Ladder Distance Control Drill
Build feel for lag putting so you eliminate three-putts from long range. Distance control — not line — is the number-one cause of three-putts, and it is trained almost entirely by stroke length, not by hitting harder.
Setup
On a flat or gently sloping part of the practice green, place a tee or coin at 15 feet, another at 25 feet, and a third at 35 feet from your starting spot, forming a 'ladder' of targets stretching away from you. You don't need a hole for this drill.
Step by step
- Putt your first ball trying to stop it next to the 15-foot marker, dying the ball into an imaginary three-foot circle around it.
- Putt the next ball past it to the 25-foot marker, then a third to the 35-foot marker.
- Notice how much longer your backstroke gets for each rung — let the longer stroke create the distance, not a harder hit.
- Now reverse the ladder: 35, then 25, then 15. Going short again forces you to dial the stroke back precisely.
- Score yourself: any ball that finishes inside a putter-length of its target is a point. Try to beat your score next round.
Reps / time
2–3 full ladders up and down, about 18–24 putts. Around 12 minutes.
Coaching cue
Common mistake: accelerating with the hands and wrists to add distance, which makes contact and speed unpredictable. Instead, keep tempo constant and let backstroke length set the distance — think of it like a pendulum that simply swings farther back for longer putts. Always favor leaving a long putt slightly past the hole rather than short; a putt that never reaches the hole has zero chance.
A beginner refresher only — not professional instruction.