Bangor Muni pros help fight those putting woes

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At T-minus six days until the start of the Bangor Daily News Amateur Golf Tournament, it’s not too late to significantly improve the most important part of your game.

Putting.

Quit groaning, put away your driver and pay attention or you might end up the subject of one of Brian Enman’s putting horror stories. Like this one:

“I remember playing in a pro-am with Scott Davis,” said the head pro at Bangor Municipal Golf Course one sunny day this week, referring to the former Bangor High star athlete. “We were on the 15th hole at Waterville Country Club. The 15th green has a big mound in it, like one of the mounds on 18 here. Scott’s ball stopped on one side of the mound. The hole was on the other side.

“He lined up the putt,” continued Enman. “Then he stood over the putt. And he stood over it… And he stood over it… He just stood there. We finally started laughing. He backed off and said `I can’t pull the trigger.’ Putting does that to people.’ ”

Mike Baker, Enman’s assistant and a former pro at Penobscot Valley Country Club in Orono and Kebo Valley Golf Club in Bar Harbor, has his own tale of putting woe.

“I remember playing a par-3 hole in a tournament in college,” said Baker, who starred on the golf team for Methodist College in North Carolina in the early 1980s. “I had about a four-footer for birdie. Normally, I’d take a rehearsal stroke, take one look at the hole, then hit it. Well, the pressure got to me. I changed my routine. I took one rehearsal stroke, looked at the hole, kept looking at the hole, took another rehearsal stroke.

“On the second rehearsal stroke, I hit the toe of my shoe with the putter blade, and accidentally hit the ball,” continued Baker. “It went nowhere near the hole.”

In an effort to prevent you from experiencing moments like these during the BDN extravaganza at Bangor Muni, Bar Harbor Golf Club in Trenton, Kebo Valley, and Rockland Golf Club, Enman and Baker generously agreed to share their best tips for putting. Here are their top 10:

10. Keep your body still.

“Most people with putting problems move too much,” said Enman. “Keep your head and body as still as possible.”

9. Don’t tense your muscles.

“That’s where you get yips, from gripping the putter too tight and tensing up,” said Baker. “Your wrists should stay firm, but you should feel loose and relaxed.”

8. Follow a routine.

“I try to putt the same way every time,” said Baker. “A rehearsal swing, one look at the hole, then hit it. If you develop a routine and stick to it, it helps in pressure situations.”

7. Keep the backstroke short.

“Most putts are missed on the backstroke rather than the follow through,” said Enman. “If your backstroke is too long it increases the chance you’ll hit it off-line. If you keep the backstroke short and accelerate through the ball, you’ll make more.”

6. Practice putting from 10 feet in.

“Don’t waste time practicing longer than 10 feet,” said Enman. “Get good at making the shorter putts. Practice ’em all day long. Then when you have longer putts and you lag, you’ll be able to make ’em.”

5. Practice. Period.

“Most people will spend hours on the practice tee and figure their putting will just happen automatically,” said Baker. “Spend time on the practice green. A good putter doesn’t just make putts on his home course, but on any course. To do that, you have to know the greens and the practice green can tell you a lot.”

4. Match a rehearsal stroke to the length of the putt.

“You should always take at least one rehearsal stroke, but a lot of people make it a big exaggerated stroke no matter what the length of the putt is. The rehearsal stroke should get your muscles ready for the length of the actual putt,” Baker said.

3. Putt smart.

“A lot of players try to make every putt, even very long putts. On most long putts you’re better off just trying to put yourself in position to make a short, easy second putt,” said Enman.

2. Keep the stroke low and slow.

“That’s the thought I keep in my head on every putt. Keep the takeaway low and slow. Follow through, but keep the follow-through low, too,” said Baker.

1. Learn and adjust.

“I can’t believe the number of people who will come in after a round and say, `I left it a foot short all day.’ My response is, why didn’t you learn from the first couple and adjust?”‘ said Baker.

There. Grips and putters the pros leave to individual taste. Last one to the practice green finishes out of the BDN prizes.