Breaking 80 for the first time is a monumental achievement in any golfer’s career. For an overwhelming majority of recreational players, shooting in the 70s is the ultimate goal. Once you can dip into the 70s on a consistent basis, you earn a whole new level of respect.
It’s no small feat breaking through for the first time. The mental barriers are as difficult to overcome as the physical ones. When you reach the cusp and fail a few times, it makes the task that much harder. But it makes the reward that much sweeter, too.
For a select few, shooting in the 70s is a routine accomplishment. For everyone else, though, it’s an aspirational feat they dream about every time they tee it up.
If you’re a part of the latter group, you’re in luck. At last fall’s GOLF Top 100 Teacher Summit, we asked GOLF Top 100 Teacher Eric Johnson for his best tip for breaking 80. And while it’s not a foolproof method, improving on this one thing can make the journey a little easier.
“It all comes down to putting,” Johnson says. “If you’re the best lag putter in the world, and from 70 or 80 feet, you just have a tap in every time, that’s the fastest way to eliminate strokes.”
If you can become a great putter from distance, it takes lots of stress off your game. With fewer three-putts, some of those bogeys will turn into pars, and the doubles will turn into bogeys.
“If you can become a great lag putter, it’s the fastest way to break 80,” Johnson says.
Obviously, the other parts of your game need to be passable for this theory to work, but once you hone in your touch on the greens, breaking 80 becomes a whole lot easier.
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