This post was updated March, 2024.
You want to know how to practice putting at home? I don’t blame you. It’s not always easy to get out the driving range between work and family obligations.
That’s even if the weather is nice. Depending on where you live and the season, it might be hard to get out for some putting practice with all the rain and snow on the ground.
The good news is that you can improve your putting at home. You can’t work on every aspect of your putting game indoors, such as lag putting, but you can work on things like your setup, stroke, and start line.
I’m going to share my approach to working on my putting from home and the tools I use or are familiar with. Use the links to jump to the sections you want to learn about.
- Home Putting Practice: Training Aids and Putting Mats – All the equipment you might want to practice your putting from home.
- Best Putting Drills to Do at Home – Putting drills that you can do indoors from home, the office, your garage, or anywhere else under a roof – no putting green required!
- What is the Best Surface to Practice Putting On at Home? – What is the best carpet for putting? Should you even practice putting on carpet? What about hardwood floors, tile, etc.?
Home Putting Practice: Training Aids and Putting Mats
Do you need training aids or a putting mat to practice putting at home? No, you don’t. Even if all you have is a putter, you can get some quality practice in.
That said, the more tools you have at your disposal, the more options you have for how you practice putting and to prevent boredom.
The first thing I recommend you purchase is a putting mat. First, it’s satisfying to be able to roll and drop putts, just as if you were on a green. Second, you can work on many things like your setup, stroke, start line, and speed inside of 8 feet. Drop more putts inside of 5 feet and you’ll see your scores drop.
What is the best home putting mat? I have not tried them all, so I have no idea. I have the Perfect Practice putting mat. It’s a bit expensive, but I’m happy with it so far.
Other than a putting mat, what else might you want to practice putting at home?
- Yard stick – A yard stick is used for a common start line drill, which I’ll show you in a minute.
- Alignment sticks – You can use alignment rods or sticks to work on your putting stroke, starting line, and more.
- Manila folder – This is a great tool for working on putting speed, so long as you have a decent piece of carpet to putt on.
- Quarter or tee – Aim small, miss small. Aiming to a quarter or tee is a great way to tighten up your putting dispersion.
- PuttOUT Premium Pressure Trainer – This will help you work on your putting line and speed. Only putts that are on the right line and speed will sit on the target.
- Putting Arc Trainer – There are a couple of different putting arc training aids, such as The Putting Arc, that helps you grove the proper stroke. The Momentus Inside Down the Line Track is another good option for grooving your putts inside of 6 feet.
- Putting Tutor – This is a training aid from golf short game guru, Dave Pelz. This is a good putting training aid for working on your starting line and keeping your head from moving too much or too soon.
- O-Ball – This is another training aid from Dave Pelz. There are lines around the golf ball. If you hit the ball squarely with your putter, the lines will roll straight. However, if you hit a glancing blow or from the slide, the lines will wobble or not roll in a straight line. You could buy a golf ball line template tool for $5 and draw your own lines on with a sharpie if you don’t want to spend $10 for a pack of 3 O-Balls.
Again, you don’t need these to get in some good putting practice at home, especially if you have a putting mat. But the additional options might motivate you to practice more and give you different kinds of feedback, which you might find useful.
Best Putting Drills to Do at Home
There are countless home putting drills you can do. Here are some of the best.
- 1-2-3 Putting Drill
- Meter Stick Drill
- Manilla Folder Drill
- Gate Putting Drill
- 100 Straight Putts
- Heel Against Alignment Rod
1. 1-2-3 Putting Drill
This is arguably better practice before you play a round of golf, but I think it’s still a worthy drill for practicing at home. You’ll need a putting mat or green for this.
Set up three balls in a line, one at three feet, another at six feet, and the last one at nine feet. Starting with the ball closest to the hole, start rolling putts.
This is a great way to develop some rhythm, as well as speed and feel for different distances inside of 10 feet. High handicappers’ make percentages drop off significantly after 5 feet, so you might be able to shave a couple strokes off by dropping more putts in this range.
2. Meter Stick Drill
You’ll need a yard stick for this drill. All you do is setup a ball on one end of the yard stick and then putt it to the other side. Your objective is to reach the other side (3 feet) without the ball falling off the yard stick.
This putting drill helps you work on your start line. If the ball stays on the yard stick, then you know you hit the ball squarely with minimal (if any) side spin.
3. Manilla Folder Putting Drill
You’ll need a manila folder for this drill. Set the folder on a rug or your carpet 6-10 feet away. Your objective is to roll putts and have them stop on the folder.
The faster your putting mat or carpet, the more you’ll need to adjust your speed to get your ball to stop on the folder.
This drill is handy on medium length putts that you’re often going to miss. If you can get the ball to stop on the folder, you know you’ll have a tap in for your second putt.
4. Gate Putting Drill
All you really need for this drill is a putter and ball. You can use old ball sleeves, cardboard boxes, or even tees for the gate.
However, if you are willing to spend a few bucks, you can buy putting gates from several sources. Perfect Practice has a nice pair of putting gate. I’m sure you can find many others on Amazon.
You’ll want to set up your gate or box sleeves approximately 3-4 feet from the cup. And you need to set them up so that they’re wide enough to swing your putter through.
From here, you’ll start rolling putts. Your goal is to swing your putter through the gate without hitting it. This will tell you whether your putter is square or if you’re opening or closing the face.
To make this drill tougher, setup another gate closer to the hole that is just big enough for your golf ball to pass through. You’ll need a solid putting stroke for both your putter and ball to make it through the gates.
5. 100 Straight Putts
Since you’re practicing your putting at home, a drill consisting of 100 straight putts should be more doable.
The idea behind this drill is to do 100 short putts in a row so that you get comfortable with putting from distances inside of three feet.
That might not sound like a big deal, but when you’re putting for par, birdie, eagle, etc., even a putt from 2-3 feet is going to look a long ways away. They call them knee-knockers for a reason.
One way to make this more fun and challenging for future sessions is to track your make percentage. Then your objective during your next home putting practice session is to meet or beat your previous score.
6. Heel Against Alignment Rod
You can use an alignment rod for this drill, or you can use one of the arc putting trainers. The idea is to have the heel of your putter just outside of the alignment rod. You roll putts and, if the heel of your putter hits the alignment stick or trainer, then you know you have too much arc to your putting stroke.
What is the Best Surface to Practice Putting On at Home?
A common question golfes ask is, can you practice putting on carpet? Or will that screw up your putting?
I don’t believe there is a “best” putting surface. I’d prefer to roll putts on a mat or green since that will be the closest thing to a practice green. That said, I’d still practice on carpet or a rug if it was tightly woven and the ball rolled straight.
I’d avoid putting on shag rugs or any type of material that has lots of crevices or bumps in it. That type of surface will be like trying to putt on a green that was just aerated or is infested with crab grass. There’s not much you’ll be able to practice there other than your putting stroke.
Ultimately, you’re not going to be able to practice lag putting or reading breaks without a large green. As long as you can get a decent and consistent roll up to 10 feet, then you can get in some quality putting practice at home.