Before the bug fix, when you drew the putter back to swing but didn't "click" on the downstroke to hit the ball (a practice stroke), you could not change the distance of the putter without changing to another shot then back to a putt. Now you can.
Some people like to take a practice stroke because skips in the meter, of a putt in particular, seem more likely happen on the first stroke. I do this sometimes in multiplayer when I'm having issues and don't feel like taking a minute to reboot.