If you’ve ever hit a putt that felt solid and still missed left, or watched a short one veer off line with no explanation, you’re not alone. Most players think they’re set up correctly—until they actually check. A mirror exposes the truth.

Your eyes might be too far inside the ball or hovering well outside. Your shoulders might be aimed left, while your putter face is aimed right. Any one of those things can throw off your read or force you to unknowingly manipulate your stroke mid-swing.

And even when your setup is good, many golfers don’t realize how often they miss the center of the face. Slight heel or toe contact might not feel like much, but it’s enough to make the ball lose speed, twist offline, or wobble off your intended path.

This drill helps you clean up all of it—without guesswork. It’s simple. It’s effective. And it’s trusted by the best in the world.

This drill combines two tools: a putting mirror and a simple tee gate. The mirror gets your body and putter face set up correctly at address. The gate trains you to deliver the putter on a consistent path with center-face contact.

When done together, they give you instant visual and physical feedback on your setup and stroke. Miss your line? You’ll see it. Miss the gate? You’ll feel it. You don’t need to guess what went wrong—the drill tells you.

This is the exact tee gate drill Tiger Woods has used for years. You’ve probably seen him use it during tournament warmups. It’s not flashy, but it works. When paired with a mirror, it becomes even more powerful by eliminating the hidden setup errors that silently sabotage your putting.

Inaccurate and Unconfident Aim: When your eyes aren’t over the ball, your view of the line becomes distorted. The hole looks farther left or right than it actually is, causing misreads or unconscious adjustments. The mirror helps correct this by locking in proper eye position.

Pushes and Pulls: Poor shoulder alignment at address often leads to strokes that swing across the line. The mirror provides visual reference points to square your shoulders and hips.

Inconsistent Contact: Even small misses off the toe or heel can ruin a good read and speed. The gate forces you to find the center of the face—or the tees will let you know.

Stroke Path Issues: If your path strays outside or inside, the putter will collide with the tees. This gives clear feedback and encourages a more neutral, repeatable stroke.

In short, this drill helps eliminate silent errors and builds muscle memory for clean, confident, consistent putting.