Course Program

Can you stop the ball close from 30 yards?

Vary landing spot, for a 22-handicap player, ~20 minutes at Emerald Hills Golf Club

Short GameAll teesProgram HCP 21.98 drills54% match to course practice profile

Program Snapshot

Handicap range

10 to 45

Average HCP

21.9

Duration (single session)

3 hr 28 min

or

1 drill/day: 8 days · 26 min/day

Ideal tee

All

Skill Distribution

Distance Control37%
Alignment21%
Accuracy21%
Precision11%
Trajectory5%
Dispersion4%
Aim2%

Overview

Program Structure

Can you stop the ball close from 30 yards?. Vary landing spot and feel the green. Focus on Distance Control, Alignment, Accuracy, Precision, Trajectory, Dispersion, Aim. For a 22-handicap player, in ~20 minutes.

Skill

Distance Control

Shot

Pitch

What you will improve

  • Distance Control
  • Alignment
  • Accuracy
  • Precision

Program details

Sessions
8 focused drills
Recommended
2–3 sessions / week
Total duration
3 hr 28 min
or
1 drill per day
8 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

Pitch | Parallel Ball Lines | Multiple Targets

Short Game

Up to 5 players compete to stop a pitch shot closest to the multiple target(s). The player with the most points at the end wins the challenge. Up to 80 balls are needed.

26 minFocus: Short Game
Diagram for Pitch | Parallel Ball Lines | Multiple Targets
1

Set up 4 lines of balls, 5 yards apart. Each line has 9 balls, 1 foot apart.

2

Place the lines 30 to 60 yards from the hole, not on the green.

3

Put 3 target flags on the green, spaced evenly.

4

Make 3 groups of 12 shots from the 36 balls.

5

First 12 shots: aim for the left flag.

6

Next 12 shots: aim for the middle flag.

7

Last 12 shots: aim for the right flag.

8

Always use the same ball setup; only change which flag you aim for.

9

Count a point when the ball stops closest to the flag you aimed for.

0

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

Scoring benchmarks

Repetitions36
Handicap+9+5+151219273654
Score3028262218141074
02

Pitch | Perpendicular Ball Lines | Quadrants

Short Game

Align a bucket of balls (avg. bucket is 40 balls) into 2 perpendicular lines 20 balls per line and stop pitch shots inside quadrants. Count the number of successes.

26 minFocus: Short Game
Diagram for Pitch | Perpendicular Ball Lines | Quadrants
1

Set up 2 lines of 18 balls each, making 36 balls total, spaced about 1 foot apart, 30 to 60 yards from the green.

2

On the green, make 4 areas using string or markers inside a circle about 15 feet wide.

3

Plan to hit 9 balls into each of the 4 areas.

4

From one ball line, hit 3 balls at the first area.

5

Switch to the other ball line and hit 3 balls at the second area.

6

Keep switching lines, hitting 3 balls at a time, until each area has 9 balls aimed at it.

7

Count how many balls stop in the right area.

8

After all 36 balls are hit, record the number that landed in the correct spot out of 36 in the app.

Scoring benchmarks

Repetitions36
Handicap+9+5+151219273654
Score3129262218131074
03

Pitch | Deep Rough and Other | Above/Below Feet

Short Game

Up to 5 players 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 Pitch | Deep Rough and Other | Above/Below Feet
1

Get 36 golf balls. Divide into 3 groups of 12 balls.

2

Set up 3 target zones on the green. Make them easy to see and about the same size.

3

Go to the rough, 20-40 yards from the hole. Hit 12 balls at the first target zone.

4

Hit 12 balls at the second target zone from the same spot, same ball setup.

5

Hit 12 balls at the third target zone the same way.

6

Keep ball setup on the slope the same for all shots.

7

Count a shot as a success if it lands and stops in the target zone.

8

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

Scoring benchmarks

Repetitions36
Handicap+9+5+151219273654
Score282624211713963
04

Pitch | Fairway | Flat

Short Game

Up to 5 players hit two buckets of balls (avg. bucket is 40 balls) from the flat fairway surface.

26 minFocus: Short Game
Diagram for Pitch | Fairway | Flat
1

Make 3 piles with 12 golf balls in each pile.

