Woods has been more consistent off the tee this year. (Heathcote/Getty Images)

By Travis Fulton, Director of Instruction, PGA TOUR Academy

Make it four wins now for the world’s No. 1 golfer, Tiger Woods. The reality is Tiger was one flag stick width away from making it five wins and his 15th career major championship. Add it all up and he has been as dominant to the start of this season as he has ever been.

When watching Tiger this week at THE PLAYERS Championship, I saw a player who has come full circle from his struggles just a couple of years ago. Make no mistake, Sean Foley has helped Tiger get his game back on track and now you are seeing the best player of our time getting back to rewriting the record books.

One of the things that Tiger has improved upon considerably is the path of his clubhead in relationship to the target line through impact. Not too long ago, Tiger had the clubhead too far behind him on the downswing, resulting in a clubhead path that was too much from in-to-out. As a result, Tiger was hitting big pushes and draws. What’s important about the path of the clubhead is generally speaking the more the clubhead works away from zero (target line) the bigger the dispersion you are likely to have with your ball flight.

A noticeable change that has helped Tiger achieve a more consistent downswing path is allowing his lead arm to work more under his left shoulder during the backswing. During his struggles, Tiger’s lead arm was moving away from his body and then rotating too much over his shoulder line. The result saw the club shaft get laid off leading to his downswing frustrations. 

Now, you will see how Tiger keeps his lead arm much closer to his body which allows for less rotation to the top. As a result, the club shaft is now on plane, allowing for a more reliable downswing path back to impact. This improvement in the path of the club head has now positioned Tiger to work the ball both ways and at different trajectories with all clubs. This progression was clearly evident on the 72nd hole at TPC Sawgrass. For months we have been only been seeing fades out of Tiger; however, with the tournament on the line Tiger hit not only one draw but two to seal his second PLAYERS Championship.

Travis Fulton is the Director of Instruction at the TOUR Academies at TPC Sawgrass and the World Golf Village. For more information on the TOUR Academy, click here.

Derek Ernst's downswing move is one to watch to maximize your speed. (Redington/Getty Images)

By Travis Fulton, Director of Instruction, PGA TOUR Academy

Hello, Derek Ernst.

What a win at the Wells Fargo Championship by the young American to capture his first PGA TOUR title. Not bad considering the 22-year-old wasn’t even sure he would get in sitting as the fourth alternate entering the week.

So many things to be impressed with concerning Ernst’s performance, and two things really stood out for me as I watched him hit great shot after great shot late on Sunday afternoon. First and foremost, here we have yet another young player looking so poised and comfortable on the big stage. In many ways, it was Ernst who looked like the veteran down the stretch that was under such control executing under tremendous pressure.

There are a lot of reasons that point to this great poise at such a young age, but perhaps none more than all the competitive rounds he has played along the way. There is a lot to be said and learned from playing competitively and having success along the way. These building blocks from junior golf, to high school, college and finally professionally teaches young players how to prepare, compete and win.

Secondly, I really like the way Ernst uses his body on the downswing. Derek has a golf swing that creates a lot of speed through impact but yet still looks compact and under control. The key to this speed is the sequence in which he uses his body on the downswing. In golf instruction, we call this “Kinematic Sequence.”

Kinematic sequence is a term that really has come to the surface under the education of the Titleist Performance Institute. This group has done a great job of shedding more light on how the body needs to work to maximize your speed. The sequence of the body on the downswing should work as followed:

1) Hips – The downswing should start with a lower body weight shift. Allow the weight to move into the ground through the lead foot. As the hips shift laterally towards the target be sure to stabilize the torso by keeping it closed during this initial transition.

2) Torso – After the initial shift in the hips and stability in the torso, then the torso can begin to turn, however make sure this turn is not the first movement during the initial downswing. As the torso begins to turn you will feel the lead arm now stabilize by loading up against the chest. This pressure from the lead arm to the side of the chest is not only powerful but offers great structure to the swing as well.

3) Lead arm – Once the lead arm loads against the chest it can now be propelled off the chest. This can be a great feeling of this stored energy finally being released; however, as the lead arm starts to go you are not quite there yet, as the clubhead needs to be lagging as a result of a bent right wrist.

4) Clubhead – The final piece to the sequence is the clubhead. This can be the result of great speed if the trail wrist stays bent to impact and slightly beyond. In many ways, this clubhead lag can be a result of the sequence defined above increasing your club head speed and maximizing its timeliness through impact.

