They say "drive for show, putt for dough," but the reality is that most amateurs lose strokes not because they miss the line, but because they misjudge the speed.

Poor distance control is the #1 cause of three-putting. If you leave a 30-footer five feet short, you’re scrambling for par; if you blast it five feet past, you’re trembling over a knee-knocker coming back.

This week’s drill, The Ladder, is the gold standard for calibrating your internal depth perception and eliminating those frustrating three-putts.

The Setup: Find a relatively flat section of the practice green. Place a tee in the ground 10 feet away from you. Walk another 10 feet and place a second tee (20 feet total). Continue this pattern until you have tees at 10, 20, 30, and 40 feet. You now have a "ladder" of targets.

How to Execute the Drill:

1. The Climb: Start at your baseline. Putt a ball to the 10-foot tee. The goal is not just to hit the tee, but to have the ball stop past the tee but no more than 2 feet beyond it. (Think of this as "dying" the ball into the hole).

2. The Progression: Once you successfully land a ball in that "safe zone" behind the 10-foot tee, move immediately to the 20-foot target. Repeat the process.

3. The Pressure: If you leave a putt short of the tee or blast it more than 2 feet past, you slide back down to the start of the ladder (the 10-footer).

4. The Goal: Successfully clear all four distances in a row without restarting.

Pro Tip: Eyes Closed Once you master the standard ladder, try doing it with your eyes closed. Look at the target, visualize the distance, close your eyes, and stroke the putt. Before you open your eyes, call out where you think the ball stopped (short, perfect, long). This builds incredible "feel" and trust in your stroke mechanics.

Control your flight by simply adjusting ball position—no swing changes required. Imagine five balls in a line:

For high, soft sand shots, focus on clubhead speed rather than "digging."

Playing the driver too far forward forces you to "reach," leaving the face open.

Fix thin or topped shots by checking your trail hand.

Fitness is the ultimate distance hack. You don't need to be an Olympic lifter—focusing on golf-specific muscles just three times a week leads to measurable gains off the tee.

Your wedges might be creating a "visual bias"

The Tour’s #1 wedge just leveled up. Here’s the essential intel (Retail: March 8, $189).

1. Uniform Profiles Vokey "locked in" the shapes across the line. Whether playing high or low bounce, the wedge looks identical at address, eliminating visual bias.

2. Fixed Loft Gaps With modern irons getting stronger, gaps are widening. Vokey added 54-08M, 58-04T, and 60-04T models to provide a true "bridge" between your gap and lob wedges.

3. Anti-Hook CG Lofts from 46–52° feature a shifted Center of Gravity to reduce draw bias. This prevents full shots from over-hooking and ensures a seamless transition from your irons.

4. 2x Durability New TX9 grooves utilize parallel micro-textures and heat treatment. Spin performance now lasts through 800 bunker shots—twice the lifespan of previous models.

5. Tour Pro Proven Jordan Spieth and Max Homa switched immediately, citing better line-holding on flighted shots. If it works for Spieth’s feel, it’ll work for yours.

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