August 3, 2008 -- Each year the best players in the world come to Firestone and each year the course provides one of the most challenging, but fair tests of golf found anywhere. One of the keys to Firestone is controlling your distance into greens. Many of these greens slope back to front quite a bit or have Sunday pin positions with a good deal of slope behind them. Keeping the ball below the hole so that you have an uphill putt that you can be aggressive with is essential. Time and time again when players hit past a pin or even pin high they are left with a defensive putt. Lee Westwood hit it close on #17 pin-high. But putting across the slope he had a very difficult putt and didn't convert. Earlier on #10 Phil Michelson hit it close, but he sent his downhiller three feet past the hole.

Leaving putts on the wrong side of the pin put too much pressure on Phil Mickelson's putting on Sunday. (Photo: Getty Images)

The lesson learned here is that below the hole and farther away is better more times than not then being close and above the pin. Controlling your iron distance is another form of shot-making, just like learning to fade and draw the ball. Here's a checklist for the average golfer to help hit your approach shots the proper distance:

1. First, you have to figure out how far each iron goes on an average swing. Be honest. We're not talking about your career 5-iron that once down-wind, downhill flew 200 yards. We're talking about under neutral conditions with no wind, a flat lie and level target. Figure the average distance of your average shots, but also know the upper and lower range and of each iron.

2. Figure your average distance at a range where the targets have been accurately measured. Also invest in a distance measuring laser device or GPS unit. These are indispensible for getting accurate readings.

3. Always know as accurately as you can the yardage needed on every approach shot. After the shot make mental note how far you actually hit the shot in the air.

4. Most players have about a ten yard gap between their irons. If you have a yardage that puts you "in-between" clubs I would not suggest that the average player to hit a lesser iron harder or swing easier on a longer iron. I would suggest that you choke down about a half inch on a longer iron and make your normal swing.

Let's go though two scenarios and how I would advise most golfers if I was their caddie. First you have 150 yards to pin with a green that is sloped pretty well front to back. Your 8-iron on average goes 150, but you know if you catch it just right it could be 155 yards plus. I'd advise choking down a half inch on the 8-iron. Now you have a 145 yard club in your hand whose maximum distance is 150. Make your normal swing and you've guarded against getting above the hole even if you catch it flush. The second situation is a pin tucked over a deep bunker 125 yards away. To clear the bunker you laser it at 115 yards. You hit your pitching wedge 120 yards on average and rarely any farther than that. Your first priority over hitting it close is to clear the bunker. For that reason I would advise in most cases to not hit the wedge. Choke down on 9-iron and take the bunker out of play.

All most all golf shot involve a level of risk and reward. Many times playing smart means recognizing where the trouble might be and playing a shot that has a low probability for ending up in the "trouble". For the average golfer I'd advise that on any given shot they make an honest assessment of their game at that moment and calculate if they could pull off the shot at least seven times out of ten. If not, than that is probably not the shot to hit.

Play smart, know your yardages and keep giving yourself a chance on the greens. The putts will eventually fall.

John Fiander has been the PGA Head Golf Professional at Sleepy Hollow Golf Course since 1992. He is a Master PGA Professional with a specialty teaching certification from the PGA. He was the 2003 Northern Ohio PGA Teacher of the Year and has been cited numerous times by various media publications for his teaching prowess. He has also written for several golf media outlets including USA Today, the Cleveland Plain Dealer, and PGA.com. John can be reached at jsf@clevelandmetroparks.com.