Do you have ‘quiet’ eyes?

 

Free tip!

This time it is putting……The ‘quiet eye’ is likely to be something you have never heard before but has been tested for Golf and is important in putting, especially under pressure.

 1. What is the ‘quiet eye period’?

A scientist by the name of Joan Vickers has been the pioneer in this field and has been testing golfers and other sports people for a number of years. Basically the gaze of an expert is different from that of a novice when it comes to performing aiming tasks. The expert fixes their gaze for a period of time just before and during the execution of a skill.

2. What do the unsuccessful putters do?

The less accomplished putters moved their eyes around much more than the experts and never settled on anything for that long. So their eyes were ‘busy’ in the run up to striking the ball and more so when under pressure

3. What do the successful putters do?

They kept their eyes focussed on fewer things and a period of time was observed where their eyes were ‘quiet’ and stayed focussed on the same spot just before execution.

4.  What should you do?

Fix your eyes on a spot (on the logo of the ball for example) for about 2 seconds before you hit the putt and until the ball has been struck. This quiet period allows your brain to best plan and organise the upcoming putt.

So in your routine, look at the hole and have a couple of practice swings, settle over the ball and have another look towards the hole, look at a spot on the ball for 2 seconds and putt your ball!

Gordon Morrison