Many golfers are not good at judging what effect variations in grass, terrain, and moisture, will have on a putted ball, but the single biggest reason for the difficulties, experienced by most people in putting, is a fear of missing a shot which they feel they should be capable of making. This fear can cause them to experiment with their positions and mechanics in hopes of turning themselves into a "putting machine". (Weight on the left leg; Feet square to the target line; Hips and shoulders square to the feet; Shoulders level; Dominant eye directly over the ball; Left elbow pointed to target; Wrists slightly arched; Thumbs on top of shaft; Shaft vertical to, or pressed forward of the ball; Etc.)

As soon as you miss a couple putts which you felt you should have made, the tendency to tinker arises again. Out comes the screwdrivers, wrenches and other paraphenalia used by machinists in hopes that one of the adjustments will unlock some magical ability. When the mechanical bit fails you, as it surely must, the whole thing gets sent back up to engineering for a new "foolproof" design.

The chances of this working are slim at best. Nobody makes them all. The best way to become a better putter is by simply sticking to a single style until you're comfortable with it. Should you experience a slump in your putting, head to the practice green for the purpose of reestablishing confidence in your stroke, rather than changing it.

In this way, whether you're successful on any specific shot or not, you'll at least have the advantage of not questioning your mechanics.

Consequently, you'll have a better chance to produce the proper speed, and direction, necessary for each specific shot. All of the game's great players, in their prime, displayed a marked similarity between their style of putting and that which they played their full shots, and I believe that should be your aim also. By keeping your smaller swings as similar as possible to your full ones you'll be trying to produce basically the same motion for every single swing. The only true variations then become the precise amount of energy necessary for that specific shot, and the swing size through which you can most efficiently both generate and direct that energy.

Work with it for a while -- I promise you positive results