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No two greens are ever the same, and while we can pray for a confident, level playing field to sink our putts easier, we can easily be faced with an awkward, lengthy upward-facing green where landing long putts in one is seemingly an impossibility.
If you’ve been struggling to sink those annoying uphill putts with your golf putter, you’re not alone. Golfers everywhere dread the sight of an inclined green, knowing there’s every chance the ball will simply roll back downhill if they miss.
However, there are some tricks we can put in place to give ourselves the best shot at landing these uphill putts, so we don't throw away too many strokes on a single green.
With this in mind, here are a few tips and tricks on how to sink uphill putts the first time around.
Golfing tips for putting uphill
Increase the length of your swing
The first instinct most golfers have when seeing an uphill putt is to try and inject as much power as possible into the shot, to try and force it towards the hole.
This makes sense on paper, but it isn’t always the wisest move. When we try to add more power to a shot without changing anything else about our swing, there’s always the chance we could throw our swing off-centre, or, in the case of putting, accidentally strike the ball in a way that makes it bounce. Neither of which you want on the putting green.
So, instead of trying to hit the ball harder, simply elongate your backswing and follow through, regardless of power. The added distance should equate to a stronger, more accurate strike anyway.
Don’t be afraid to come off-centre
Speaking of making a longer stroke, it isn’t always the easiest thing to do when you’re trying to keep your clubface parallel to the target at all times.
Smaller putts may require you to create the perfect pendulum motion to keep your shot on target, but it becomes a very unnatural feeling when you need to extend your backswing before the putt.
That’s why, in some of the most famous long putts in history (Phil Mickelson offered us plenty of great examples), it is acceptable to move your clubhead off the centre line and add some slight curvature to your backstroke and even your follow-through shot.
Why? Because you’re giving your arms and shoulders the freedom to move without tensing up, as they may have done if you swung directly backwards.
Creating a slight semi-circle motion as you putt to give a little extra ‘oomph’ to the shot to get it uphill is perfectly acceptable, as long as your clubface is square to the target on impact with the ball.
If this technique sounds appealing to you, but you’re worried you won’t be able to bring the clubface back in line with the hole to make the shot, it’s worth spending a few hours on the practice green, aiming at the longer holes.
Eventually, this motion will feel like second nature to you, even though you’re taking your clubhead to an angle that isn’t in line with the hole, even if it’s only for a few split seconds.
Drop your shoulder
Even at the best of times, lining up a long putt and gently tilting our head to ensure we’re following the correct putting path can be awkward. But this awkwardness is intensified 1000x when we’re aiming up a steep incline green.
It can be a very unwelcome sensation posture-wise. But there is something you can do to fix that.
Try dropping your rear shoulder (right if you’re a righty, left if you’re a lefty) ever so slightly. This will give a slight angle to your address posture and offer your neck and shoulders the freedom they need to line up the shot properly.
Grab yourself a brand new golf putter at Clarkes Golf
Trying new techniques to improve your short game is all well and good. But if you’re worried your tool is to blame, maybe it’s time to replace it.
At Clarkes Golf, we’re home to a massive selection of golf putters for sale from the world’s best manufacturers - including TaylorMade putters, Ping putters and many more. So we're bound to have a putter to suit your style, whatever course you happen to play.
Take a look at our selection of incredible golf putters here and find the right putter for your short game!