A lot to take in I know but movements that can be learned. My advice to you is to find out how you are using your body and begin to get the sequence in order so you too can maximize your speed.

Travis Fulton is the Director of Instruction at the TOUR Academies at TPC Sawgrass and the World Golf Village. For more information on the TOUR Academy, click here.

Derek Ernst's steady putting helped him to his first PGA TOUR win. (Ehrmann/Getty Images)

By Mark Immelman, Special to PGATOUR.COM

The Wells Fargo Championship Strike Those Putts Crisply Quail Hollow Country Club is one of the true gems of golf in North America. Quail (as the membership affectionately dubs it) boasts a nice mix of left-to-right and right-to-left doglegs, a good blend of difficult and easy holes and some strategic undulations from tee to green. It rewards good play, but it will quickly penalize errant play, making Quail Hollow an excellent tournament venue and the Wells Fargo Championship a highly respected event on the PGA TOUR.

The classic layout – which will host the 2016 PGA Championship -- is scenic, undulating and always in immaculate shape. Sadly, due to a recent turf management wrangle, the course “lost” a number of greens. Those that survived were undoubtedly worse for the wear.

Thankfully many of the top players in attendance came out in support of the club and the greens. A good majority of them managed to make their fair share of putts on the uneven surfaces.

Week in and week out on the PGA TOUR, the final result is very much a function of the players’ performances on the greens. This week was much of the same, but due to the inconsistency of the surfaces, those players that were not striking putts cleanly and solidly were found wanting so much more. Therein lies our lesson that we can learn from the pros:

Strike your putts crisply: By definition, the interaction between the putter and the ball is no different to that of an iron or a metal-wood and the ball. Just as you need to strike an iron shot flush to go the given distance, you need to strike the putter flush to ensure that the ball performs correctly. Often times on super-fast greens, however, a player can slightly miss-hit (thin) a putt and it can still go in. That error can be disguised on perfect surfaces, but it will certainly not happen on slower, inconsistent greens.

Without fail I will address the quality of any golfer’s putter-on-ball contact before I consider any other putting stroke issues. All too often I encounter putting strokes that are structurally sound, but do not make consistently clean contact with the ball because the player has never considered where the base of the swing arc is and how that relates to the ball position.

A quick and very easy drill to help you figure out that very conundrum is to practice the “Quarter Drill.” Place a quarter on the ground and address it as if it was your golf ball. Go ahead and make your stroke striving to make contact with the quarter (enough to move it a few inches). If you miss the quarter then obviously your stroke has not “bottomed-out” correctly or the ball position is incorrectly located for your style of stroke. Either of those errors will largely result in poor quality of contact -- a sure-fire way to poor distance control (especially from long distance) or inconsistent putting on grainy or slow greens.

Adjust your putting posture and the release of your putting stroke until you can strike the quarter consistently. If you have done so and you still struggle to make consistent contact with the coin then vary its position (either forward or back) slightly. Then when you can consistently hit the coin, replace it with a golf ball, make the same stroke and watch how the ball reacts more positively to your putter. That is proof of sweet-spot contact -- the first port of call to good putting.

Just for the record, if your struggle with excess body or head movement during the putting stroke, then the “Quarter Drill” is also for you.

Practice this simple exercise whenever you are on the practice green. I guarantee you will see your putting improve.

Good luck.

/mi

Mark Immelman, the brother of PGA TOUR professional Trevor Immelman, is a well-respected golf instructor and head coach of the Columbus State University (Ga.) golf team. For more information about Mark and his instruction, visit his web site, markimmelman.com or follow him on Twitter @mark_immelman or “Like” Mark Immelman Golf Instruction on Facebook. He also has a golf instruction e-book called “Consistently Straight Shots – The Simple Solution” available on iTunes/iBooks.

Phil Mickelson remained positive in unusual conditions, which helped his score. (Lecka/Getty Images)

By Gregg Steinberg, Special to PGATOUR.COM

The greens at the Quail Hollow Club were below par for a PGA TOUR event because the weather this spring in Charlotte, N.C., was cold and damp and clearly did not favor this type of grass. Putting on bumpy greens can beat you up mentally.

Or you could take a completely different approach, as Phil Mickelson did.

Mickelson declared his admiration for the course, even making the statement that Quail Hollow was one of his favorite courses on the globe. He thoroughly loves this venue.

