Gate drill for putting start line

Setup

1. Find a straight putt of about 1.5 m on a flat part of the practice green.
2. Push two tees in about a putter-head length in front of the ball, on the start line, with a gap a little wider than two balls.
3. Mark the ball's spot with a third tee so every putt starts from the same place.
4. Two or more players share a hole by taking turns; wait off the line of the putt.

How it runs

1. Putt ten balls. Through the gate scores 1; through the gate and holed scores 2.
2. Clipping a tee scores nothing, even if the ball still drops.
3. Beat your score, then narrow the gate to just over one ball wide.
4. Move to a 3 m putt with some break and set the gate on the line you have read, not at the hole.

Coaching points

• Eyes over the ball or just inside it, so the line you see is the line you aim along.
• Square the putter face to the gate first, then set the feet and shoulders parallel to that line.
• Rock the shoulders; the hands and wrists stay passive and the face stays square through the strike.
• Hold the finish and watch the ball pass through the gate before you turn to look at the hole.

Common mistakes

• Peeking at the hole during the stroke, which pulls the putt across the line.
• On a breaking putt, aiming the body at the hole instead of along the start line.
• Steering the ball through the gate with a late flick of the wrists.