A staggering number of your golf shots happen on the putting green, and understanding this simple fact is the first step to truly lowering your scores. This article breaks down exactly what percentage of strokes are putts across different skill levels, helps you figure out if your putting is actually the problem, and gives you a clear plan to start shaving strokes where it matters most.
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The 43% Rule: The Surprising Truth from the Pros
There's a well-known statistic in golf, often credited to short-game guru Dave Pelz, that states approximately 43% of all strokes on the PGA Tour are putts. Let that sink in for a moment. Nearly half the shots taken by the best players in the world are made with the flatstick. This isn't driving, iron play, or chipping - it's the simple act of rolling the ball into the hole from the green.
This single statistic is often an eye-opener for amateur golfers. We get so obsessed with bombing the driver and hitting towering iron shots that we forget where the game is truly won and lost. The professionals spend a proportional amount of their practice time on and around the greens because they know that's where they earn their paychecks. For the average golfer, recognizing this is the first victory. It recalibrates your focus from just the big muscles to the small, delicate touch required to putt well.
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How the Percentage Changes by Handicap (This Might Surprise You)
While the 43% number is a great benchmark, it only tells the story of the elite professional. The percentage of putts actually changes as your handicap goes up, but not in the way you might think. Many golfers assume that a higher handicapper must have a higher percentage of putts, but the opposite is often true. If you're curious about how handicaps are calculated, learn how to calculate your golf handicap.
Let’s break it down with some typical numbers:
PGA Tour Pro: Shoots 71 with 30 putts. (30 / 71 = 42%)
Wait, what? The percentage goes down for higher handicaps?
Absolutely. And the reason is simple: higher handicap players take a lot more total shots. Their rounds are filled with duffed chips, chunked irons, topped fairway woods, out-of-bounds penalties, and recovery shots. While they do take more total putts (40 vs. the pro's 30), those extra putts get washed out by the even greater number of other mistakes made from tee to green.
This is a powerful piece of information. It tells you that looking at the percentage alone can be misleading. A good score isn't just about putting brilliance, it's about avoiding the "other" shots that inflate your total score and make your putting-percentage look artificially low.
The Real Question: How Many Putts is Too Many?
Now that we understand the percentages, we can move a step further to a more practical question: How do I know if I'm a good putter? Instead of focusing on percentages, top coaches and players focus on two simple metrics: Putts Per Round and Putts Per Green in Regulation (GIR).
Metric #1: Putts Per Round
This is the easiest stat to track and the most direct measure of your performance on the greens. All you need to do is jot down the number of putts you take on each hole and add them up at the end. Here are some solid benchmarks to aim for:
Tour Pros: 29-30 putts per round
Scratch Players: 32 putts per round
10-Handicap Players: 34 putts per round
20-Handicap Players: 36 putts per round
If you're a 20-handicapper averaging 40 putts a round, you've found a glaring opportunity to save four shots without changing anything else in your long game. Your number one goal becomes eliminating the three-putt.
Metric #2: Putts Per Green in Regulation (A Better Measurement)
This is a slightly more advanced - but far more insightful - stat. A "Green in Regulation" (GIR) is when your ball is on the putting surface in two fewer strokes than par (e.g., on the green in one shot on a par 3, two shots on a par 4, or three shots on a par 5).
Why is this stat so useful? Because it isolates your putting skill from your approach-shot skill. If you miss a green and have to chip, you're obviously very likely to one-putt. That makes your "Putts Per Round" look good, but it hides the fact your ball-striking was off. In contrast, when you hit a Green in Regulation, you are almost always left with a longer, more challenging two-putt situation.
Your goal for Putts per GIR is simple: get it under 2.0. PGA Tour players average about 1.77 putts every time they hit a green in regulation. If you can consistently average below 2.0 (meaning you make a few birdie putts to offset any three-putts), your putting is in a very healthy place. If you are tracking this and find your average is 2.2, then you know three-putting is the handicap-killer you need to attack.
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A Golfer's Action Plan: Turn Data into Lower Scores
Understanding these numbers is interesting, but worthless if you don't act. Here's a simple, three-step process to use this knowledge to actually get better.
Step 1: Start Tracking Your Stats
You can't fix what you don't measure. For your next five rounds, forget your score relative to par and just become a data collector. Learn how to track your golf stats effectively. On your scorecard for each hole, record:
Your Score: The total shots taken.
GIR (Y/N): Did you hit the green in regulation? Just a checkmark or an "X" will do.
Putts: The number of putts you took on that green.
After your round, tally up your total putts and calculate your average Putts Per Round. Then, count how many GIRs you had and how many putts you had on just those holes, and divide to get your Putts Per GIR.
Step 2: Identify Your True Weakness
This is where the magic happens. After a few rounds of data, you'll see a clear picture emerge.
Scenario A: High Putts Per Round and High Putts Per GIR. If you're averaging 38 total putts and your Putts Per GIR is 2.3, your putting is a definite weakness. Your main problem is likely distance control on long putts, leading to three-putts.
Scenario B: High Putts Per Round but Good Putts Per GIR. If you still have 38 total putts but your Putts Per GIR is 1.9, your problem isn't your putting on the green! The issue is your short game. You are missing too many greens and failing to chip it close enough, leaving you with tricky "short-sided" putts to save par. Two different problems, two very different practice solutions.
Step 3: A Simple Practice Plan Based on Your Data
Armed with real information, you can now practice with a purpose instead of just haphazardly rolling putts.
If your weakness is putting (Scenario A):
The Ladder Drill (Distance Control): Find a flat spot on the practice green. Place tees at 10, 20, 30, and 40 feet. Starting at 10 feet, hit three balls. Your goal isn't to make them, but to get all three to stop past the hole but within a 3-foot radius (a 'gimme' circle). Once you do, move back to 20 feet and repeat. This trains your brain to calibrate the speed needed for long putts, which is a key to killing three-putts.
If your weakness is chipping (Scenario B):
The 3-Foot Circle Challenge: Drop 10 balls in various spots around a practice green, about 5-15 yards off the edge. Your goal isn't to hole the chips, but to get at least 7 out of 10 to finish inside a 3-foot circle around the hole. This forces you to focus on a manageable target and leaves you with stress-free tap-ins, instantly lowering your total putt count.
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While the percentage of shots that are putts is a fascinating starting point, the real path to improvement lies in digging one layer deeper. It's about using stats like Putts Per Round and Putts Per GIR to diagnose exactly where your game needs help, allowing you to practice smarter, not just harder.
Turning that diagnosis into better on-course execution is the final piece of the puzzle. Answering your own rules questions, getting advice for a tricky lie, or working through your strategy for the next shot used to require experience you might not have, but with products like ours, you can get tour-level guidance right in your pocket. Having Caddie AI with you on the course gives you that instant second opinion, helping you commit to smarter plays that keep you out of trouble and away from those high-stress, three-putt situations in the first place.
Spencer has been playing golf since he was a kid and has spent a lifetime chasing improvement. With over a decade of experience building successful tech products, he combined his love for golf and startups to create Caddie AI - the world's best AI golf app. Giving everyone an expert level coach in your pocket, available 24/7. Caddie's mission is simple: make world-class golf advice accessible to everyone, anytime.
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