Lag Putting

Lag putting refers to the specific approach used on long putts — generally 25 feet and beyond — where the realistic goal shifts from making the putt to leaving a comfortable, high-percentage second putt. Rather than attacking the hole aggressively with a line and speed intended to hole the putt outright, a lag putt is played with a slightly conservative line and a speed calibrated to finish close to the hole, minimizing the risk of a long, awkward second putt or a three-putt.

The strategic logic behind lag putting is straightforward: even elite players make only a small fraction of putts from beyond 25 or 30 feet, but they convert the great majority of short second putts (inside 3 feet) that a good lag leaves behind. A golfer who plays every long putt aggressively, trying to make it, accepts a much wider range of finishing distances on the misses — some very close, some 6 or 8 feet away — which meaningfully increases three-putt risk compared to a deliberately controlled lag that consistently finishes within a tighter radius of the hole.

Executing a good lag putt depends heavily on the speed-control skills described elsewhere — consistent tempo with a backswing length calibrated to distance — and on reading break with slightly less precision demanded, since the target is a general area around the hole rather than the cup itself. Many golfers improve their overall scoring average more by developing reliable lag putting than by trying to make more long putts outright, since the reduction in three-putts has an outsized effect on total strokes over a full round.