Fast greens are notoriously difficult for golfers to putt on and increase the likelihood of three putting as it is tougher to leave the ball close enough to the hole to allow for a simple second putt.

It can be harder to judge the speed and line on faster greens as well, especially if you are not used to putting on these types of greens.

 Although the thought of putting on slick and fast greens may be intimidating, there are a number of simple things you can do before, during and after your round to ensure your putting ability in these conditions improves.

Firstly, you should make sure you have enough time prior to your round to practice your putting before teeing off. It is a common sight to see golfers rushing to the first tee and hitting off without any practice putting. This is a great way to ensure you have some three putts early in your round as it will take a few holes at least for you to "get the feel" of the greens. You need to spend at least 15 minutes on the practice green prior to your round hitting a variety of putts to develop your sense of feel for the speed of the greens. This time should not be spent working on your putting technique but, instead, should be time spent getting used to the pace of the greens and building your confidence prior to teeing off.

A great piece of advice that you can use during your round if you find yourself struggling with the pace of the greens is to relax your grip pressure with your putter. If you have trouble judging the pace of the greens at the beginning of your round it can be easy to start holding the putter too hard which will lead to tension and a short and rushed putting stroke. Smooth and flowing putting strokes tend to work best on fast greens so making sure your grip pressure is not too tight can help you keep your stroke smooth.

If, even after using the above advice, you still find yourself three putting on fast greens there are a couple of training exercises you can do prior to your next game. Most three putts come from not hitting your first putt close enough to the hole to ensure you can "tap in" the second putt. A great exercise to improve your speed control is a putting game called Leap Frog. To play this game you need to place two tees one metre apart on the putting green. You then need to putt one ball so it finishes between the two tees. The next step is to putt a second ball so it leaps the first ball but remains between the two tees. Once you have succeeded with two balls you can add extra balls to make this game even tougher. The aim of this game is to keep the balls as close together as possible which will help with your speed control.

Another exercise you can use is to putt towards a hole on the green with the aim of leaving the ball within one putter length of the hole. This will ensure you have a simple second putt from a short distance and reduce your chances of three putting.

Both of these drills can be used on any length putts and it would be wise to choose a variety of distances to improve your putting from all lengths.

All of these tips can be used to improve your putting and will help you avoid the dreaded three putt the next time you are on the course.