Putting Drill for Distance Control

What it fixes

Putts that finish well short or well past the hole from outside 15–20 feet — the "three-putt" problem. Most golfers who three-putt aren't missing the line badly; they're misjudging how hard to hit the ball, which start-line drills alone don't fix.

Setup

On a flat section of the practice green, place four tees (or ball markers) in a straight line away from a single starting spot: one at 10 feet, one at 20 feet, one at 30 feet, and one at 40 feet.

Steps

1. Putt 3 balls toward the 10-foot tee. A putt "counts" if it finishes within 1 foot short to 1 foot past the tee — a 2-foot zone.
2. Move to the 20-foot tee and repeat: 3 putts, same 2-foot zone.
3. Repeat for the 30-foot and 40-foot tees.
4. That's one full rep — 12 putts total. Count how many finished inside the zone and note the number.

Common mistakes

Judging distance by how hard you hit the ball rather than the length of your stroke — swing length, not effort, should change between the 10-foot and 40-foot putts. Rushing through the ladder without pausing between distances is the other common one; the point is recalibrating your feel at each new length, which takes a few seconds of a practice stroke before you actually putt.

Progression

Once you're consistently landing 9 or more of 12 inside the zone, narrow the zone to 9 inches instead of 1 foot. Once that's consistent too, extend the ladder with a 50-foot tee rather than making the existing distances harder.