The pendulum putting stroke, explained simply

You will hear coaches describe a good putting stroke as a pendulum. It is a useful picture, but it is easy to take too literally. Here is what it actually means, why it works, and how to build it.

The picture

Imagine a grandfather clock. The weight swings back and forward from a fixed point at the top, at a steady rhythm, without anything pushing it along the way. In putting, the fixed point is roughly the top of your sternum, and the weight is the putter head. Your shoulders rock, and your arms, hands and putter hang from them and swing together.

Why coaches teach it

• Fewer moving parts. If only the shoulders move, there are fewer places for the stroke to go wrong.
• Bigger muscles, steadier under pressure. Shoulders and the torso are less twitchy than wrists and fingers when a putt matters.
• Repeatable rhythm. A pendulum swings at the same pace whether the swing is short or long, which makes distance easier to judge.

The three things that make it work

1. A stable triangle

Your arms and the line across your shoulders form a triangle. In a pendulum stroke that shape stays the same from start to finish. The wrists do not hinge, and the hands do not overtake the shoulders. If the triangle changes shape, the putter face usually changes too.

2. Shoulders rock, they do not turn

Think of your lead shoulder moving down on the backswing and up on the through-stroke, a bit like a see-saw. That is different from a full swing, where the shoulders turn around your spine. A gentle rock keeps the putter on a small, natural arc.

3. Even rhythm

A pendulum does not speed up or slow down halfway. Make the backswing and through-swing roughly the same length, and change the length of the stroke, not the effort, to change distance. Deceleration is one of the most common reasons short putts miss.

The straight-line myth

A common mistake is to try to drag the putter straight back and straight through on the target line. Because you stand to the side of the ball and the shaft is angled, a true shoulder rock moves the putter head on a slight arc: a little inside on the way back, square at impact, a little inside after. Fighting that arc usually means using the hands, which is the opposite of what you want.

How to practise it

1. Feel the rock without a ball. Cross your arms over your chest and rock your shoulders like a see-saw while keeping your head still.
2. Add the putter. Make slow strokes, keeping the triangle the same shape. Use a mirror to check.
3. Add feedback. Use sticks that join the putter to your arms so you know when the triangle breaks. Pendulo does this by holding two alignment sticks up the outside of your arms into your armpits. If your wrists hinge, you feel it.
4. Add a target. Ten putts from three feet, then ten from six.

Keep reading

See how to stop your wrists breaking down for drills that protect the triangle, and why you keep missing short putts for the other common causes.

Questions golfers ask