NOTE: This is the third part of an ongoing series. If you missed the first two articles, look online at observertoday.com.

We’re back for more golf-y goodness as we look at more ways to shave precious strokes off the scorecard. I’ve played with plenty of people who simply cheat, but ideally these tips will legitimately make you a better golfer.

You didn’t come here for my openings though, you want the good stuff. Today’s topic is putts. Because who among us couldn’t shave off a few strokes on the green? Here we go.

7) Pick an intermediate target on longer putts – One of the more uncomfortable spots to be is on the opposite end of the green from the pin. If you were just a few more feet back you could use a wedge. I’ve never met anyone who actually likes lag putts. But by picking out an old ball mark, fleck of dirt, miscolored grass, etc. that’s maybe halfway between you and the pin, you can actually make these putts far more bearable. This helps on putts with crazy amount of break in them, too. You obviously can’t just aim at the cup, so pick out that bit of sand up on the crest. It’s a much better approach than “hit and hope” as we often do.

The other thing I like to do for extremely long putts is to picture the cup more like a basketball hoop. If I can “make the basket” then I at least set myself up for an easy two-putt.

8) Go with your gut on putts – If you’ve played a fair amount of golf, you’ve probably developed instincts that you didn’t even know you had. So when you think you see the line, go with it. Oftentimes the worst thing we can do is step back and second guess ourselves. You were almost certainly right the first time.

If there’s one part of my game which I consider a strength, it’s putting. Going with my gut is a huge part of my success. I’ll take a quick look, line it up and hit it. Like most parts of golf, putting is a mental game. Don’t psych yourself out.

9) Miss putts high rather than low and long rather than short – How does that old quote go? “You miss 90 percent of the putts you leave short” or something. It’s obviously meant to be funny, but the lesson is oh-so-true. Putts left short and putts left low never really had a chance to go in, right?

Now, you could dispute this by saying you’d rather have the uphill putt, etc. as the follow-up, but shouldn’t you just be trying to make the initial putt? I’d certainly rather have a one-putt than a two-putt, but maybe that’s just me.

10) Don’t be so hard on yourself – According to my brother-in-law Matt (and he would definitely know), almost half of golfers who accurately keep score don’t break 100. He also notes a stat that only five percent of golfers break 80. So when you’re mired in a string of mid-90 rounds, know that you’re not alone.

The point of golf is to have fun. I’ve said it roughly a million times, but if you’re not having fun while golfing, you’re doing something wrong. The problem isn’t with the clubs, the course, the ball, the weather or any number of variables. The problem might just be your attitude. Don’t beat yourself up. Laugh off your bad shots. Hey, go to YouTube and look up the worst PGA Tour shots of all time. That’s enough to make anyone feel better. My favorite move is to hold my pose at the end of a swing following a rubbish shot. Look up into the distance trying to find your ball knowing full well that it rolled 25 feet in front of you.

You’d be surprised how much a good attitude can have on your game. Plus, you know, no one wants to play with a sourpuss.

That’s all for this topic, folks. I hope at least one of these 10 tips will help you as we get closer and closer to golf season. A huge thank you to my brother-in-law Matt for not only the idea for this article, but also for most of its content. If nothing else, it brought us three weeks closer to actual golf.

I’d also be remiss not to take a second to point out that our very own Vineyards Golf Course was selected as one of seven Fredonia-area businesses to be featured on Small Business Revolution. As this was the first course I ever played, I’m personally very excited. There will absolutely be coverage in the Golfer’s Diary as news becomes available.

As always, golf is great. Go get some.

Stefan Gestwicki is an OBSERVER contributing writer. Comments on this article can be sent to golfersdiary@gmail.com