This is the fourth entry in the GOTM Practice Series. The goal of all the entries in this series is to not only to describe practice drills, but also make sure you know how to practice with the right mental attitude, something just as important as the physical act.

Power Lagging

How

With one ball, 2 putt 9 times in a row over 30 ft., so that every 1st putt goes past the hole.

What to Focus On

Think of how many times you have 30 footers on the course that you leave short.  You overestimate how fast the greens are, and underestimate how hard you have to hit the putt. Even when the greens are running quick, and I’ve been lucky to play a bunch of courses with fast greens, I struggle to get the ball to the hole.

If you focus on making sure you hit the ball hard enough, two things happen. You’ll have closer second putts since you’ll stop leaving it 5 feet short, and you’ll even slop in a few more long ones.

So during this drill, don’t focus on just barely getting the ball past the hole, focus on free strokes that have enough pace to get more than a few feet past the hole. Until you really get tuned into the speed of the greens and how hard you actually have to hit the ball, you’ll probably find yourself still leaving it short. Eventually, you’ll find hitting it harder becomes natural.

Variations

Not too many variations on this drill. Obviously you can adjust the number of holes in a row you need to have the right speed, or the length of the initial putts.