Amateurs Aren't Bad Putters. They're Bad From 150.

From Play Ready Golf | Strokes Gained for the 9 to 5 Golfer by Isaak Ramsey & Hayden Zimmerer | Smarter Golf Practice in Less Time

May 22, 2026 · 50 min · Season 1 · Episode 22

About this episode

The episode discusses the common misconceptions about putting and approach play among amateur golfers, emphasizing the importance of practice from 150 yards.

Try the Play Ready Golf app free for 7 days. Use code PRGPOD at checkout for $20 off your annual plan for life: https://onelink.to/93ggkv Grab the free stat tracker and proximity benchmarks PDF mentioned in the episode: https://onelink.to/stats Most amateurs spend 30 minutes on the practice green before every round. They hit 5 greens out of 18 and lose 40 yards of proximity from 150. You're not a bad putter. You're bad from 150. Mark Broadie analyzed the top 40 PGA Tour pros from 2004 to 2012 and found putting is 15% of the gap between elite and average pros. Approach play is 40%. A scratch golfer beats a Tour pro on the greens in more than 30% of rounds. The data has been public for 12 years. In this episode Isaak and Hayden break down where your strokes actually leak, why Bobby Locke, Harvey Penick, and Dave Pelz built the putting myth, and what to practice instead. 📊 Data sources cited in this episode: Mark Broadie, Every Shot Counts (Columbia University, top 40 PGA Tour pros 2004-2012) Shot Scope (350M+ shots) Arccos via Lou Stagner (1B+ shots) Dave Pelz, Short Game Bible (2000) Harvey Penick, Little Red Book (1992) Chapters: 00:00 Why you're not actually a bad putter 00:53…

People in this episode

Hosts: Isaak Ramsey, Hayden Zimmerer

Topics covered

putting
golf practice
strokes gained
amateur golfers
approach play
golf myths

Keywords

putting
golf
strokes gained
Mark Broadie
amateur golfers
practice
golf myths

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Shot Scope, Arccos

Books & works: Every Shot Counts, Short Game Bible, Little Red Book