Practicing putting is a waste of time. I don’t mean heading to the course on your lunch break and putting for 45-minutes, that’s insane. I mean the practice of putting right before a round to get a feel for the greens or whatever bullshit somebody told you one time – that’s a waste of time.
Let me explain my position before you go off all half-cocked and start the trending hashtag, #diaryofahackisinsaneandawasteoftime.
Here is the scene that plays out before every round I play. We have our cooler full of beer, I have 38 balls in my bag, and a bad feeling about my overall game and eventual score. I am sitting in the cart ready to roll to our 12:52 tee time at 12:50 pm. Then inexplicably, my playing partner says, “Let me go putt a few.”
Oh cool, I’ll just wait for you to put three balls down, putt to a hole 12 feet away, miss every one right and short, and then slowly walk back to the cart.
“Get your practice in Trent?”
Do you shoot three layups before a basketball game?
Do you kick a soccer ball from 4 feet away into a goal before a pickup soccer game?
Do you dial the phone twice and hang up before you call your wife?
No.
Nobody does any of those things, yet good golfers and terrible golfers all do some half-assed putting practice seconds before a round. Why? To prove to yourself that you are a terrible putter and will miss the same putt 12 times today? Or to prove to yourself that you are lock-solid from 5-feet away? Good for you.
Practicing putting before you play is futile, annoying, and selfish.
Now, if you will excuse me, I’m going to go clean my apartment before the cleaning lady gets here.