Course Program

Pinpoint your sand shots: leave yourself a tap-in every time

Thread the gap, for a 20-handicap player, ~20 minutes at West

Short GameAll teesProgram HCP 20.35 drills

Program Snapshot

Handicap range

3 to 45

Average HCP

20.3

Duration (single session)

2 hr 10 min

or

1 drill/day: 5 days · 26 min/day

Ideal tee

All

Skill Distribution

Precision25%
Distance Control24%
Aim21%
Dispersion11%
Trajectory9%
Alignment8%
Scoring3%

Overview

Program Structure

Pinpoint your sand shots: leave yourself a tap-in every time. Thread the gap and precision from tough lie. Focus on Precision, Distance Control, Aim. For a 20-handicap player, in ~20 minutes.

Skill

Precision

Shot

Sand

What you will improve

  • Precision
  • Distance Control
  • Aim
  • Dispersion

Program details

Sessions
5 focused drills
Recommended
2–3 sessions / week
Total duration
2 hr 10 min
or
1 drill per day
5 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

Sand | Parallel Piles | 9 Stop Zones

Short Game

Up to 5 players compete to stop a sand shot in the stop 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 Sand | Parallel Piles | 9 Stop Zones
1

Set up 10 piles of balls in two lines in a sand bunker. Lines are 3 yards/meters apart, piles in each line are 4 yards/meters apart.

2

Place the piles 20 to 40 yards/meters from the hole.

3

On the green, make 9 stop zones in a 3x3 grid using tees, buckets, or string. Space them evenly.

4

Hit 36 sand shots, with 4 shots aimed at each of the 9 zones.

5

From a pile, hit 4 balls aiming for the first zone. Repeat for each zone until all 9 are done.

6

Score 1 point for each ball that stops in the target zone.

7

Keep the ball setup and distance the same. Only change the target zone.

8

After 36 shots, count total successful balls in the zones and enter score in the app, out of 36 attempts.

Scoring benchmarks

Repetitions36
Handicap+9+5+151219273654
Score302825201512963
02

Sand | Scattered Ball Lines | 3 Landing Zones

Short Game

Scatter a bucket of balls in the sand (avg. bucket is 40 balls) into 8 equal lines of 5 balls and hit-and-land sand shots inside landing zones. Count the number of successes.

26 minFocus: Short Game
Diagram for Sand | Scattered Ball Lines | 3 Landing Zones
1

Scatter 40 balls into 8 lines with 5 balls in each line. Put balls about 2 feet apart.

2

Put the lines between 5 and 60 yards from the hole on grass or a slope.

3

On the green set up 3 landing zones side by side, each zone about 6 feet apart.

4

Hit 36 shots, split into 3 groups of 12 shots toward each landing zone.

5

For each group, pick any 12 balls to hit toward the first landing zone.

6

After 12 shots, switch to the second zone and hit 12 more shots from any balls.

7

Aim the last 12 shots at the third landing zone using any balls.

8

Count a shot as successful if the ball lands and stays in the correct landing zone.

9

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

Scoring benchmarks

Repetitions36
Handicap+9+5+151219273654
Score3129262218141074
03

Sand | Scattered Piles | 3 Landing Zones

Short Game

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

26 minFocus: Short Game
Diagram for Sand | Scattered Piles | 3 Landing Zones
1

Make 3 target zones on the green using sticks or clubs. Space them 6 feet apart in a line.

2

Make 6 piles of 6 balls each in the sand, 20 to 40 yards from the hole.

3

Hit 36 sand shots: 12 shots to each zone.

4

Hit from any pile to Zone 1, then move to another pile and hit to Zone 2, then to another pile for Zone

5

Try to land the ball in the correct zone. Each ball that stays in the correct zone is a success.

6

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

Scoring benchmarks

Repetitions36
Handicap+9+5+151219273654
Score302825211612853
04

Sand | Parallel Ball Lines | 9 Stop Zones

Short Game

Align a bucket of balls in the sand (avg. bucket is 40 balls) into 2 parallel lines 20 balls per line and stop sand shots inside 9 Stop Zones. Count the number of successful stops.

26 minFocus: Short Game
Diagram for Sand | Parallel Ball Lines | 9 Stop Zones
1

Make two straight lines with 20 balls in each line. Each ball is about 1 foot apart. The two lines are 5 to 10 yards apart.

2

On the green, mark 9 stop zones using buckets, string, or tees. Keep the zones apart.

3

Hit 36 sand shots from the bunker. Try to stop the ball inside the zones.

4

Split the 36 shots into 9 groups. Each group has 4 shots.

5

For each group, hit 4 shots from one ball line at one stop zone.

6

After 4 shots, switch to the other ball line. Aim 4 shots at the next zone. Keep going back and forth until you finish all 9 zones.

7

Count how many balls stay in the zone they were aimed at.

8

Add your total successes out of 36 and enter score in the app.

Scoring benchmarks

Repetitions36
Handicap+9+5+151219273654
Score3129272318141074
05

Sand | Perpendicular Piles | Multiple Targets

Short Game

Up to 5 players compete to stop a sand shot closest to the multiple target(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 Sand | Perpendicular Piles | Multiple Targets
1

Arrange 10 piles of balls in two lines to make a plus sign, with 5 piles in each line, and piles 3 yards/meters apart.

2

Put the piles in the sand, between 20 and 40 yards/meters from the hole, but not on the green.

3

Set up 3 target flags in different spots around the hole.

4

Split 36 shots into 3 groups of 12, with each group aiming at a different flag.

5

Start at any pile and hit 12 shots trying to get the ball close to the first target.

6

For the next 12 shots, choose any pile and aim at the second target.

7

For the last 12 shots, choose any pile and aim at the third target.

8

Count a shot as a success if the ball stops within 3 yards/meters of the flag.

9

Count how many successes out of 36 shots and enter the 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.