I believe this thinking directly led to his great play at the Wells Fargo Championship. Mickelson putted beautifully, leading the field in strokes gained-putting and starting the tournament making 41 for 41 putts within 10 feet. While Mickelson did not win, he held the lead for most of the tournament and finished in a very respectable third place.

A declaration of love (or great admiration) for a course can help your play. Like Mickelson did, you are psyching yourself up to play well — regardless of condition or difficulty. Joy of a course can help expel any excessive feelings of anxiety. Ultimately, you are transforming adversity into an enjoyable challenge.

Let’s take the flip side. How many times have you been psyched out of a hole by telling yourself how much you dislike that particular hole? A dislike for a hole decreases the joy while increasing the stress you will feel, usually leading to a poorer score.

I know it is easy to find something wrong with every course you play, but I would highly recommend that you expand upon Mickelson’s lead. Talk yourself into enjoying every golf course that you play. Find something about the course that you really admire. Perhaps it’s the piece of property and its beauty, or its unique par 3s.

When you make every course your favorite, you will enjoy the course even more because you played so well.

Dr. Gregg Steinberg is a regular guest every Tuesday on “Talk of the Tour” heard on the Sirius/XM PGA TOUR radio. He is a tenured professor of sports psychology and has been the mental game coach for many PGA TOUR players. Dr. Gregg is the author of the best selling golf psychology book, MentalRules for Golf, and you can get your autographed copy at www.drgreggsteinberg.com.

Billy Horschel keeps the shaft in line with his lead forearm during the initial backswing. (Cohen/Getty Images)

By Travis Fulton, Director of Instruction, PGA TOUR Academy

One of the more underrated golf swings on the PGA TOUR is Billy Horschel’s. This is the golf swing that has so many good components, from very sound body movements to an efficient use of his arms and hands. All year, Billy has treated us to not only some great swings but some solid golf, and this week at the Zurich Classic, he got that first PGA TOUR win.

One of the things that lead to great consistency and power during Horschel’s swing is how he keeps the club shaft in line with the lead forearm during the initial backswing. The initial backswing is measured from address to when the club shaft reaches parallel to the ground (halfway back). During this period of the backswing, Billy does a great job of keeping the club shaft in line with the lead forearm. This relationship is a key one that so many amateurs can learn from.

One of the most common errors during the initial backswing is this relationship quickly comes out of line. When this occurs, the lead hand goes into a bowed position allowing the hands to move away from the body and the club head to move quickly behind the hands. This very common mistake can be a major problem in the progression of golf swings because not only is the club shaft immediately off plane, but the body almost always doesn’t turn to its capability. As a result, the body, arms and hands are always trying to overcome this error on the downswing to manufacturer a descent impact position.

The benefit of keeping the club shaft in line with the lead forearm is it allows the hands to stay closer to the body and the club head to work up the plane. Often times when learning this, amateurs will feel as if the hands are “in” and the club head is more “out”. Although this can feel very different at first, it is the correct relationship and direction for so many golfers.

Once achieved, you will feel a more efficient shoulder turn during the backswing and the ability to get the club head back to the inside on the downswing. As a result, a good impact can be achieved more instinctively like Billy Horschel.

Travis Fulton is the Director of Instruction at the TOUR Academies at TPC Sawgrass and the World Golf Village. For more information on the TOUR Academy, click here.

Billy Horschel remained composed with his swing and demeanor in New Orleans. (Revere/Getty Images)

By Mark Immelman, Special to PGATOUR.COM

N’awlins, The Big Easy, The Crescent City, NOLA … New Orleans has many nicknames, but it has one identity: A vibrant city with a distinctive culture of food and music. Its people are carefree and easygoing and their hospitality and the vibe of the city make New Orleans a favorite stop for the PGA TOUR and the players.

The 2013 Zurich Classic of New Orleans boasted a strong field, and the week’s competition certainly made for compelling viewing. In fact, the final nine holes of competition were riveting as some of the TOUR’S up-and-coming stars vied for the title.

After a long rain delay, young Billy Horschel surged to the top of the leaderboard with six straight birdies from holes No. 7 through No. 12. Shell Houston Open champion D.A. Points kept pace with four straight birdies of his own and, in the end, it came down to the final green. Clinging to a one-shot lead and with Points just 6 feet away from a potentially tying birdie, Horschel faced a 29-foot birdie attempt for the title. He summoned all of his nerve and drew on all of his past experiences and hit the career-defining putt. The ball disappeared into the cup, the vocal gallery went crazy and Horschel celebrated emphatically as he recorded his first win on TOUR.

