Course Program

Chip Close: Leave Inside 3 Feet

Chip close, for a 23-handicap player, ~20 minutes at Ackley

Short GameAll teesProgram HCP 23.39 drills

Program Snapshot

Handicap range

10 to 45

Average HCP

23.3

Duration (single session)

3 hr 54 min

or

1 drill/day: 9 days · 26 min/day

Ideal tee

All

Skill Distribution

Accuracy30%
Scoring17%
Aim16%
Distance Control13%
Alignment10%
Visualization6%
Dispersion5%
Precision3%

Overview

Program Structure

Chip Close: Leave Inside 3 Feet. Avoid 3-putt and pick landing spot. Focus on Accuracy, Scoring, Aim. For a 23-handicap player, in ~20 minutes.

Skill

Accuracy

Shot

Chip

What you will improve

  • Accuracy
  • Scoring
  • Aim
  • Distance Control

Program details

Sessions
9 focused drills
Recommended
2–3 sessions / week
Total duration
3 hr 54 min
or
1 drill per day
9 days · 26 min/day

Drill Framework

Program breakdown

Each drill is designed to prepare you for the course. Follow the program or repeat the drills to improve key areas of your game.

01

Chip | Rough | Uphill/Downhill

Short Game

Hit two buckets of balls (avg. bucket is 40 balls) from the sloped rough grass; one bucket from the uphill slope and one bucket from the downhill slope.

26 minFocus: Short Game
Diagram for Chip | Rough | Uphill/Downhill
1

Gather 36 golf balls. Make 3 piles of 6 balls on an uphill slope and 3 piles of 6 balls on a downhill slope, placing them 5 to 30 yards from the hole.

2

Mark 3 landing zones on the green in a line, each 6 feet apart; label them Zone 1, Zone 2, and Zone

3

From each uphill pile, hit 6 chip shots aiming for Zone 1, then Zone 2, then Zone

4

From each downhill pile, hit 6 chip shots aiming for Zone 1, then Zone 2, then Zone

5

Count a shot as a success if the ball lands and stops in the intended zone.

6

After 36 shots, add up how many were successful and enter your score in the app out of 36 attempts.

Scoring benchmarks

Repetitions36
Handicap+9+5+151219273654
Score302825211713964
02

Chip | Deep Rough and Other | Above/Below Feet

Short Game

Hit two buckets of balls (avg. bucket is 40 balls) from the sloped deep rough and other extreme grass types; one bucket with balls above feet level, and one bucket with balls below feet level.

26 minFocus: Short Game
Diagram for Chip | Deep Rough and Other | Above/Below Feet
1

Make 6 piles of 6 balls each. Put 3 piles above feet level and 3 piles below feet level, 5 to 30 yards from the hole in tough grass or slopes.

2

Pick a pile from above feet level. Chip 6 balls at a 3-foot target near the hole.

3

Repeat with the other two above feet piles. Total 18 shots from above feet.

4

Do the same with the three below feet piles. Chip 6 balls at the target from each pile. Total 18 shots from below feet.

5

Count balls that stop in the target as successes. Ignore balls outside the target or off the green.

6

Add up the number of balls in the target out of 36 shots and enter score in the app, out of 36 attempts.

Scoring benchmarks

Repetitions36
Handicap+9+5+151219273654
Score312926221713963
03

Chip | Parallel Piles | Multiple Targets

Short Game

Align a bucket of balls (avg. bucket is 40 balls) into 10 equal parallel piles of 4 balls and stop chip shots close to multiple targets. Count the number of successes.

26 minFocus: Short Game
Diagram for Chip | Parallel Piles | Multiple Targets
1

Arrange 40 balls into 10 piles with 4 balls each in two lines of 5 piles.

2

Set the two lines 6 yards apart and each pile 3 yards apart.

3

Place the piles anywhere on grass or slope, 5 to 30 yards from the hole, not on the green.

4

Place 3 target flags 8 feet apart on the green to make 3 target zones.

5

Hit 36 chip shots in 3 groups of 12 shots.

6

For the first 12 shots, aim to land the ball within 10 feet of the first flag.

7

For the next 12 shots, aim for the second flag’s zone.

8

For the final 12 shots, aim for the third flag’s zone.

9

Alternate which pile you shoot from, but always start from the same ball spot for each shot.

0

Count each ball stopping within 10 feet of the target as a success and enter score in the app, out of 36 attempts.

Scoring benchmarks

Repetitions36
Handicap+9+5+151219273654
Score3028262218141174
04

Chip | Deep Rough and Other | Flat

Short Game

Up to 5 players hit two buckets of balls (avg. bucket is 40 balls) from the flat deep rough and other extreme grass types.

26 minFocus: Short Game
Diagram for Chip | Deep Rough and Other | Flat
1

Set up 3 target zones on the green at 6, 12, and 18 feet from the hole.

2

Place 36 golf balls between 5 and 30 yards from the hole in the flat deep rough.

3

Split the 36 balls into 3 groups of 12, with each group aimed at one zone.

4

Hit from the same rough spot, aiming at the same zone, until you finish 12 shots for that zone.

5

Count a ball as a success if it lands and stays in the right zone.

6

Add up all successful chips. Enter your score in the app, out of 36 attempts.

Scoring benchmarks

Repetitions36
Handicap+9+5+151219273654
Score3028262218141174
05

Chip | Parallel Piles | 9 Stop Zones

Short Game

Align a bucket of balls (avg. bucket is 40 balls) into 10 equal parallel piles of 4 balls and stop chip shots inside 9 Stop Zones. Count the number of successful stops.

