Putting
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Woods
Perhaps what will be his lasting legacy is this: When it came to the 10-to-15-footer to save par, Woods was at his absolute best.
Sure, he’ll jab a few wide from 2 or 3 feet and he’s been known to three-putt for par at the longer holes, but no one grinds to make putts that absolutely have to be made quite like Woods.
For his colleagues, the nightmare that keeps them up at night is Woods putting well.
When that happens, he is rarely beaten.
When he putts poorly? More than likely, he still contends.
He’s always had a terrific ability to judge the speed on those putts from outside of 50 feet and his birdie roll from one side of the 17th green to the other when he won The Players Championship in 2001 is one for the ages.
Nicklaus
There are those who’ll condemn Nicklaus’ putting routine as arduous, but give the man credit for sticking with it.
“I wasn’t about to putt until I was ready,” Nicklaus was fond of saying and without question he took his time over putts.
Statistically, he used to rank well down the list when it came to putts per round, but that was because he hit so many greens in regulation and the putting surfaces in his era were hardly the pool table-like surfaces of today.
It is not true that Nicklaus made every putt he looked at; he missed more than he made.
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It’s just that no one can remember Nicklaus ever missing a putt he needed to make on the 72nd green.
His ability to read greens may have been one of his less heralded skills, but it was key.
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