Equipment

The heart of the green


Tom Simm

09 June 2025

When you head out for a round of golf, how often do you reach the green in 2?

a-golf-ball-on-a-green

Making a green-in-regulation is a great target to have on any given par-4 as you then have a pristine birdie putt opportunity. However, it’s often easier said than done.

How many times have you made a decent drive and found the fairway, only for you to send your ball into a greenside bunker or overhit the green on your second shot?

To make a birdie on a par-4 fundamentally revolves around finding the very central heart of the green on your approach shot, setting you up to sink an achievable birdie putt.

Take a moment now to think about your approach game, how many times during a round of golf do you make a green-in-regulation? Today we want to help you consider how many greens-in-regulation you make per round and offer a prime suggestion in how you can make more.

 

Average GIR made by handicap

If you're playing off a handicap of 20 and you make 5 GIR, you're really playing to a handicap of 15

golf.com

The data above demonstrates that 20-handicap golfers only make the green in 2 on around 20% of the holes they play. In an average 18-hole round of golf, that’s around 3 or 4 holes.

That being said, the data also clearly shows that the better the golfer is, the more greens-in-regulation you make. The more greens-in-regulation you make, the more often you have a scoring opportunity.

Making decent approach shots all comes down to how well you hit your golf irons.

 

Landing it on the green

a-white-arrow-pointing-to-a-red-heart-representing-the-heart-of-the-green

Following your tee shot, you may well have landed between 100-200 yards from the green, see where the flag is situated, and take it as the natural target to aim for.

But rather than hoping you stick your ball right by the hole, you should consider the contours of the green, how it’s sloping, and aim for the heart of the green.

For example, if you know a green slopes from back to front, you’ll ideally want to land your ball short of the flag to give yourself a nice uphill putt rather than a sharp downhill putt you’ll feel less control over.

Playing into the heart of the green is a failsafe strategy that more golfers should think about when measuring up their approach shots. Making GIR requires impeccable accuracy, and the latest irons from Titleist are packed full of forgiveness to give you greater confidence when sizing up approach shots.

 

Titleist's latest golf irons

High-handicap irons

titleist-t350-iron-clubhead

If you’re a novice golfer looking to hone your skills and cut your handicap, you can’t go wrong with the T350 irons from Titleist. This club has a large forgiving head that’s packed with tech to help the high-handicap player. The dual-taper forged face ensures you’ll get fast ball speeds on your strikes wherever you make contact with the ball, and the strategically-placed tungsten weighting lowers the center of gravity to give you effortless launch on all strikes.

browse T350 irons  >

Mid-handicap irons

An excellent golf club that most mid-handicap players will feel at home using, the T200 iron has a clean shape that inspires confidence when standing over the ball. A smooth trailing edge allows you to strike through the fairway with ease, and the reengineered chassis improves distance without compromising on feel.

browse T200 irons  >

titleist-t200-iron-clubhead

Low-handicap irons

titleist-t100-iron-clubhead

Favoured by tour players, the T100 irons from Titleist are perfect for skilled players that want to get the most out of their equipment. A CNC face-milling process offers a more consistent ball flight, and a dual-cavity forged clubhead encourages excellent workability. Whether you’re looking to execute a draw or a fade, this iron will help you play exactly as you’d like.

browse T100 irons  >

Whether you’re curious about the latest irons or you’d like to book some lessons with us to improve your game, we’re available and ready to help you in the pro shop.

Contact us today