If you’re like many of the golfers I know, getting your ball down in two when you’re only 15 to 20 feet away from the hole on the putting surface isn’t too much of a challenge.

But what about when you find your ball on the green 30, 40, or even 50 feet away from the cup?

Long range putts like this can be a challenge, and I’ve seen many a golfer take 3 or even 4 strokes to get their ball into the hole from these distances. Talk about frustration!

Next time you find yourself facing a long range putt you can avoid a disaster by following these simple tips…

Make your target bigger.

When you’re facing a long distance putt the hole can seem like a pretty unrealistic target. Instead of zeroing in on the cup I like to imagine the cup in the center of a circle with a radius of 3 to 4 feet – giving myself a more realist target that I can feel confident about hitting.

Focus on distance over direction.

When you’re facing a long putt it’s more important to get the distance right than it is the line. To get a good feel for the distance of the putt I like to stand half way between my ball and the hole and take a few practice strokes. After getting a feel for how hard I would need to hit my putt to get it half way to the hole, I’ll back up to my ball and take a fe more practice strokes at 100%.

Practice lag putts.

Next time you’re on the practice green drop a few balls and instead of aiming at a hole, just aim for the far end of the putting green. Try to get your ball to die as close to the fringe as possible without actually touching it. This will help you develop better touch on those long lag putts.

Keeping these tips in mind will help you 2 putt from long range more consistently, and avoid frustrating blow up holes caused by 3 or 4 putts!