Shake it off...

Okay, so I have done the Mark Ellis Putting Confidence program. I have been doing it since June 08 and I am consistently getting more and more putts during rounds in. I have confidence that I can make a putt anywhere within 20 feet and slowly buidling my range. However, I have a huge problem during some rounds that I do not seem to have during my putting practice. That is simply this, I can't shake off a putt that gets kicked out more then 3 times.

I mean I can be having a great round and then boom smack the poll. Okay I make the next shot shake it off and move on. Then it happens again and then again. After that I cannot seem to focus on making the putt. I stop hitting the center and start hitting EVERYTHING ELSE. Top or basket, Sweet side chain, wrong side chain, basket tray. This often causes me from shooting a -2 to even up to a 7 to 10 depending how far along I am in the round.

Now I have played many sports, Was a goalie and letting in a puck never seemed to get in my head as much as getting rejected by the basket. Anyone have any advise on ways to shake it off?

[Jamie 'gr8rocshot' Ruane]

You might have to wait for the " ....Putting Confidence Program...Part 2"....Entitled "Shake'n it Off" lol! j/k

[Lotto]

suck in good vibes, blow out bad vibes.

i blew it BAD at a tourny this weekend, just couldnt get anything to click. i was putting good first round, and second round my aim was on, everything hit the chains but nothing would stick! i ended up shooting double what i did my first round. i gotta try to shake that off before this weekend at No foolin'.

[Garrett Graham]

You have to learn that one on your own but if you figure it out please let me know. I try and think about nothing but making it every time I throw. By making it i mean having the disc go where I want it to. If that doesn't happen than i think about my next shot from where ever that may be and move On. you cant do anything about the past(in disc golf) but move on. the sooner we all can learn that the better

[Lotto]

more often then not, when i putt, the less i think about it, the more often it goes in. get into a ruteen(sp?) watch Feldburgo before he putts, i kinda do what he does, but i use both hands to "prepump" my putter, making sure my shoulder are square to the basket. after that i pump two or three times then it let it fly. doing the same thing everytime makes it less strenuous(sp?) on your mind.

damn, we need spell chack here.

[Donny Olow]

A Putting Routine does help !!!! Does help to make it less strenuous !!!!!! Got your back , no worries !!!!

[Nascar Mike]

As weird as it may sound, Laughing out loud at this situation actually works. You hit dead center not to high and the next thing you know your putter is on the ground. Bust out laughing. Crying or getting mad does not help, we all know this. Plus when that 17 foot putt falls out and you bust out laughing your competitors will think, "what the heck is wrong with that guy?" I have learned this from a friend playing a casual round and I have used this tactic to help me. Plus remember pulling a "nikko" and kicking your bag up and down the course doesn't help.

[Bob Mahannah]

just remember back to how easy it was to make 15 footers in practice and reassure yourself that the circumstances are no different now and just have that confidence that you can do all the easy things you dominate in practice

[Noah]

If you are practicing right you have a routine that you use every putt. If you don't have a routine your just throwing plastic at the chains. The routine will help you fucus as well as clear your head.

The last step in the routine before you putt should always be a deep breath.
This will clear your head and relax you so that the muscle memory that you built thus far can kick in.

If nothing else works try to kick yourself in the nuts.
You'll either die laughing if you miss or realize it's not that bad if you hit them.

[mark ellis]

Bad bounces mess with my head as well.

You throw an apparently perfect putt and it bounced back out or blows through. On the next putt you wonder what the heck you have to do to make this one. Do you purposely aim at an edge so the pole won't kick you out?

If you practice putt enough you learn that baskets do a poor job of catching putts. The more perfect the putt the scarier they are. My conclusion is that baskets suck. They are arbitrary bitches that catch some weak putts and reject good putts without rhyme or reason.

Some putts at some times are really tough to swallow. I really hate it on the first putt in a round or at the very end of a round where it hangs with you. Heck, I hate it at any time. I hate it when it happens to someone else in my division. I don't want to beat someone because of a basket screw job.

The more confident you are the better chance you have of shaking it off. But it should not be an issue in our game. The design flaws which allow good putts to be rejected should be fixed. We will have a better game when it happens.