Improve Your Putting with Single-Handed Stroke Drills

The single-handed stroke drill is a simple way to clean up your putting motion by teaching each hand to move the putter on the same path. If one hand wants to steer, flip, or swing differently than the other, your stroke becomes inconsistent. This drill helps you identify those subtle differences and build a smoother, more repeatable motion. It is especially useful if you tend to get too handsy through impact or if your stroke feels different from one day to the next.

How the Drill Works

You will hit putts using one hand at a time, alternating between your lead hand and trail hand. The goal is not to make a lot of putts or focus heavily on the hole. Instead, you are training each hand to trace the same movement pattern in both the backswing and follow-through.

For many golfers, the lead hand is the better guide because it tends to control the motion more steadily and with less manipulation. If that is true for you, use your lead hand stroke as the model and compare your trail hand against it. Some players may find the opposite, so it is worth experimenting rather than assuming.

As you perform the drill, pay close attention to what the putter, wrist, forearm, and shoulder are doing. A good one-handed stroke should feel connected to your upper body, not like the hand is independently flipping or pushing the putter around. You are trying to create a motion where both hands, when used separately, would send the putter through the same space in a very similar way.

Another important part of this drill is the pause between reps. Rather than raking ball after ball, hit only a few putts at a time. That gives you time to evaluate what happened, form a clear picture of the next motion, and then execute it with intention.

Step-by-Step

Set up with a short putt. Choose a putt short enough that you can focus on motion rather than power. You do not need to aim at a hole if that becomes distracting.
Hit putts with your lead hand only. Make a normal putting motion using just your lead hand on the grip. Notice the path of the putter, the shape of the backswing, and where your hand finishes in the follow-through.
Use that motion as your reference. If the lead hand stroke feels stable and organized, treat it as the pattern you want to match with the other hand.
Switch to your trail hand only. Hit a few putts with just your trail hand. Compare what it does to the lead hand stroke. Does it want to swing more inside? Does the wrist bend or flip? Does the follow-through finish in a different place?
Check the follow-through first. Many golfers can spot differences more easily after impact. Notice whether your trail hand wants to release differently than your lead hand did.
Then evaluate the backswing. On the way back, the hand should feel more like it is moving with body rotation than independently snatching the putter away. For some players, the trail hand works better when it feels like it stays quieter as the stroke turns back.
Alternate back and forth. Go from lead hand to trail hand and compare them. Your task is to make both hands produce the same basic stroke shape.
Hit only a few balls before resetting. Three balls at a time is plenty. Step back, reflect, and create a clear mental picture of the motion you want before the next rep.
Blend the feel into your normal stroke. Once both one-handed motions look and feel similar, return to your regular grip and try to preserve the same path and softness.

What You Should Feel

When this drill is working, you should feel that the putter is being moved by a connected motion, not by a last-second hit with the hands. The hand you trust most should give you a sense of where the putter wants to travel, and the other hand should learn to match it.

Key checkpoints

Both hands trace a similar path when used separately.
The wrist stays quiet instead of adding extra flick or scoop.
The shoulder helps organize the stroke, especially in the takeaway and through-swing.
The follow-through matches the intention you had at address.
The motion feels deliberate, not rushed or reactive.

You may also notice that your best strokes happen when you have a very clear image of where you want the putter to go. In that case, you may not need multiple rehearsal strokes. Sometimes the best rep comes from seeing the movement clearly and then simply executing it.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Hitting too many balls in a row. That often turns practice into mindless repetition instead of skill building.
Focusing only on results. This drill is about the quality of the motion, not whether every putt goes in.
Letting the trail wrist take over. If the trail hand bends, flips, or pops through impact, it will not match the steadier hand.
Ignoring the backswing. Many players only look at the follow-through, but the stroke often goes off track on the way back.
Assuming the lead hand must be the guide for everyone. Start there if it suits you, but test both sides honestly.
Practicing without feedback. Watch your hand positions and compare them. The value of the drill is in noticing the differences.

How This Fits Your Swing

Good putting is built on matching pieces. If one hand wants to make one stroke and the other hand wants to make a different one, your brain has to manage conflicting patterns. That usually shows up as poor face control, inconsistent contact, and unreliable speed.

This drill improves your stroke by giving each hand a clear job and then teaching them to cooperate. It can also help you understand which side of your body provides the best reference for your motion. Once you know that, you can organize your full two-handed stroke around it.

In the bigger picture, this is the same kind of skill development that matters everywhere in golf: identify the stronger movement pattern, compare it to the weaker one, and train them until they support each other. In putting, that process can quickly smooth out your release, reduce unnecessary wrist action, and give you a stroke that feels much more repeatable under pressure.