2

Mark 3 target zones on the green, each about 6 feet apart and about 2 feet wide.

3

Pitch all shots from 30 to 40 yards away on flat grass.

4

Use the first pile and hit balls at the first target zone.

5

Use the second pile and hit balls at the second target zone.

6

Use the last pile and hit balls at the third target zone.

7

Count the balls that land and stop in the target zone.

8

After all shots, count how many landed in the zones and enter your score in the app out of 36 attempts.

Scoring benchmarks

Repetitions36
Handicap+9+5+151219273654
Score302825201612964
05

Pitch | 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 Pitch | Deep Rough and Other | Flat
1

Put 3 target zones on the green: left, center, right. Each 5 feet apart.

2

Put 12 balls in a pile, 30-60 yards from the hole, in deep rough.

3

Hit 12 shots trying to land in Zone A.

4

Hit 12 shots trying to land in Zone B.

5

Hit 12 shots trying to land in Zone C.

6

Keep balls in the same spot and rough for all shots.

7

Count each ball that lands and stays in the right zone.

8

After 36 shots, enter your number of successes into the app, out of 36 attempts.

Scoring benchmarks

Repetitions36
Handicap+9+5+151219273654
Score302825221713964
06

Pitch | Rough | Above/Below Feet

Short Game

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

26 minFocus: Short Game
Diagram for Pitch | Rough | Above/Below Feet
1

Make 3 piles of 6 balls each on sloped ground above your feet, 20 to 40 yards from the hole.

2

Make 3 piles of 6 balls each on sloped ground below your feet, same distance, opposite slope.

3

Hit 18 shots from above your feet and 18 shots from below your feet.

4

Mark 3 target zones on the green (left, center, right).

5

Hit 6 shots from above your feet at each zone.

6

Hit 6 shots from below your feet at each zone.

7

Score one point for each ball that lands and stops in the right zone.

8

Count successes and enter the total out of 36 attempts.

Scoring benchmarks

Repetitions36
Handicap+9+5+151219273654
Score312926221713963
07

Pitch | Perpendicular Piles | 3 Landing Zones

Short Game

Up to 5 players compete to stop a pitch shot inside the landing zone(s). The player with the most points at the end wins the challenge. One bucket of balls per player is needed.

26 minFocus: Short Game
Diagram for Pitch | Perpendicular Piles | 3 Landing Zones
1

Put 10 piles of balls in two lines that meet at a right angle, 5 to 10 yards apart, with each pile 3 yards apart.

2

Place the piles 30 to 60 yards from the hole on grass but not on the green.

3

Mark 3 landing zones on the green with sticks or string, each 6 feet apart in a line.

4

Hit 36 pitch shots in total, 12 at each landing zone.

5

For the first 12 shots aim at Landing Zone 1, for the next 12 aim at Zone 2, for the last 12 aim at Zone

6

Start from any pile and switch piles between shots.

7

Count a success if the ball lands and stops in the correct zone.

8

After all shots, add up your total successes and enter the score in the app, out of 36 attempts.

Scoring benchmarks

Repetitions36
Handicap+9+5+151219273654
Score2927252218141174
08

Pitch | Perpendicular Piles | Quadrants

Short Game

Up to 5 players compete to stop a pitch shot inside the quadrant(s). The player with the most points wins the challenge. One bucket of balls per player is needed.

26 minFocus: Short Game
Diagram for Pitch | Perpendicular Piles | Quadrants
1

Set up 10 piles of balls in two lines. Each line has 5 piles, and the piles are 3 yards apart. Piles are between 30 and 60 yards from the hole.

2

On the green, mark 4 circular target zones. Each is 9 feet in radius.

3

Make 36 pitch shots. For each target zone, make 9 shots.

4

For each shot, aim to land and stop the ball in the correct target zone.

5

After 9 shots in one zone, switch zones and repeat until all 4 are done.

6

Count each shot that stops in the right zone as a success.

7

Total successful shots out of 36 attempts and enter score in the app.

Scoring benchmarks

Repetitions36
Handicap+9+5+151219273654
Score3028262218141064

Next Step

Ready to start this program?

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