This is an old saying that has been true over the years. The quickest way to shave strokes off your golf game is to improve your game on and around the green.

For now, we'll start off with the basics. It's important to putt the ball properly on the green. Using the practice putting green at your local course is the best way to practice your putts. The proper way to hit the ball is to find out what your target is, then line the ball up. The clubface must be square with the direction you are intending to hit the ball.

The way you swing the club is important too. As you are preparing to putt, grip the putter with your arms slightly bent. When swinging the putter, make sure that you're swinging your club like a pendulum on a clock.

It will take some practice and trial and error to determine the proper strength of your swing. Factors will include distance, whether the hole is uphill or downhill, and how sharp it breaks in either direction. Check out www.squidoo.com/readingputts for additional information.

We'll wrap this up with a few suggestions on how to practice. A good warmup would be to putt the ball across the green to determine the speed of the greens that day. Try to get it as close to the edge as you can without going into the fringe. It shouldn't take more than a few putts to get a feel for the speed of the greens that day. Next, line up a half dozen balls 3 feet away from the hole and try to make all of them. Unless you're a very good putter you may miss some. Don't be discouraged if you do. It takes much practice to make those close putts all the time. You will be surprised how many strokes you can take off your game if you're a good putter from that distance. You can increase your distance to 5, 10 and 15 feet and practice them too. Practicing from different angles from the holes is always good as putts from different angles may act differently and you can experience all kinds of conditions. This will help you develop into the golfer that you want to be.

Need additional golf tips? Check out my daily golf tips lens at www.squidoo.com/dailygolftips.