Symptom: Poor distance control on long putts. The all too frequent "You're still away" after hitting your lag putt, and the sad square or double-square on your scorecard due to yet another three-putt.
Overview: Always walk all the way to the cup and back to your ball on your approximate line before putting.
Why it works: Most Occasional Golfers focus on the line of their putt and not the distance or speed of their putt. As a result, most of us will miss long putts (greater than about 20 feet) either short or long far more often than right or left. By walking to the cup and back, you get a tangible feel for how far away the hole is, whether the putt is uphill or downhill, how much break there is, and so forth. Your sense of balance is a powerful tool to help you read the green. Notice which way you need to lean to stay upright, and you will learn more about the slope and pitch of the green. You can use this information to judge your putt a bit better.
In short, you are more likely to make a stroke of the proper strength once you've been to the cup and back, and avoid the dreaded three-putt. You should do this on every putt, even if you "think" you know what the putt is going to do!
While you're at the cup you can also pull the flag for your buddies; they will appreciate it. Better distance control, happier playing partners, fewer boxes on your scorecard -- you'll be on a roll!
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May all your putts roll true -- GolfTipEditor
