The most important step for your putting set-up is to get comfortable. Forget about aligning yourself perfectly or worrying about body angles or posture.

I have found that golfers get stiff and uncomfortable when they concern themselves with such things.

You should choose a putter that you like the look of and then set up to the ball in anyway that feels good to you. Don't worry about specifics - get comfortable and you'll be in good shape.

Once you are comfortable you are ready to start the putter away from the ball.

One of the most common questions I get is, how do I start the putter away from the ball, with the arms or with the shoulders?

Modern thinking is definitely focussed on the bigger muscles and I'm sure you've been told to take the club away with your shoulders or the bigger muscles of the torso.

This advice sounds good but I have found that many golfers find this task difficult. Humans have terrific control of their hands - so it makes sense to use them.

For best results I believe you should start the putter back with your hands not with your shoulders or anything else.

This makes the putting stroke natural and easy to repeat. Simply moves your hands back and through. The more you play, the better and more rhythmical the stroke will become.

The stroke should feel comfortable and natural - no need to do anything weired or contrived. You should definitely forget about how hard to hit the ball - let your natural stroke come out. It will be much more reliable than anything else you can come up with.

Dave Pelz, a prominent putting guru, has said that no golfer can read greens correctly.

When I read that I realised that reading greens 100% correctly may not be possible. After all, if the best players can't do it right, what chance would I have?

Not much...

So I stopped reading greens. I know this sounds radical but the approach worked for me. It has since helped many golfers from around the world become better putters.

Instead of spending a lot of time behind the ball trying to work out the speed and line, I simply look at the putt and allow my subconscious to work it out.

Since doing this I make more putts and have less concern and worry. If putts don't go in I usually have a simple tap in. I have stopped three-putting and putting has become much easier.

The trick is to look at the putt with your eyes level. It's no good to have your head cocked to the side ... this gives your brain mixed messages.

Keep your eyes level and then hit the putt. If you feel the need you can even make a practice putt while looking at the hole...make sure to keep your eyes level!

It's also best you do this behind the ball. I don't recommend working on these things while you're next to the ball. Do it from behind...

Having a good putting stroke is one thing, learning to hole putts under pressure is an entirely different proposition.

All great players have an almost magical ability to sink those pressure putts time after time. Here's how they do it...

They play automatically!

Their minds are not filled with technique or details about the line or speed. They are playing naturally and instinctively.

This is a difficult concept for most golfers to accept. For the most part we are told to think hard and concern ourselves with all sorts of information. But has it helped you in the past?

The chances are it has had no positive effect on your game.

The more you think the more likely you will struggle on the greens. If you think too much or over complicate matters you could easily develop the putting yips.

I have found the best way to keep thoughts to a minimum is to occupy your conscious mind for the duration of the stroke.

A technique that has worked wonders for me is to count numbers in your head for the duration of the putting stroke.

Counting (or singing a song) keeps your conscious mind busy while your subconscious is free to make the putt.

The more pressure you are under the more you want to rely on your subconscious mind. It is quite capable of dealing with pressure and nerves and still make those difficult putts.

If you have always struggled on the greens you must learn to become more natural and automatic. This is the only way to make more putts. Conscious control is a sure fire way to get nervous, self destruct and start missing those short putts.

In a perfect world you would never miss those little putts...but unfortunately it's not a perfect world.

I can't promise you'll make ALL of those three and four footers, but here's how to make most of them.

Always start from behind the ball. Have any practice strokes away from the ball ... never next to the ball. Having practice strokes near the ball will make you think too much and thinking too much is not the right thing to do.

Once you are ready to walk to the ball you must clear your conscious mind from technical thought. You also can't think about the line or speed of the putt. You want a clear head!

The best strategy is to think of something neutral. I have found that counting numbers works well but you can also try singing a song if numbers aren't your thing.

From this point on you are letting your subconscious take over. Keep counting while you set-up to the ball and execute the stroke.

If you start thinking about something else (like missing!) you need to start over.

The biggest mistake I see (and one that took me ages to overcome) is trying to be careful and safe. You have to let the stroke go! You can't control it. Your natural stroke will work far better than anything else. So you must learn to trust it when your out on the golf course.

The best way to trust it is to let your subconscious take over. It really is the best way!

This can feel uncomfortable at first so I recommend you spend some time on the practice green before taking it out into competition.

By learning to get those long putts close to the hole you take pressure off your entire game. It will also help you score better.

You don't want to over analyze these long putts. Learn to look and then react to what you see. Long putting is similar to throwing a ball to someone. You don't think about it, you throw the ball! Putting should follow the same process.

Look from behind the ball (with level eyes) and then hit the putt with your subconscious (see above). You will find that you will get those longer putts close enough to the hole to make the next one.

Learning to two putt from all distances is a great skill ... it will help reduce your scores and allow you to maximize your skill level. You may surprise yourself and start making some of these longer putts too. Good luck!

I've covered the topics above in greater detail in my Perfect Putting Book. If you'd like to receive your FREE copy please click here.