Welcome to Play Smart, a regular GOLF.com game-improvement column that will help you become a smarter, better golfer. Lag putting is one of the most crucial — yet often overlooked — skills in golf.

Years ago, in a book I wrote about competing on the pro golf mini-tours, I described at one point the factors that were helping me improve my game. They included shortening my backswing, embracing ...

You’ve heard the ancient golfing wisdom a million times. “Never up, never in.” It’s not so much generally agreed as demanded that your first putt should always finish past the hole. But according to ...