Focus on Your Faults: Long Game
Roger Sonntag / Calgary, Alberta
May 2008
I always felt I was a poor putter, but in reality my approach shots were placing too much pressure on my putting. Filtering my stats, I discovered the telltale sign of a poor round (80 or higher) was my average distance to the flagstick on a green hit in regulation. It was nine feet farther than in my sub-80 rounds. My home course has lots of tiered greens, so a lack of precision really kills. That's why improving my Long Game Handicap, rather than Putting, was the most efficient way to lower my scores. My pro, Ron Laugher, adjusted my setup to get my weight off my heels and encouraged me to vary my practice at the range. Instead of beating balls with one club, I became religious about mixing my middle and short irons every five shots and hitting to different flags.
