The keys to successful putting are to keep your body still and have as few moving parts as possible. The fewer moving parts, the more consistent you will be.

The first way to build consistency is to keep the loft of the putter even throughout the stroke.

The easiest way to control the loft is to keep the shaft of your putter perpendicular (straight up and down) to the ground after you have struck the ball. This keeps the loft consistent and allows you to control the distance better because the loft is going to have less of an effect on how far the ball goes.

Another aspect of putting is distance control. Most golfers tend to focus on direction over distance. As a general rule, if I’m more than 10 feet away from the hole, my goal is to sink it in two putts. Outside of 10 feet, the object should be to try to stop the ball at the hole. Here’s a great drill that can help with your distance control.

Take 10 balls and drop them three feet apart starting at 10 feet away from the hole. Drop one at 10, 13 feet, 16 feet, etc.

Start by hitting the ball closest to the hole. As you back up to hit each ball simply lengthen your stroke instead of increasing the force. The farther away from the hole, the longer your stroke will be on both sides of the ball. Varying the length of swing is much easier to accomplish with consistency than varying the force. Remember your stroke should look like the pendulum of a clock, always the same length on your backswing as your follow through.