There is an old golf saying that goes drive for show, putt for dough. The more I play disc golf, the more I realize how true that feels for us too. Big drives are fun and flashy, but steady putting decides your scorecard.
Solid Putting Defines Your Game
Your long game needs to be decent enough for putting to 
matter, but think about how many sloppy throws could have been saved by a clean approach or a confident putt. Now think about the small putts you have missed. Those tiny mistakes often add up more than the big ones.
In traditional golf, a player uses roughly one third of their strokes on or around the green. Disc golf is similar. Approaches and inside the circle putts make up a huge portion of your score. Even John Daly once said he loved the oohs and aahs on his drives but was tired of the sounds people made when he missed short putts. That same energy exists in disc golf. Throwing far is fun. Missing from 15 feet is painful.
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Solid Putting Saves Strokes
We are working on deeper data for disc golf putting, but you already know how much these situations matter:
- A 200 to 400 foot hole is reachable for many players in two shots. Your putt for par or birdie becomes the whole story.
- A short but technical hole might only give you 180 feet of controlled space off the tee. Your approach still leaves you on the edge of the circle with an important par putt.
- On a 700 foot hole, maybe you crush a 350 foot drive and follow it up with a 300 foot approach. That leaves a 50 foot putt that could be huge depending on the course and competition.
- If your max power is closer to 250 feet, you may reach that same 700 foot hole in three throws but still end up staring at another 50 footer. That putt determines whether the hole feels like a win or a loss.
Most courses mix short and long holes. You cannot rely on power alone. The real strategy is simple. Score on the short holes and hold your ground on the long ones. Solid putting keeps you from giving away easy strokes.
Solid Putting Reduces Pressure
Reliable putting does more than clean up your mistakes. It makes your long game feel easier. When you trust yourself from 30 feet, your landing zone on approaches becomes a huge 60 foot wide circle. That is 2827.43 square feet of room to work with. If you only feel confident inside 20 feet, that usable area shrinks to 1256.64 square feet. A small increase in putting range doubles your margin for error.
Even without the math, picture the idea. A tight landing zone forces you to throw perfect lines. A bigger confidence circle frees your mind. Good putting makes every shot less stressful.
Time to Practice
Putting is the most important skill in disc golf. Skilled putters make the process look simple, but that simplicity comes from hours of dedicated practice. Nikko Locastro once said that putting looks easy only because of the work behind it. He is right.
If you want lower scores and more consistent rounds, invest in your putting. Big drives will always be fun, but making putts is what actually moves your score in the right direction.
And here is a simple truth. Every putt you make is guaranteed to remove one stroke from your score.