In truth, Horschel has been superb since the end of March. His win on the bayou was really just the culmination of some incredible play. Since the Shell Houston Open, Horschel is an incredible 49 under and has logged finishes of T2, T3, T9 and a win. Sublime stuff from the young Florida Gator, and there are a couple of lessons we can learn from his play:

Manage your emotions: Horschel is an animated, energetic young man who wears his heart on his sleeve. In fact, that very tendency caught up with him last season in the McGladrey Classic at Sea Island. After entering the final round just one stroke out of the lead -- and in the final group -- he imploded for a final round 75. By his own admission he did not behave very well during that final round and his family and close friends “called him out” on his petulance and on-course manner. Since then he has made a conscious push to maintain his poise and emotional control and his results have shown marked improvement.

Realize this very simple point: The golf swing is a fluid and timed mechanism that requires a sequence of events to transpire correctly to allow consistently good presentation of the club to the ball. Hence, by definition, it is crucial that negative tension in the shoulders, arms and hands should be avoided at all costs as that negative tension could quite easily throw off the timing of all of these high-speed moving parts. Further, it goes without saying that angst and negative tension can certainly compromise a clear and poised mindset. I often say to my students, “I don’t mind you losing your swing, but I do mind you losing your mind.”

Employ the three-quarter iron shot: Horschel is a convicted and aggressive swinger of the club, but he took a more measured approach in the closing stretch of the Zurich Classic. He still attacked the flags that were “gettable,” but he did so with a three-quarter swing that worked like a charm. He hit many great irons, but possibly the most impressive of those was an “off-speed” 6-iron to about 4 feet on the ninth hole. You don’t always have to swing full bore, and if you are in between clubs, consider selecting a longer club and making a more controlled pass like Billy Ho did. Doing it is easier than you think ...

• Select the longer club and grip down the handle a couple of inches. 
• Narrow your stance slightly and position the ball just slightly left of center (for righties).
  
• Keep your trail knee flexed as you wind up and make a wider, shorter backswing by keeping your right elbow to the right of your right hip.
• Smoothly does it in the transition and the downswing as you sweep the sole of your club along the turf through impact (carry the image of your club making a long sweep along the ground). 
• Rotate into a balanced follow through with the weight on your lead leg and both of your elbows in front of your body at the finish.
  

There are (and have been) some tremendous examples of this shot – Sam Snead, Nick Faldo, Luke Donald and now Billy Horschel. Why don’t you give it a try?

Good luck.
/mi

Mark Immelman, the brother of PGA TOUR professional Trevor Immelman, is a well-respected golf instructor and head coach of the Columbus State University (Ga.) golf team. For more information about Mark and his instruction, visit his web site, markimmelman.com or follow him on Twitter @mark_immelman or “Like” Mark Immelman Golf Instruction on Facebook. He also has a golf instruction e-book called “Consistently Straight Shots – The Simple Solution” available on iTunes/iBooks.

Billy Horschel geared it back at times en route to his first PGA TOUR win. (Graythen/Getty Images)

By Gregg Steinberg, Special to PGATOUR.COM

On the 15th hole at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans, Billy Horschel was at a crossroads to victory.Both Sir Nick Faldo and Peter Kostis, the TV commentators, noticed an increase in speed in Horschel’s game.

He is already a fast player, but Horschel’s swing and thinking were getting faster and faster under the pressure of being the leader. On No. 15, he hit his drive to the right and finished on the upslope of a bunker. He proceeded to hit his next shot extraordinarily quick, and it ended to the right of the green. He chipped up and missed his putt for bogey, his first of the weekend.

Luckily for Horschel, he gained his composure with a birdie on the next hole and slowed down to his first victory on the PGA TOUR.

Billy Horschel was doing what most golfers do when anxious: speed up. This stems from our ancestors and the fight or flight response. Thousands of years ago, the fear of losing your life would release hormones in your body such as epinephrine and norepinephrine. These hormones act as stimulants and can make us run faster and jump higher, providing us with a swift getaway from predators.

In today’s world, we are not afraid of dying, but rather we have the fear of failing. This fear comes out when we want to play well under pressure, or in Horschel’s case, win his first golf PGA TOUR event.

When the pressure hits your game, you most likely will get quicker, both in your thinking and in your swing. Here is one great suggestion to remedy this problem that I got from the great Gary Player: go slow.

