How I Finally Got Control Over My Putting

Sarah Mitchell

For years, putting felt like my weakest link. I could hit great drives and solid approach shots, but when I got to the green, it all seemed to fall apart. The frustration of missing putts, especially in tournaments, was crushing. I’d walk off the course thinking, “If only I could’ve holed a couple of those, the round would’ve been so much better.” It was that part of the game I just couldn’t crack.

But then something shifted. It wasn’t an overnight change, and it definitely wasn’t easy, but over time, I found the tools I needed to transform my putting - and it all started with PuttView.

I remember this one club tournament where I was playing really well. I was on the 16th green, tied for second place, looking at a 10-foot birdie putt. The read seemed straightforward, a slight left-to-right break. I thought I had the line and pace dialed in, but the ball just missed on the low side. I ended up three-putting from there. That single hole knocked me out of contention, and I was devastated. I couldn’t shake the feeling that my putting was holding me back from reaching the next level.

That night, I was replaying the round in my head, every missed opportunity, every misread and I knew I needed to find a way to break the cycle. I had been hearing about PuttView for a while and finally decided to give it a try. At that point, I had nothing to lose.

The first time I used PuttView, I was skeptical. I didn’t want to rely on something that would “show” me the line without actually teaching me how to read the green myself. But after just a few sessions, I realized it was doing the opposite - it was training my eyes and my brain to see the subtle breaks I had been missing for years.

One of the first drills I tried was reading a medium-range putt, about 15 feet, on a green with a pretty severe slope. Normally, I would’ve overcompensated for the break and sent the ball way off target. But PuttView showed me exactly how much break was really there and how speed would impact the line. I followed its visual cues, made the putt, and suddenly everything clicked.

It was like my eyes were finally open to what was happening on the green. I started trusting myself more, relying less on guesswork, and actually enjoying the challenge of reading the greens instead of fearing it.

If there was one thing holding my putting back, it was my start line. No matter how well I thought I’d read a putt, I was often pushing or pulling the ball just enough to miss. It was infuriating. PuttView became my truth-teller. It showed me that even when I thought I was dead on, I wasn’t.

I set up a simple drill with PuttView to check my alignment on straight putts. Every time I missed, I could immediately see where I’d gone wrong. The feedback was instant, and I began adjusting my stance, grip, and stroke until the ball was starting exactly where I intended. Slowly, my stroke became more reliable, and I stopped second-guessing myself before every putt.

For me, speed control had always been the hardest part of putting. I’d either leave the ball frustratingly short or blast it way past the hole. It felt like I just didn’t have the touch, especially on fast greens. But PuttView helped me understand something critical: speed and line are directly connected. If your speed is off, your line doesn’t matter.

I worked on drills specifically designed to hone my speed control. It was humbling at first—I realized just how far off I was in my pace—but over time, I developed a better feel for how hard I needed to hit the ball in different situations. It wasn’t about trying to hit the perfect speed every time, but about understanding what different speeds would do to the putt. That knowledge made a world of difference during tournaments when I needed to adapt to unfamiliar greens.

About six months after I started using PuttView, I found myself in a familiar situation: standing over a tricky 12-footer in a club match, needing the putt to save par. But this time felt different. I wasn’t anxious or doubting my read. I had practiced this scenario so many times that I knew exactly what to do. I read the break, trusted my line, and let the putt go. When it dropped, I felt a wave of relief. Not just because I’d made the putt, but because I knew I had changed the way I approached putting altogether.

Since then, I’ve had more moments like that. I don’t dread putting anymore. In fact, it’s become one of my favorite parts of the game, where I feel the most in control.

I’m not going to lie—there are still rounds where I miss putts. But the difference now is that I understand why I missed. I can analyze it, learn from it, and move on. PuttView didn’t just improve my putting—it gave me the tools to understand my game in a way I never had before.

This journey has been as much about mindset as it has been about technique. I don’t need to be perfect on every green. I just need to trust the work I’ve put in and know that I’m better prepared than I’ve ever been.

These days, when I walk onto the green, I feel confident. I trust my reads, my stroke, and my ability to handle different speeds and breaks. I’ve seen my scores improve, especially in tournaments, and I’m no longer held back by missed opportunities on the green. It feels like a huge weight has been lifted off my game.

If you’re struggling with your putting like I was, my advice is simple: don’t give up. It took me a long time to find the right approach, and PuttView ended up being the tool that made the difference. But more than anything, it’s about patience and persistence. With the right tools and mindset, even your biggest weakness can become a strength.

This version is focused on personal reflection, real moments, and the gradual process of improvement. It steps away from a marketing tone and leans into the emotions and experiences of someone genuinely struggling with their putting, making the story more relatable and authentic.