The Eyes Closed Drill: Feeling the Stroke

The Eyes Closed Drill: Imagine standing on the green, the final putt between you and victory or defeat. Your heart speeds up, and your hands shake a little. What if shutting your eyes could change everything? Using the Eyes Closed Drill is not just a different idea.¹ It’s a method that’s getting popular among golf’s best players. Sergio Garcia won $1.19 million at the Sanderson Farms Championship by putting this way.¹ Also, Justin Rose made three birdies and an eagle over eight holes at the Arnold Palmer Invitational using this same approach.¹ This shows how effective the practice can be.

The Eyes Closed Drill helps seasoned players and coaches boost sensitivity and accuracy in their strokes. It forces you to rely on muscle memory and touch by tuning out visuals. This shifts your focus from seeing to feeling. When Peter O’Malley used this method to clinch the 2010 New South Wales Open,¹ and Brandel Chamblee recommended it, they highlighted its potential to change your game.

The idea is simple but deep: split your shot into aiming and making the stroke. By closing your eyes when it counts, you force a full commitment to your shot.¹ Lexi Thompson’s victory in an LPGA event, achieved by rolling putts blindfolded, showcases the drill’s impact.¹

Key Takeaways

The Eyes Closed Drill is recommended by top players and instructors to enhance stroke feel.
By eliminating visual cues, golfers can improve their tactile feedback and precision.
Professional successes: Sergio Garcia, Justin Rose, and Lexi Thompson have all benefited from eyes-closed putting¹².
The method creates a separation of aiming and stroke delivery for better commitment and accuracy.
Legends like Peter O’Malley and various pros advocate for eyes-closed putting during practice¹.

Introduction to the Eyes Closed Drill

The Eyes Closed Drill is a unique way to practice by closing your eyes when you swing back. It helps golfers pay more attention to their other senses. This improves muscle memory and helps ignore what they see. Golf stars like Sergio Garcia and Jordan Spieth think connecting with the feel is crucial for good putting.

Using this drill, people see changes in their swing within just ten minutes. It shows quick improvements in how they feel their stroke³. This technique can fix various swing errors, useful for golfers at any level³. Stories from Matt Poland, Brandel Chamblee, and Peter O’Malley show how effective it can be.

When golfers use the Eyes Closed Drill, they become more aware. They notice improvements in what they’re trying to work on³. This awareness helps them make their practice swings better match the real ones, leading to a smoother swing³. Focusing on what they feel instead of what they see results in a more dependable stroke.

Experts like Brandel Chamblee endorse this drill for its immediate and lasting advantages. By including it in regular training, golfers can fine-tune their stroke feel. This can enhance their performance and bring steadier outcomes.

Benefits of Practicing with Your Eyes Closed

Practicing with your eyes closed boosts your understanding of movement. Many golfers and teachers use this method. It’s part of exercises to make your motions and muscles work better, helping your golf skills⁴. This approach greatly improves your control and feel in putting.

Enhanced Stroke Feel

Shutting your eyes while practicing can really upgrade how you feel your stroke. Without seeing, you get better at feeling your movements. This leads to knowing more about how you swing. You’ll get your aim, the tip of the club, and swing speed to be more consistent. This means your strokes become smoother.

Training this way enhances how you control movements and your sense of your body and its power. It also gets better at refining your technique⁴. When you’re not distracted by looking, you might find mistakes you didn’t see before. Because you’re focusing on feeling, you catch tiny but crucial details that eyes miss.

Improved Consistency

The Eyes Closed Drill makes your strokes more consistent. It encourages golfers to rely on their setup and muscle memory. This eliminates sudden visual changes that could mess up your swing. Bryson DeChambeau says techniques like this can really make you perform better. Almost always, shutting your eyes helps make your swings more uniform⁵. Golf pros like Justin Rose believe it adds a rhythm to your stroke. It cuts out visual distractions and builds up sensory trust.