When Player felt the pressure, he would do everything just a tad slower. He would walk to his ball a little bit slower, and even take his practice swings a bit slower. Gary intuitively knew this would counterbalance the increase in speed from anxiety.

Next time you feel the butterflies entering the scene, slow it down one notch. This strategy is bound to increase your good play under pressure.

Dr. Gregg Steinberg is a regular guest every Tuesday on “Talk of the Tour” heard on the Sirius/XM PGA TOUR radio. He is a tenured professor of sports psychology and has been the mental game coach for many PGA TOUR players. Dr. Gregg is the author of the best selling golf psychology book, MentalRules for Golf, and you can get your autographed copy at www.drgreggsteinberg.com.

Graeme McDowell showed patience on his way to victory at Harbour Town. (Lecka/Getty Images)

By Mark Immelman, Special to PGATOUR.COM

Every year the players invited to The Harbour Town Golf Links for the RBC Heritage look forward to an easy-going week in the relaxing Southern surroundings of the South Carolina Lowcountry. Hilton Head Island is undoubtedly a pleasant change from the mental and emotional rigors of the previous week’s major championship.

Atmosphere of the town and the venue aside, Harbour Town Golf Links is a gem of a golf course that places a premium on shot location and accuracy. Its honor roll, which now includes 2013 champion Graeme McDowell, includes such accurate ball-strikers as Jim Furyk, Boo Weekley and Brian Gay. Year in and year out, it rewards players who have every department of their game on point.

McDowell put together one of the rounds of the day when he shot a final round 2-under 69. Perfect but for a three-putt bogey on the final hole, McDowell was in complete command in some very challenging conditions as winds gusted up to 30 mph and par became golden in many instances.

It certainly made for compelling viewing, and there are a couple of observations I would like to share ...

Don’t play until really ready: Fresh off a birdie that jumped him into the lead, McDowell flushed a tee-shot through the back of the par-3 17th hole. With the wind whistling across him toward the Calibogue Sound, he hit a neat pitch shot to about 4.5 feet beyond the cup. After reading the line he addressed the important par putt, but as he was settling into position, a gust of wind kicked up and unsettled him. He pulled out of the address and reset himself mentally and physically. He then readdressed the putt only to have the same situation occur as the wind increased in intensity. He reset himself again and waited for the conditions to settle. Finally, once he was convinced and ready, he addressed the putt and knocked it home for the par to retain his lead.

Not that I am advocating slow play, but I do want to stress that you must not play until you are completely ready and comfortable. McDowell’s actions were the perfect example of this very important key to consistently successful shots. So if you are doubtful or unconvinced, whatever you do, please do not just get up there and hit it anyway. As the legendary Gary Player advised me: “Treat each shot as if it was the most important shot in the world and the last shot you were ever going to hit.”

Understand aerodynamics: Remember that your golf ball operates just like an airplane does. In other words, the laws of aerodynamics apply and you must be cognizant of them when playing in the wind. The best advice you can apply is a little ditty I learned a long time ago and one that I pass on often to players of all skill levels: “Swing easy when it is breezy.”

That said, to get a little more in-depth, you must consider that your ball spins, and it is backspin coupled with the ball’s velocity that elevates the ball. Think of the velocity as the plane’s engine and the backspin as the plane’s wings.

A couple of playing examples: if your plane was taking off into the wind, it would be more apt to climb upward and slow down. So when you are hitting into the wind you must strive to reduce the spin to avoid the “stand-up effect." Conversely, if your plane was taking off downwind it would need more lift to climb into the air. Similarly your golf ball will need more spin to stay airborne and take advantage of the downwind assistance. Finally, if your plane was turning – to the right or the left – into the wind, it would slow down. If it was turning in the same direction as a cross-wind, it would go faster. So if you draw the ball against a left-to-right breeze it would hold up and go shorter; if you draw the ball with a right-to-left breeze it would go further. On the flip side, a fade against a right-to-left wind will die, and a fade with a left-to-right wind will accelerate.

So take your time and treat each shot with the respect it deserves and apply the laws of flight. I am sure that you will play more consistently in variant conditions.

Good luck.
/mi

Mark Immelman, the brother of PGA TOUR professional Trevor Immelman, is a well-respected golf instructor and head coach of the Columbus State University (Ga.) golf team. For more information about Mark and his instruction, visit his web site, markimmelman.com or follow him on Twitter @mark_immelman or “Like” Mark Immelman Golf Instruction on Facebook. He also has a golf instruction e-book called “Consistently Straight Shots – The Simple Solution” available on iTunes/iBooks.

