Some people might think that Adam Scott would putt better if he was able to hit the ball closer to the hole. There’s no doubt that if Adam was able to nail one of those 7 approaches in the playoff, he would have won.
One of the commentators (I think it was Ian Baker-Finch) said for a player of Scott’s caliber, it was unacceptable he didn’t hit one of his wedge shots closer. That may be true.
I see things a little differently. If Adam was more relaxed and sure of his putting game I have no doubt he would make better and more freer swings with his approach clubs. Poor putting is a festy disease. It gets you down and affects your entire game.
I remember well when the putting yips riddled my game. I couldn’t walk onto the golf course without feeling tense and nervous. And because poor putting was at the front of my mind, I’d try too hard to get iron shots close to the hole. I’d shoot at pins I should have ignored and felt extra pressure to get chips, pitches and bunker shots inside the leather.
I was a basket case! The worse my putting game the more hopeless I was when I was in striking distance of the green.
Better ball striking alone is rarely the fix. It often makes it worse. When you flush the ball down the middle and onto the green but keep missing the hole, you start to feel like you’re wasting strokes. And it gets frustrating because playing partners and competitors shoot the same (or better) scores despite hitting it all over. It almost seems unfair.
The solution is to lighten up. See putting for what it is – a black art that is simply rolling the ball along the ground. Sometimes the ball goes in and sometimes it doesn’t. Adding to the complexity of a simple task is rarely the best option. Losing sleep over missed putts is definitely a waste of time and energy.
One more thought: Adam doesn’t need a caddy to tell him how or where to putt. Steve Williams brilliance wasn’t in reading greens (or anything else). It was in simplicity. He said the bare minimum and backed himself. No second guessing. Adam needs to start believing in his amazing talent and ability and stop listening to all the garbage. He needs putt the ball into the hole…