Practise Putting

The complete beginner might not put putting at the top of the priority list. This is understandable, for it is less technical than driving and iron shots.

However, it would be a mistake to completely overlook it. Just do the maths, you will be required to make at least one putt on each hole (unless you hole in one). Usually, you will probably need to make 2. On a par 4, this would contitute 50% of the number of strokes if you made it to the green in two shots. On a par 3 two putts would be 66% of strokes if you made par.

For this reason, half your time should be spent on getting a feel for putting. A good drill I do for short putts is to measure out a club length (approach 3 feet) away from the hole and then proceed to putt 10 in a row from this distance, but rotating to different angles (usually 90 degrees) from the hole after each putt. The same putt should never be attempted twice in a row.

This is a challenging drill and will help to ensure that you become consistent at short putting. Thus eliminating any chance of missing from short range.

(When this close, you can't afford to miss)