Graeme McDowell hit quality knockdown shots during his win at Harbour Town. (Lecka/Getty Images)

By Travis Fulton, Director of Instruction, PGA TOUR Academy

Another great finish at the RBC Heritage this week as Graeme McDowell got it done at Harbour Town. Certainly, it was not a surprise to see the Irishman play so well in tough, windy conditions on Sunday as the sporty little knockdown shot he hit during the first playoff hole turned out to be the difference.

I love to watch the PGA TOUR when the wind is blowing because it really separates the guys who are controlling their ball flight. In windy conditions, there is a premium on controlling the impact condition because any small issue can be greatly exaggerated.

Often times, I will take many of my students and teach them how to hit a knockdown shot early in lesson plans. This allows students to shorten their swing frame and begin to control the club shaft, club head and club face at impact. At the TOUR Academies, we call these the “Big 3” and each is critical when trying to hit that 6-iron through the wind like Graeme McDowell did late on Sunday afternoon.

Club shaft: The significance of the club shaft when hitting a knockdown shot is to lean it forward at impact. If you are a player that leans the club shaft away from impact, then you are more than likely going to struggle in the wind. In order for the club shaft to lean forward you must learn to keep the trail wrist bent through impact -- learning how to do this in a smaller setting like a knockdown shot is highly recommended because it will teach the importance and value of this critical fundamental in the golf swing.

Club head: With the club shaft forward, the club head can now be moving down. This is another key piece of a knockdown shot because the club head needs to be moving down through impact. Again, if the club shaft is leaning away from the target, then the club head is more than likely moving up through impact. However, what’s key here is most of you don’t need to steepen your overall swing shape to hit down. If you get too steep with your swing shape then you run the risk of the launch angle being too high, so continue to make your same swing shape with high emphasis on forward lean in the club shaft with a club head moving down, creating a nice shallow divot.

Club face: With the club shaft forward, the club face will be delofted. This is critical because the club face has huge value to the overall launch angle of the ball. If it’s delofted then the ball will launch at a more penetrating angle – thus knocking it down. In addition, it’s important that the lead hand squares the club face up through impact. Be careful that when keeping the trail wrist bent through impact you don’t “hang on” to the club face. This means the lead hand knuckles are too much to the sky. This creates an open club face and usually higher shots to the right. Instead, feel the back of the left hand “turn down” – knuckles to the ground. This closing effect to the club face is needed not only for trajectory but overall direction as well.

Travis Fulton is the Director of Instruction at the TOUR Academies at TPC Sawgrass and the World Golf Village. For more information on the TOUR Academy, click here.

Adam Scott relied on his long putter to win the Masters, his first major victory. (Ehrmann/Getty Images)

By Travis Fulton, Director of Instruction, PGA TOUR Academy

First off, let me congratulate Adam Scott for his win at the Masters. I’m sure many of you share the same thoughts and feelings after watching Scott lose the Open Championship with such heartbreak last summer.

It was a great Masters in so many ways. Even if Angel Cabrera would have prevailed and won his second Green Jacket, it still would’ve been a great tournament. But it felt more special with Scott winning. The reality is Scott deserved this major championship, not just because of what happened last year, but because the Aussie has done all of the things necessary to claim a major.

One of the areas that needed to improve was Scott’s putting, and the extended putter has completely changed his game. At first, I found myself chuckling a bit about Scott with the long putter. Here you have this young, fit, good-looking Australian using this putter that was primarily only seen on the Champions Tour. Well, after watching the last two putts fall on Sunday at Augusta National, things don’t look that weird anymore.

One of the biggest things the long putter can offer a golfer is less face rotation during the stroke. With the putter shaft closer to vertical (90 degrees), the putter face will open less during the backstroke and close less through impact. This is significant. In order to be a great putter you must be able to return the putter face to a square position so the ball will start on the intended target line. For those who struggle with too much face rotation, the long putter is certainly an option.

Since changing to the long putter, Scott has seemed to hit his intended target line more often. As a result, he has been able to focus on the speed of the putt and become much more instinctive. After all, this instinctive environment is what we all want on the greens. Sometimes completely changing your putting style is needed.

I applaud Scott for doing the things needed to get his game to the highest level.

Travis Fulton is the Director of Instruction at the TOUR Academies at TPC Sawgrass and the World Golf Village. For more information on the TOUR Academy, click here.