In a typical round of golf, hitting the green with your approach shot is cause for celebration. Sometimes, when the shot has been particularly challenging, you might even breathe a sigh of relief. But at a major championship, where the greens are as difficult as those at Winged Foot Golf Club, host of the 2020 U.S. Open, hitting the green is only the beginning of the battle.

When you play slick, undulating greens like those designed by A.W. Tillinghast at Winged Foot, you have to putt defensively. As Titleist staff member and TPI co-founder Dave Phillips shares in this video, the goal is to get down in two putts. One-putts are purely a bonus at the U.S. Open. The real objective is to avoid three-putts and worse (which can occur anytime you let your guard down on major-condition greens).

To putt intelligently and to give tough greens their due respect, Dave details the importance of your first putt. It requires some extra thought and strategizing as you read and plan that first lag putt, ensuring that your next putt is as easy and makable as possible.

Give Dave's advice a try the next time you face a tough layout with demanding greens. The extra work you put in will pay big dividends on your scorecard.