Keep them quiet and focus only on solid contact between the putter and the ball. Be Aggressive. On a short putt, you can almost always aim right for the center of the hole and hit the putt with enough pace to make it hold the line. As you lose confidence, you may start to read more break than is actually there – and this can cause big problems. Aim for the center of the cup, make a good stroke, and watch it fall in. Keep it in Perspective. Is it frustrating to miss a short putt? Of course. Is it the end of the world? Not even close. Putting more pressure on yourself than necessary is a common way to make the yips worse. Take a deep breath, put the putt in perspective in terms of real life and things that are actually important, and go ahead and knock it in.

Everyone can be a better putter. Sometimes it is just as simple as thinking you are the best. Many times golfers don’t improve because of not practicing the correct things. I see golfers all day long go to the putting green after hitting balls on the range for an hour and then spend only 2 to 5 minutes working on the putting green. Here's my philosophy on putting: On any given hole when you reach the green in regulation, to get par, you need to get the ball in the hole with two more stokes (putts). So on a course of par 72, you get 36 putts. This should tell the golfer to practice at least a half of their time on putting. I like to use drills with and without putting aids and by setting measurable goals for future practices. There are two areas of mechanics a golfer need to improve on, stroke and distance. Stroke has four reasons you will miss a putt which cares over to the full swing. The first reason is hitting it solid, second is path. The third is face angle and the last is everything else under the sun. The last reason is the only reason you want to miss the putt,. Yes you will still miss putts even when everything is perfect with path, face angle and hitting it solid. You can always learn from the last reason which is important to make you even better. Golfers need to first understand even with all the first three things correct that sometimes you still miss them – this confirms you are still a great putter.

Whether you're a beginner or professional, keeping solid and stiff wrists is a must to have in your putting stroke. There is something to be said about keeping your arms and wrists connected in one solid line in order to keep the putting stroke consistent and moving like a pendulem. The putting stoke can be thought of as a clock arm, and when it moves back and forth, that is the ticking. The arm on a clock would not break down to reach the next number and the same can be said about the putting stroke! If you break your wrists down, you will have a lack of control and you will have more problems on the greens than neccessary. The left hand on your putter will be the leader and is in accordance with the putter face. Wherever your left hand goes, the putter face will follow. You must learn to control your wrists seperately and together in order to learn how to keep the putter stroke smooth and consistent. Next time you are out on the golf course putting, remember to keep your wrists moving as a team in harmony with the putter blade. The results will prove to be more consistent than being slappy with your hands in the putting stroke.

The putting triangle Putting can be tedious and many people struggle because it can get quite boring standing on a green putting for hours on end. The most important part of the game is played around the greens, especially putting. The short game is crucial to spend time on because under any type of pressure, the flaws will show themselves the most around the green. First thing's first. Get a proper set up. The putting stance is important because it sets a base for your arms to swing back and forth like a pendulam. Take your stance with putting both of your feet shoulder width apart. Next, bend at the waist, keeping your back straight. Like seen in the first picture. A great way to think of your arms, is they are like the “arms of a clock.” The arms of a clock to get from one point to another, do NOT break down. Hence, the thought of keeping the triangle in between your arms and shoulders, as seen in the second picture. The triangle is critical to the motion of your putting stroke and allowing you to keep the putter on line, back and forth. The breaking down of your wrists will cause you to flip the putter head through causing inconsistencies and the potential dreaded 3 putt. To lower your putting score, focus on a pendulum swing and keep your triangle.