Muirfield Village And Riviera Will Test Every Part Of A Golfer’s Putting Brain
Compiled weekly by multiple-award-winning PGA Professional Brendon R. Elliott, PrimePutt’s Director of Instruction and Lead Writer.
Some weeks are about pure speed.
Some are about grain, slope, firmness or patience.
This week gives us two of the best putting tests in golf at the same time. The PGA Tour heads to Muirfield Village for the Memorial, while the best women in the game go to Riviera Country Club for the U.S. Women’s Open.
For PrimePutt, that means one thing: this is a perfect week to talk about how different greens ask different questions.
The Memorial: Muirfield Village’s Bentgrass Test
Muirfield Village is Jack Nicklaus’ place, and it has always felt like a course that rewards clear thinking. The Memorial’s official course overview notes that the course was dedicated in 1974 and sits on 220 acres in Dublin, Ohio.
From a putting standpoint, Muirfield Village is less about trickery and more about precision. The greens can get quick, the targets are demanding and the wrong section of a green can leave a player feeling like they hit a good shot to a bad place.
That is what makes Memorial putting so interesting. Players are not only trying to make putts. They are trying to leave the ball in spots where the next putt is manageable.
For amateurs, that is a huge lesson.
You do not need to be a Tour player to understand that speed control starts before the putt. It starts with where you leave the approach, the chip or the first putt.
U.S. Women’s Open: Riviera’s Poa And Patience
Riviera brings a totally different personality.
The 2026 U.S. Women’s Open is being played at The Riviera Country Club in Pacific Palisades, Calif., from June 4-7. The USGA lists the course at 6,699 yards and par 71 for the championship.
Riviera is classic, strategic and full of subtle demands. The kikuyu around the course can grab the ball. The poa annua greens can change as the day goes on. The slopes and angles force players to think carefully about where they can miss.
The sixth hole alone is one of the most fascinating green complexes in championship golf, with a bunker sitting in the middle of the putting surface. The USGA highlighted that feature as part of what makes Riviera’s par-3 sixth so unusual.
That kind of green makes players commit to targets, not just holes.
What These Greens Teach Us
Muirfield Village and Riviera may look different, but they teach the same putting truth.
You have to match your speed to the surface.
Fast bentgrass requires discipline.
Poa requires patience.
Slope requires imagination.
Championship pressure requires routine.
Most recreational golfers practice putting like every green is the same. Same speed. Same stroke. Same target. Same expectations.
Great putters do the opposite.
They adjust.
PrimePutt Drill Of The Week
The Three-Speed Green Drill
On your PrimePutt mat, roll the same putt three different ways:
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Die it in at the front edge
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Roll it normal speed
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Firm it to the back of the cup
Do this from three different distances.
The goal is not to decide that one speed is always best. The goal is to learn that speed changes line, entry point and confidence.
That is what players will face this week at Muirfield Village and Riviera. The best putters will not just read the green. They will understand how the ball needs to enter the hole.
The PrimePutt Takeaway
This week’s greens will reward players who think well, adjust quickly and control their pace.
That is the same skill every golfer can build at home.
You may not be putting at Muirfield Village or Riviera, but you can still train the one thing those greens demand most: a ball that starts on line and rolls with the right speed.
‘The Greens This Week’ drops every Wednesday and looks at the putting surfaces the best in the world from the PGA TOUR, LPGA Tour and DP World Tour will face in the coming week. Got a putting question or drill request? Drop us a line.
