I need to start with an admission: I don’t practice putting enough. I know I should. I tell other people to practice putting all the time. I’ve written about how putting is the highest-ROI skill improvement for most amateurs. And then I go home and throw drivers in my backyard because it’s more fun, and the basket sits there looking at me judgmentally.
When I DO practice putting \u2014 which is not as often as it should be \u2014 I use a specific routine. It’s short enough that I can talk myself into doing it even when I don’t want to, which is most of the time. Fifteen minutes. That’s it. Shorter than an episode of whatever you’re watching. If I can’t find fifteen minutes, I’m lying to myself.
Here’s the routine. It’s not revolutionary. It just works, if you actually do it.
The Setup
I keep a practice basket in my garage. It’s a cheaper one \u2014 maybe $80 used off Craigslist years ago \u2014 and it works fine. You don’t need a tournament-quality basket to practice putting. You need something that catches discs and is accessible enough that you’ll actually use it.
The accessibility part matters more than people think. My basket is visible every time I walk to my car. It’s right there. The friction to practice is basically zero. If I had to drag it out of storage or set it up somewhere, I’d do it way less.
I use about ten putters for practice. Nothing special \u2014 mostly old DX Aviars that have seen better days. More putters means less time walking to the basket to pick them up, which means more actual throwing.
Noodle \u2014 my dog \u2014 occasionally knocks the basket over during practice. This is annoying but also kind of funny and I’ve just accepted it as part of the experience.
Block 1: Warm Up (3 minutes)
Start stupid close. Like 10 feet. Maybe closer. The goal isn’t to make putts yet \u2014 it’s to find your stroke. Loosen up the arm, feel the release, remember what your putt is supposed to feel like.
I throw all ten putters from this distance without really thinking about it. Just easy reps. Wake up the muscle memory. If something feels off \u2014 grip, release point, whatever \u2014 this is when I notice it.
After ten throws, maybe twenty if I’m feeling stiff, move on.
Block 2: Money Distance (5 minutes)
Twenty feet. This is the distance that matters most. Inside circle 1, where you’re supposed to make putts, and where missing feels bad.
I throw all ten putters, count how many I make, and write it down. Or remember it. Actually I usually just remember it because I’m too lazy to track properly, which is probably why my improvement is inconsistent. Don’t be like me.
Then I collect and do it again. And again. As many rounds as five minutes allows, which is usually three or four depending on how slow I’m moving.
The goal is 70%+. Seven out of ten, consistently. If I’m below that, it’s a sign I’ve been slacking on practice. If I’m above 80%, things are clicking.
During this block I try to focus on one thing per round. First round: pick a chain to aim at, hit it. Second round: follow-through, make sure my hand finishes toward the target. Third round: stance, same setup every time. Don’t try to fix everything at once. One focus per set.
Block 3: The Step-Back Ladder (4 minutes)
This one’s kind of a game. Start at 12 feet. Make a putt. Step back to 15 feet. Make a putt. Step back to 18. And so on.
If you miss, you start over from 12.
The point is building chains of success while gradually pushing your range. You can’t reach the longer distances until you’ve made everything shorter. It simulates the pressure of “I need to make this one or I lose progress.”
My record is 32 feet before missing. Usually I flame out around 24-27. There was one time I hit 35 and I genuinely celebrated alone in my garage like I’d won something. Brendan walked in, saw me fist-pumping, and just turned around and left. Fair.
Block 4: Pressure Putts (3 minutes)
Back to 20 feet. But now there are stakes.
I set a target \u2014 let’s say 7 out of 10 \u2014 and if I don’t hit it, I have to do burpees. Or push-ups. Or whatever I don’t want to do. Some kind of consequence that’s unpleasant enough to make me actually try.
This is stupid. I know it’s stupid. But it works. Adding any stakes at all \u2014 even arbitrary physical punishment \u2014 raises my heart rate slightly, makes me focus harder, simulates a fraction of tournament pressure. It’s practice for caring about the outcome.
Adjust the target based on where you’re at. If 7/10 is easy, go for 8. If it’s brutal, drop to 6. The point is having something at stake, not being impossible.
That’s Fifteen Minutes
Warm up, money distance, ladder, pressure. Done. Go do something else.
The temptation is to keep going if you’re feeling good. Don’t. Stop at fifteen. Here’s why: consistency matters more than duration. Three fifteen-minute sessions per week beats one hour-long session. You’re building a habit, not getting a workout. Short sessions you’ll actually do are better than long sessions you’ll skip.
If I tell myself “I’m going to practice for an hour,” I won’t do it. The bar is too high. But fifteen minutes? I can do fifteen minutes even when I’m tired, even when I don’t want to, even when Noodle is being chaotic in the background. It’s short enough to always be possible.
What Happens When I Do This Consistently
When I practice putting three to four times a week for a few weeks, my percentages noticeably improve. Circle 1 feels automatic. I start making putts I’d normally miss. My scores drop because I’m converting more opportunities.
This isn’t magic. It’s just reps. Putting is muscle memory. More reps, better memory. Simple.
What Happens When I Skip It
I get lazy. Go a few weeks without practicing. Then I play a tournament and miss three putts inside 20 feet and wonder why my rating isn’t going up. Then I remember I haven’t touched the practice basket in two weeks. Then I feel guilty.
This cycle repeats more often than I’d like to admit.
The Actual Challenge
The hardest part isn’t the routine \u2014 the routine is easy. The hard part is making yourself do it when you don’t feel like it. When you’d rather scroll your phone. When it’s cold out and the garage isn’t heated. When you played a round that day and you’re tired.
I don’t have a great answer for this. Willpower, I guess. Remembering that future-me will thank current-me for putting in the reps. Setting a reminder that guilts me into it. Having the basket somewhere I can’t ignore.
The people who improve fastest are the ones who practice consistently even when they don’t feel like it. I’m not always that person. But when I am, the results are obvious.
Anyway
That’s the routine. Fifteen minutes, four blocks, nothing fancy. It works if you do it. The problem is doing it.
I’m gonna go practice right now because writing this article made me feel like a hypocrite. You should practice too. We’ll both thank ourselves later.
Probably.