May 4, 2009 -- Quail Hollow Golf Club has been quickly adopted as a favorite for fans and players alike. That's a major reason why top players, including Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson, come to this Charlotte gem -- even a week before The Players Championship. You won't see too many instances where the elite players will play the week before such a premier event, -- that obviously says alot about the course.

• Complete Coverage of the Quail Hollow Championship

• Complete Instruction

One of the hallmarks of Quail Hollow are the large, sloping greens that await the players on each hole. Even with a rough that was cut down this week, scoring was really at a premium. Only one player in the final nine groups broke 70 -- and that player, Sean O'Hair, went on to win to the tournament.

And that brings us to this week's A Lesson Learned. Some of the best golf courses in the country will allow players to hit the ball with a little less precision off the tee, but will then offer a true test on the greens. At Quail Hollow, the field average for driving accuracy was 46% but the greens-in-regulation average was 64%. But just because you're hitting greens doesn't mean the course is defenseless. This past week is a prime example. So how do you prepare for handling large, fast, sloping greens?

I would encourage you to think of three points when you're on such a course.

1.) Hit to the correct area of each green. That means avoiding being above some of the big slopes, or short siding yourself, or anything that doesn't give you an optimal chance of two-putting. If you have any local knowledge, or a playing partner or caddie that can help, use them. I think the G.I.R. statistic is actually overrated. I'd rather see a person miss the green and have an easy chip than to be on a green but in a bad spot in relation to the hole. Don't get overly caught up in hitting the green. The objective is to put yourself in the best position to score well.

2.) When you have a long putt, focus on good contact with the ball. How many times have you taken a longer putting stroke, only to hit it a little off center, and come up woefully short? Lots I bet, as we all have from time to time. But on a forty-foot putt, missing the center of the putter face by half an inch, will mean a ten percent loss of distance. That means, on a perfectly straight flat putt, with a perfectly judged 40-foot stroke, you'd still come up a knee-knocking four feet short of the hole. And if there's any break in this putt (and most forty footers will have at least a little break), your putt is going to take the break earlier and who knows where this putt will end up now? It's like getting off at exit 36 instead of the intended exit 40. This is how you get lost going on vacation - and how your good scores get lost on the greens.

3.) Finally, simulate the needed putting stroke with your practice stroke. One item that astounds me is how often I notice amateur players make this mistake when they play on these large greens: their practice strokes don't simulate the actual stroke needed. I can't tell you how many times I've seen players looking over a long 25 or 30 foot putt and their practice strokes seem like they are intending a 10 footer or a 50 footer. Feel the proper speed you'll need to impart with your practice stroke and then recreate that as you step over the ball.

Sean O'Hair did so many things well this past week, but controlling his game on the greens was the key. Depsite a couple of late bogeys, he was in control of his putter all week and made a plethora of clutch putts. He won the tournament and did not make a single putt over ten feet in length. This tells you that he was able leave himself many easier par putts by either getting up and down or two putting from whereever he ended up on the green. This type of disciplined game is going to help him greatly as he furthers his PGA Tour career. But that same type of course management will help you in your game as well. Best of luck!

Michael Breed is the PGA Head Professional at Sunningdale Country Club in Scarsdale, New York. Breed was the 2000 PGA Metropolitan Section Teacher of the Year and a two-time winner of the section's PGA Horton Smith Award. Breed currently hosts The Golf Fix on The Golf Channel, which airs Monday nights, is a Top 100 teacher as recognized by Golf magazine and is a member of the PGA.com Advisory Board. You can learn more about Michael at his website, http://www.MichaelBreed.com