Lou Stagner's Newsletter #94

What Putt Distances Should You Actually Practice?

Author

Lou Stagner
February 28, 2025

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Weekly Quiz!

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Good luck! 😀 

Tour pros make 68.3% of putts from 6'0" when the putt is uphill and a gentle right-to-left break (1.0% to 2.0% uphill and 0.5% to 1.5% right-to-left-break).

What is their make rate when they are faced with a downhill left-to-right slider from 5'0"? (The downslope and left-to-right slope are both 2% or more)

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What Putt Distances Should You Actually Practice?

Someone recently asked me about first putt distances: Where do most first putts actually start from?

So, I broke it down by skill level and distance to the hole. Off to the Arccos database we go (DATALOU15 saves 15%).

Here’s what the data shows:

For example, for a 10-index player, 23 percent of their first putts are from 5 to 10 feet.

A Few Interesting Notes:

  • Higher-handicap players have more first putts from 5 to 10 feet. They miss more greens but will hit some percent of chips inside 10 feet.

  • Lower-handicap players have more first putts inside 5 feet and from 20 to 40 feet.

  • Remember, the table above is only first putts, which means just under 18 putts per round (we all chip in occasionally).

  • It’s important to note that nearly all second (and third) putts are from inside 10 feet.

What Does This Mean for Your Practice?

  • Putts inside 10 feet make up 28 to 32 percent of first putts, but when you add second putts, that number jumps to 55 to 65 percent for most players.

  • If you only have time to practice one thing with your putting, focus on putts from 4 to 10 feet. Not only do you have a large percent of putts from this distance, these are all makeable putts.

  • If you have the ability to work on longer putts (15 to 50 feet), focus on speed control. Your goal from this range isn’t to make them… it’s to avoid three-putts.

Smart practice leads to lower scores. Make sure you’re spending time where it will matter the most.

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    Have a great week!

Lou Stagner

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