Listen, amateur golfers can be forgiven for certain things. It’s really difficult to hit a 350-yard (320-metre) drive. It takes years of hard work to hit flag-seeking iron shots consistently. You may get lucky and hole a long putt but to do it with any regularity takes an entirely new level of skill.
But missing the green short from 100 yards (91 metres)? That’s a basic mistake we should be good enough to avoid. We have all the physical tools after all.
And yet, so many golfers do.
The Mistake: Coming up short 40% of the time from 100 yards (91 metres)
According to Shot Scope’s annual golf report which analyses data from all its users from the 2025 season a whopping 40 percent of golfers miss shots from 100 yards (91 metres) short. And this holds true relatively across the board.
Now one caveat here is that this data likely includes misses short of the pin that still find the green. Those are fine; it’s the shots that miss the green short that aren’t. And there are plenty of those.
Here are two reasons why this may be happening and what you can do to fix them.
1. Adjust your setup to avoid bad contact errors
It’s true that golfers often miss greens short because they underclub but that’s not really the issue here. They may be underclubbing but they’ve got the distance to hit a shot from 100 yards (91 metres).
Another big factor in why amateurs come up short is that they have more mishits than pros. Bad contact errors like shanks, chunks, and tops.
There’s no magic wand to help you hit the ball perfectly all the time, but there are a few things pros do with the wedges that help them chase solid contact, as Michael Breed breaks down right here.
* Play the ball further back in your stance
* Choke down
* Make a shorter backswing
* Keep the downswing and follow through aggressively
We go deeper on this in this Game Plan video right here:
2. Aim between the pin and the middle of the green
A funny curiosity among all levels of golfers is that they tend to come up short to front pins. The leading theory is that when they see the opportunity to hit less club by prioritising the shorter distance, they should, but end up overcooking it.
Scottie is the master of avoiding this (but even he does it sometimes!) because he often aims long of front pins. Remember that while hitting it close is the goal budgeting for mishit errors is essential.
- Tip: To a front pin aim for the number between the pin and the middle of the green.
Small adjustments but the more you can eat into that 40 percent number the better.