26 minFocus: Short Game
Diagram for Chip | Parallel Piles | 9 Stop Zones
1

Set up 10 piles of 4 balls each in two rows (5 piles per row), spaced 2 yards/meters apart. Put the rows 5 to 10 yards/meters apart and place the piles 5 to 30 yards/meters from the hole.

2

Mark 9 stop zones on the green using buckets, string, or tees. Space them out so each zone is different.

3

Prepare to hit 36 chip shots, divided into 9 groups of 4 shots. Each group targets a different stop zone.

4

From any pile, hit 4 shots at the first stop zone. Move to the next stop zone and hit 4 shots at it. Keep going until you’ve aimed 4 shots at each of the 9 zones.

5

Count every ball that stops inside the right zone as a success.

6

When done, count up all successful stops out of 36 attempts and enter the score in the app.

Scoring benchmarks

Repetitions36
Handicap+9+5+151219273654
Score3230282520161285
06

Chip | Rough | Uphill/Downhill

Short Game

Up to 5 players hit two buckets of balls (avg. bucket is 40 balls) from the sloped rough grass; one bucket from the uphill slope and one bucket from the downhill slope.

26 minFocus: Short Game
Diagram for Chip | Rough | Uphill/Downhill
1

Prepare 36 golf balls in 3 piles of 12 balls each.

2

Set up 3 target zones on the putting green: one uphill, one flat, one downhill.

3

From the rough, 5 to 30 yards away, chip 12 balls to land and stop in the uphill zone.

4

Chip 12 balls to the flat zone.

5

Chip 12 balls to the downhill zone.

6

A shot counts as a success if the ball lands and stops in the correct zone.

7

Keep the ball setup the same for each shot. Only change which zone to aim for.

8

Count how many shots landed and stopped in the right zones out of 36 attempts, and enter the score in the app.

Scoring benchmarks

Repetitions36
Handicap+9+5+151219273654
Score312926221713963
07

Chip | Fairway | Above/Below Feet

Short Game

Up to 5 players hit two buckets of balls (avg. bucket is 40 balls) from the sloped fairway; one bucket with balls above feet level, and one bucket with balls below feet level.

26 minFocus: Short Game
Diagram for Chip | Fairway | Above/Below Feet
1

Put 36 golf balls into 3 piles of

2

Place each pile 5 to 20 yards from the hole.

2

At the green's edge, set up 3 target zones in a line, each 4 feet apart. Mark them Zone A (closest), Zone B (middle), and Zone C (farthest).

3

Keep ball positions the same: first pile on a slope above feet, second pile on flat ground, third pile on a slope below feet.

4

Hit 12 chip shots to Zone A from the above feet position.

5

Hit 12 chip shots to Zone B from the flat position.

6

Hit 12 chip shots to Zone C from below feet position.

7

Count how many shots land and stay in the intended zone.

8

Add up total successful shots out of 36 and enter the score in the app.

Scoring benchmarks

Repetitions36
Handicap+9+5+151219273654
Score302825211612853
08

Chip | Scattered Piles | Bullseye 2x

Short Game

Scatter a bucket of balls (avg. bucket is 40 balls) into 8 equal piles of 5 balls and stop chip shots inside the Bullseye. Count the number of balls in the inner and outer Bullseye.

26 minFocus: Short Game
Diagram for Chip | Scattered Piles | Bullseye 2x
1

Scatter 36 balls into 8 piles of about 4 or 5 balls each on grass between 5 and 30 yards or meters from the hole.

2

Mark two circles on the green around the hole: a small one with a 6-foot (2-meter) radius and a bigger one with a 15-foot (5-meter) radius.

3

Hit 36 chip shots, split into two groups of

4

For the first 18 shots, try to land the ball inside the small circle (6-foot radius).

5

For the last 18 shots, try to land the ball inside the area between the small and big circle (6- to 15-foot radius).

6

Take turns hitting shots from different piles for variety.

7

Count how many balls stop in the right circle for each group.

8

After all 36 shots, enter the number of successful shots out of 36 attempts in the app.

Scoring benchmarks

Repetitions36
Handicap+9+5+151219273654
Score302825211612852
09

Chip | Scattered Ball Lines | Bullseye 2x

Short Game

Scatter a bucket of balls (avg. bucket is 40 balls) into 8 equal lines of 5 balls and stop chip shots inside the Bullseye. Count the number of balls in the inner and outer Bullseye.

26 minFocus: Short Game
Diagram for Chip | Scattered Ball Lines | Bullseye 2x
1

Scatter 40 balls into 8 lines of 5 balls each, spaced 1 yard or meter apart, placed anywhere from 5 to 30 yards from the hole.

2

On the green, make two circles around the hole: one with a 6-foot (2-meter) radius, and one with a 15-foot (5-meter) radius, using string or tees.

3

Chip 36 balls during the test, divided into 3 sets of 12 balls.

4

Chip the first 12 balls, trying to make them land inside the small circle.

5

Chip the next 12 balls, trying to make them land inside the big circle but outside the small circle.

6

Chip the last 12 balls, trying to make them land anywhere inside the big circle.

7

Start from any line and move around as needed, but use only 36 balls.

8

Count each ball that stops where it is supposed to for each set.

9

Enter your score in the app, out of 36 attempts.

Scoring benchmarks

Repetitions36
Handicap+9+5+151219273654
Score312926221713963

Next Step

Ready to start this program?

Start the drills at your own pace or work with a coach to inside drills.golf.