Instructional Video
Equipment Needed
Step-by-Step Instructions
On a putting green, identify or mark targets at 10, 20, and 30 feet from your starting point (if a practice green is marked with distances, use those, otherwise choose visible spots or use tees to create targets).
Putt a ball to the 10-foot target. Focus solely on distance (try to stop the ball exactly at that point or just over it).
Next, putt to the 20-foot target, then to 30 feet. You've now gone 'up the ladder'.
Now come back down: after reaching 30, try to hit a putt that stops at 20, then one that stops at 10 (this is more challenging since you're downgrading the power incrementally).
Repeat the ladder several times. To increase difficulty: require that each putt stop within, say, a 1-foot window around the target distance (or within a putter-length of the previous ball on the way back down). This drill builds a feel for how much stroke is needed for various lengths, reducing long-putt anxiety.
Professional Endorsement
All great putters work on lag putting. Jack Nicklaus often spoke about how he focused on speed control to avoid three-putting. Modern pros like Cameron Smith practice drills very similar to this ladder to fine-tune their feel from long range.