Archives for April 6, 2026

By Tim Graves, PGA

I’m not gonna preach at you today about how important your putting stroke is.

If you’ve been around for a bit, you know that I’m VERY passionate about putting!

When it comes to creative and simple ways to check each aspect of your putting stroke away from the golf course, I’ve tried them all.

It was through many years of trial and error that I developed what I consider a great, as well as simple way, to check each aspect of your putting stroke away from the golf course.

You see, to practice efficiently, you must check a couple key areas:

1. Squareness of putter face
2. Eyes over the ball (target line)
3. Squareness of shoulders at address
4. The path of the putter head during the stroke

Being able to check these fundamental positions each and every stroke is key to having productive practice sessions.

With the development of the H3 Putting Mirror, I now have a way to ensure each fundamental of my putting stroke is perfect.

Simply put, this is a vital tool during my off season practice.

If you aren’t using an H3 Putting Mirror, I have to ask you, bluntly,

“Why?”

Even a 3-5 minute practice session in your living room with the H3 Putting Mirror will ensure:

1. Your eyes are over the ball (target line), which will help you see the line, as well as create an ideal stroke.
2. Ideal shoulder alignment that you can check in the mirrored surface.  Square shoulders produce an ideal stroke.
3. You’ll see a perfectly square club face, as well as the ideal stroke with the guidelines on the H3.
4. Raised edges will make you catch the ball on the upstroke, creating a perfect roll every time.
5. CNC milled holes to develop a putting gate to further hone the perfect stroke each and every time.

THE 3 Ps OF PUTTING AND USING THE H3 PUTTING TRAINER

What are the 3 Ps of putting?…  simply stated, it is “Practicing your Putting with a Purpose”

Folks, it is actually pretty simple and painless, you just have to DO IT RIGHT!!!

Now, before you think to yourself, “Yeah, I know, Tim always says how important putting is, but I really need to work on my full swing first”, please read the following stats and “studies” that have been conducted and then I will explain how you can literally improve your game overnight…

First – You must first realize the importance of putting. 43% of scoring occurs on the putting green for the average player (male shooting 97, female shooting 107). As the scoring increases, so does the % of putts. For a scratch golfer, the percentage lowers to about 40%, but no lower.

Graves Golf By Design statistics are as follows:

30 handicap golfer (aver score of 100) – average 45 putts per round

20 handicap golfer (aver 90) – 40 putts per round

10 handicap golfer (aver 80) – 35 putts per round

Scratch golfer (aver 70) – 30 putts per round

Professional golfer – 28 putts per round

Second – You would think “that only makes sense” as the 30 handicap golfer will hit it further from the hole than the 20 handicap golfer, thus have more putts…. but you would be wrong. If you think of the way golf is played and the way putting stats are kept (just add up how many putts you have once the ball is on the green) – the 20 handicap golfer actually will hit more greens in regulation than the 30 handicap golfer (the 30 handicap golfer will be chipping from the side of the green, etc..). Meaning, if you take the average distance to the hole once the player hits the green, typically the 20 handicap golfer will be further than the 30 handicap golfer… in theory if both had equivalent mid/short games – but here lies the problem.

Third – There are only 3 areas that matter in putting (or any part of the golf swing) – Path, Face Angle, and Speed. Putting is affected by these 3 areas and only these 3 areas. Meaning, everything you work on in putting (for example the grip, set up, etc..) affects either path, face angle and/or speed. The better your path, the better your putting, the better your face angle at impact, the better your putting, the better your speed, the better your putting.

Fourth – READ THIS VERY CAREFULLY: Studies have shown that of 10 golfers who practice their putting, 5 will get no better, 4 will actually get worse, ONLY 1 will improve after practice. Please read this again – of those who practice their putting, 10% will improve after the practice, 50% will not, and 40% will ACTUALLY MAKE THEMSELVES WORSE. (This study was performed numerous times testing golfer’s putting prior to their practice session and after.) As is said by the individuals who performed these studies, “Golfers can add, subtract, multiply and divide, and they DON’T like these odds.” I don’t know about you, but if I have a 90% chance of not improving when I practice, “I ain’t practicing” (as they say in Oklahoma…)

Okay – now that everyone is on a “downer” about their putting practice, we’re here to fix that.

Over the years of playing and practicing with some of the best players in the world (including Moe, Tiger and many others), competing against many of these players, studying numerous techniques of the short game, etc… etc. we have created/perfected a method to improve your putting.

H3 Putting Trainer – How to Practice Your Putting with a Purpose EVERY TIME you practice. (In other words, every time you practice, you will one of the 10% who improves!!)

This is a Putting Trainer that works – WE GUARANTEE IT!!! This is how you (and most professionals) improve your putting. The system is not hard – in fact, it is very simple and doesn’t take that much time. Every minute you practice using the H3 Putting Trainer, it will improve your putting… which in turn will improve your scoring and decrease your handicap – SIGNIFICANTLY!!

Here are highlights of the H3 Putting Trainer:

    * Mirror for proper eye and shoulder alignment 

    * Beveled leading edge for easy ball placement 

    * Easy to see red line for proper path and face alignment

    * Red line to check ball under eye line and head still during putting stroke

    * Blue alignment lines to help the putter go back square

    * Blue alignment lines to square your shoulders

    * Putting gate holes to use tees to get path correct in back stroke (set up for different sized putters)

    * Putting gate holes to use tees to get path correct in through stroke (set up for different sized putters)

    * Raised edges for proper stroke.  Upstroke at impact, and proper back stroke

Here is what the H3 Putting Trainer checks (check points) every time you use it:

• Square putter face at set up
• Eyes over the golf ball (ball under eye line)
• Golf Ball is forward of center at set up (creates overspin)
• Golf Ball is set up in the middle of the putter (sweet spot)
• Shoulders are square at set up
• Only the shoulders move / rock in putting stroke.   Remainder of body still.
• Hands lead maintaining shaft lean through impact 
• Golf ball is impacted at center with no side spin (only overspin) and on center of putter 
• Golf ball is hit on an upward blow
• Hand are leading (H1)
• Hands down the line (H2)
• Hip check reminder (H3)

Everyone – no matter where you game is now – needs to improve their putting. You need to create more consistency in your putting. As shown, it is absolutely the faster way to lowering your scoring.

Remember the 3 Ps of Putting – Always Practice Your Putting with a Purpose and the best way to practice with your putting with a purpose is to use the H3 Putting Trainer.

H3 Training Aid:  CLICK HERE