Viktor Hovland’s 1 easy tip for lag placing

When amateurs have a putt from over 30 ft, many people method the shot incorrectly — which might add strokes and, finally, lead to three-putts.

Positive, we would undergo our pre-shot routine by studying the inexperienced, determining the pace and distance, and checking our purpose, however there’s a typical mistake that then units in — making an attempt to gap it out.

Are you aware how usually a PGA Tour participant makes a putt from 20-25 ft? The very best golfer on Tour from this vary in 2024 (Max Greyserman) solely drained it 23 % of the time, which means an Common Joe such as you or me have a fair slimmer likelihood to take action.

That’s the place lag placing comes into play, which focuses on dialing in your pace and simply placing your first putt shut sufficient to sink the second putt.

So what’s the very best method when lag placing from lengthy distances? Within the video under, six-time PGA Tour winner Viktor Hovland shares his favourite ideas, which ought to aid you keep away from the temptation of locking in on the cup and as a substitute simply fear about leaving it shut.

Viktor Hovland says to disregard the opening when placing from lengthy distances

Within the video, Hovland particulars his method on a putt from a whopping 45 ft — which no novice golfer ought to ever significantly contemplate holing out, even for those who’re feeling scorching with the putter.

As a substitute of specializing in draining it, Hovland says it’s most essential to only deal with pace, ensuring you permit the ball someplace shut sufficient to the cup to make your following try.

“[On putts from this type of distance], it’s essential to have the best pace, which is the place I’d say I spend most of my time preparing for a brand new event,” Hovland says.

As a substitute of worrying about making it, Hovland suggests selecting a spot simply over midway to the opening and being intentional about rolling it over that spot.

“Once you’re actually far-off from the opening, as a substitute of wanting on the gap and pondering how far that you must hit it to get it to the opening, I choose a spot about 60 % of the way in which and take into consideration how briskly the ball must roll over that time to only find yourself near the opening,” he provides.

As you deal with the ball, be locked in on that spot you’re aiming for, focusing in your stroke dimension to make sure you’ve bought the best distance management.

“As soon as I get my line and recover from the ball, I take a pair follow swings to type of appear and feel how far that spot is,” Hovland explains. “After I’m standing over the ball, the road doesn’t matter, the stroke doesn’t matter — all that you must be specializing in is the pace.”