Tools like the Sure-Strike are about creating steady swings, which eyes-closed practice does too⁵. By focusing on how the stroke feels, you achieve more dependable putting. This way, you get to trust your swing more.

How to Perform the Eyes Closed Drill

To start the Eyes Closed Drill, imagine the line and get ready with your eyes open. It’s very important because many golfers find it hard to use their good swing techniques when they actually hit the ball³. Before you begin the backstroke, close your eyes. This lets you focus on how the stroke feels³. Focusing on feel instead of sight can really improve your golfing skills.

Padraig Harrington recommends using this drill before playing and sometimes during games to get better at putting². Keep your stroke smooth and steady and stick to your planned path and pace². Doing this drill can make you more confident and help you imagine your shots better, which is very important for short games².

After hitting the ball, guess where it went before looking³. This helps link the way your stroke felt with how well it did³. Golfers can improve their swings in just ten minutes with this drill³.

This drill is great for fixing different swing problems, helping golfers do better³. Bryson DeChambeau says putting with the flagstick in helps in almost all cases⁵. This could be a good tip to combine with the eyes closed drill for even better results.

Steps	Details
1. Visualize the Line	Ensure proper alignment and mental visualization of the putt.
2. Close Your Eyes	Shift focus to tactile and proprioceptive inputs before the backstroke source.
3. Steadily Controlled Stroke	Maintain a consistent motion, committed to the intended path and pace source.
4. Predict the Outcome	Connect the feel of the stroke with the actual result before opening your eyes source.

Conclusion

The Eyes Closed Drill is a unique way to get better at putting and feel more of your stroke. It relies on what you feel instead of what you see, making your stroke smoother. When you close your eyes, you can sense your swing better³. This helps you fix mistakes in a way traditional drills don’t.

Practicing this method can show results quickly, sometimes in just 10 minutes, as some teachers have seen³. It deepens your understanding of how you hit the ball and boosts your confidence. It helps you depend more on your skills rather than making last-minute changes that could mess up your game.

This drill isn’t just for one problem. It helps with a lot of different issues, like the path of your swing and how consistently you hit³. By focusing on how your swing feels, you can play better than ever. Pro golfers use this drill too, showing just how effective it is for a strong, reliable swing.

For more tips on bettering your golf game, check out SwingStation’s full guide. Learn from pros like Bryson DeChambeau to improve your practice and play better.

FAQ

What is the Eyes Closed Drill?

The Eyes Closed Drill helps golfers improve by closing their eyes during a putt or shot’s final backstroke. It boosts sensitivity to movement and accuracy without seeing. This makes your physical skills sharper.

What are the benefits of practicing with your eyes closed?

This method makes your stroke feel stronger and builds muscle memory. It sharpens your focus on how your body moves. It also keeps your alignment steady and makes your stroke more consistent.Moreover, it lets golfers find and fix hidden mistakes in how they play.

How does the Eyes Closed Drill improve stroke consistency?

It makes golfers rely on their setup and muscle memory. Such trust creates a reliable and steady stroke. This reduces the urge to make last-minute visual changes that can mess up your flow.

How do I perform the Eyes Closed Drill correctly?

First, picture the line and get ready, keeping your eyes open. Close your eyes right before you start going back and keep your stroke smooth. Before you look, guess your shot’s result. This connects what you felt with what actually happened.

Which professional golfers endorse the Eyes Closed Drill?

Sergio Garcia, Jordan Spieth, and Justin Rose, among others, praise this drill. Coaches and experts like MattPoland and Brandel Chamblee recommend it too.

How can the Eyes Closed Drill help my putting touch?

It cuts out visual distractions, enhancing how you feel and control your putts. Your putting becomes more delicate and accurate, improving your game close to the hole.

Is the Eyes Closed Drill suitable for all golfers?

Yes, golfers at any level can benefit from it. Though it might be tough at first, sticking with this practice can boost your skills, make you more consistent, and grow your confidence on the green, whether you’re an amateur or a pro.