Train Your Pendulum Feel for Better Putting Control

This drill trains the pendulum feel in your putting stroke. If your stroke gets too handsy or wristy, face control becomes inconsistent and distance control usually suffers with it. The goal here is to teach you what a more body-driven, stable-faced motion feels like. By using a simple object like a yoga block, dumbbell, or even a ball, you can build the sensation of the putter moving as one unit without extra wrist, forearm, or independent shoulder manipulation.

How the Drill Works

You start by holding an object between your hands with your palms facing each other. A yoga block works well because it gives you a broad surface, but a small dumbbell with a little weight can be even better because it gives you more feedback. The exact object is less important than the feel: you want your palms relatively flat and matching each other, not gripping hard with your fingers.

From there, let your arms hang naturally at your sides and bend forward from your hips into a putting posture. Then make small back-and-through motions while keeping the object stable. The key is that the object should stay quiet and level, as if it is swinging on the same plane without any flipping, twisting, or rolling.

This teaches you to move the stroke with your body pivot and rocking motion rather than with your wrists. In a good pendulum-style stroke, the putter face stays much more predictable because your hands are not actively adding or subtracting loft, opening the face, or shutting it down through impact.

Once you understand that feeling with the training object, you transfer it to the putter. First, you can hold the putter in a palms-facing or “prayer-like” setup to exaggerate the same sensation. Then you move toward a more normal grip while trying to preserve that same stable, pendulum motion.

Step-by-Step

Choose your training object.
Use a yoga block, a light dumbbell, a medicine ball, or even a golf ball if needed. Something around four inches wide is convenient, but exact size is not critical.
Set your palms to face each other.
Hold the object so your palms oppose one another and match up. Try to avoid squeezing with your fingers. You want the pressure to feel more palm-driven than grip-driven.
Get into your putting posture.
Let your arms hang, then bend from your hips as if you were addressing a putt. Keep your posture athletic but relaxed.
Make small pendulum motions.
Swing the object back and through without letting your wrists bend, your forearms rotate, or the object wobble. The motion should feel simple and repetitive.
Notice what stays quiet.
The object should remain stable on its path. If it tips, twists, or changes orientation, your hands or wrists are likely taking over.
Transfer the feel to the putter in a palms-facing hold.
Take your putter and hold it without your normal grip. Place your hands so your palms still feel as though they are facing each other, with just enough pressure to control the putter face.
Hit short putts this way.
Make a few short strokes while maintaining the same pendulum feel you had with the object. This is the more challenging version because the putter head will expose any instability.
Use an easier variation if needed.
If the no-contact palms-facing version is too difficult, let your hands wrap the grip slightly while still keeping them matched. That gives you more support while preserving the same concept.
Return to your normal grip.
Now take your regular putting grip and try to recreate the same motion. Even though your hands are now on the grip asymmetrically, the stroke should still feel centered and quiet.

What You Should Feel

The first thing you should feel is stability in the face. Whether you are holding a yoga block or the putter itself, the object should not feel like it is flipping open or closed. It should move as one piece.

You should also feel that the motion comes more from your torso and overall rocking action than from your hands. This does not mean you become rigid. It means the smaller joints are quiet while the larger system controls the stroke.

Here are the main checkpoints:

Palms feel matched rather than one hand dominating the other
Wrists stay quiet with no cupping, bowing, or flicking
Forearms do not roll through the stroke
The object stays level instead of wobbling or tipping
The stroke feels rhythmic, like a simple pendulum rather than a hit
The putter face stays controlled without conscious manipulation

When you do it well, the stroke feels almost boring—in a good way. There is less effort, less rescue action with the hands, and less need to time the face through impact.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Using your fingers too much to hold the object instead of your palms
Letting the wrists hinge going back or through
Rotating the forearms so the face opens and closes
Trying to steer the object rather than letting it swing
Getting too tense in your shoulders and arms
Making the stroke too long before you can control the short version
Losing the feel when returning to your normal grip because one hand starts pushing or pulling

How This Fits Your Swing

This drill gives you a reference point for what a body-centric putting stroke should feel like. In your normal grip, your hands are naturally placed on the club in an uneven way, so it is easy for one side to take over. Often that shows up as the right hand pushing, the left hand pulling, or the wrists adding unwanted motion. This drill strips that away and helps you feel a more neutral, balanced pattern.

That matters because putting is largely a face-control skill. If you can keep the face more stable while producing a repeatable pendulum motion, you make it much easier to start the ball on line and control speed. The drill is especially useful if you tend to get wristy under pressure or if your stroke changes from day to day.

It also fits nicely into your daily routine because it does not require a green. You can rehearse the motion at home for a minute or two at a time and then bring that same sensation to the practice green. Over time, you are teaching your system that the putter does not need to be manipulated—it simply needs to swing with control.

In the bigger picture, this is not about forcing a robotic stroke. It is about giving you a reliable baseline: a stroke where the face stays quieter, the hands stay calmer, and the body organizes the motion. Once that feel becomes familiar, your putting tends to get simpler and more repeatable.