Course Program

Keep Ball Close To Hole

Use a short swing, for a 35-handicap player, ~30 minutes at Maebashi Links

Short GameAll teesProgram HCP 359 drills

Program Snapshot

Handicap range

25 to 45

Average HCP

35

Duration (single session)

3 hr 54 min

or

1 drill/day: 9 days · 26 min/day

Ideal tee

All

Skill Distribution

Scoring30%
Alignment23%
Aim20%
Distance Control12%
Precision5%
Accuracy5%
Dispersion3%
Trajectory2%

Overview

Program Structure

Keep Ball Close To Hole. Focus on clean contact and use a short swing. Focus on Scoring, Alignment, Aim. For a 35-handicap player, in ~30 minutes.

Shot

Bump'n'Run

What you will improve

  • Scoring
  • Alignment
  • 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

Bump-n-Run | Perpendicular Piles | 3 Landing Zones

Short Game

Align a bucket of balls next to the green (avg. bucket is 40 balls) into 10 equal perpendicular piles of 4 balls and hit-and-land bump-n-run shots inside landing zones. Count the number of successes.

26 minFocus: Short Game
Diagram for Bump-n-Run | Perpendicular Piles | 3 Landing Zones
1

Set up 10 piles of balls with 4 balls in each pile.

2

Make 3 landing zones on the green, 6 feet apart in a straight line.

3

Hit 36 shots, with 12 shots at each landing zone.

4

Start from any pile and try to land 12 balls in the first landing zone.

5

After 12 shots, aim 12 shots at the second zone, then 12 at the third zone.

6

Count each ball that stays in the correct zone as a success.

7

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

Scoring benchmarks

Repetitions36
Handicap+9+5+151219273654
Score3129262318141074
02

Bump-n-Run | Fairway | Above/Below Feet

Short Game

Hit bump-n-run shot two buckets of balls (avg. bucket is 40 balls) from the sloped fairway; one bucket with balls above feet level, one bucket with balls below feet level.

26 minFocus: Short Game
Diagram for Bump-n-Run | Fairway | Above/Below Feet
1

Gather 36 balls and split them into 2 groups of

2

Stand on a slope where the ball is above your feet for the first 18 shots.

3

Choose one target on the green to aim at.

4

Hit 18 bump-and-run shots, trying to get close to the target from this lie.

5

Move to a slope where the ball is below your feet for the next 18 shots.

6

Hit 18 bump-and-run shots at the same target from this lie.

7

Count how many balls stop close to the pin. Record that number as your score out of 36 in the app.

Scoring benchmarks

Repetitions36
Handicap+9+5+151219273654
Score3129262218141063
03

Bump-n-Run | Scattered Piles | 3 Landing Zones

Short Game

Scatter a bucket of balls (avg. bucket is 40 balls) next to the green. Scatter into 8 equal piles of 5 balls and hit-and-land bump-n-run shots inside landing zones. Count the number of successes.

26 minFocus: Short Game
Diagram for Bump-n-Run | Scattered Piles | 3 Landing Zones
1

Put 36 golf balls into 3 groups of 12 balls. Spread the groups around the green between 1 and 10 yards from the edge and 5 to 30 yards from the hole.

2

Mark 3 landing zones in a straight line at the edge of the green, each 6 feet (2 meters) apart.

3

Hit 36 bump-and-run shots: 12 to zone 1, 12 to zone 2, 12 to zone

4

Use the first set of 12 balls for zone 1, the second set for zone 2, and the last set for zone

5

Keep ball positions and distances the same for the whole test.

6

Count each ball that stops inside the target zone as a success.

7

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

Scoring benchmarks

Repetitions36
Handicap+9+5+151219273654
Score3230282520161285
04

Bump-n-Run | Fairway | Flat

Short Game

Hit bump-n-run shot two buckets of balls (avg. bucket is 40 balls) from the flat fairway.

26 minFocus: Short Game
Diagram for Bump-n-Run | Fairway | Flat
1

Pick two spots between 5 and 30 yards from the hole to hit from.

2

Place three markers 3 feet apart in a line on the green to make target zones.

3

Hit 18 shots from the first spot, 6 to each target zone.

4

Hit 18 shots from the second spot, 6 to each target zone.

5

Aim for the correct zone each time.

6

Count shots that stop inside the correct zone as a success.

7

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

Scoring benchmarks

Repetitions36
Handicap+9+5+151219273654
Score312926221713963
05

Bump-n-Run | Deep Rough and Other | Uphill/Downhill

Short Game

Hit bump-n-run shot two buckets of balls (avg. bucket is 40 balls) from the sloped deep rough and other extreme grass types; one bucket from the uphill slope and one bucket from the downhill slope.

26 minFocus: Short Game
Diagram for Bump-n-Run | Deep Rough and Other | Uphill/Downhill
1

Prepare 36 balls in two sets of

2

Pick one uphill spot, 5-20 yards from the hole, for 18 tries.

3

Make three target zones on the green around the hole: left, center, right.

4

Hit 6 balls at each target zone in order: left, center, right.

5

Move to a downhill spot, 5-20 yards from the hole, and do the same.

6

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

7

After 36 tries (18 uphill, 18 downhill), add up your successful shots and enter your score in the app, out of 36.

Scoring benchmarks

Repetitions36
Handicap+9+5+151219273654
Score3129262318141063
06

Bump-n-Run | Deep Rough and Other | Above/Below Feet

Short Game

Hit bump-n-run shot 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, one bucket with balls below feet level.

26 minFocus: Short Game
Diagram for Bump-n-Run | Deep Rough and Other | Above/Below Feet
1

Place 36 balls into 6 groups of 6 balls.

2

Mark 3 target pins on the green, 6 feet apart in a line or arc.

3

From above feet, hit 18 shots, 6 at each pin in order.

4

From below feet, hit 18 shots, 6 at each pin in order.

5

Keep the same ball setup and lie each time. Only change slope.

6

Count each ball that stops within 3 feet of the target pin as a success.

7

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

Scoring benchmarks

Repetitions36
Handicap+9+5+151219273654
Score3230282420161285
07

Bump-n-Run | Rough | Uphill/Downhill

Short Game

Hit bump-n-run shot 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 Bump-n-Run | Rough | Uphill/Downhill
1

Put two markers on the green about 6 feet apart as targets.

2

Place the balls in the downhill rough, 5 to 30 yards from the hole.

3

Hit 18 bump-and-run shots from downhill, aiming for Target 1 for 9 shots, then Target 2 for 9 shots.

4

Move to the uphill rough on the opposite side, same distance from the hole.

5

Hit 18 bump-and-run shots from uphill, aiming for Target 1 for 9 shots, then Target 2 for 9 shots.

6

A shot is successful if the ball stops within 3 feet of the target.

7

Count total successful shots out of 36 and enter that number in the app.

Scoring benchmarks

Repetitions36
Handicap+9+5+151219273654
Score3129272318141074
08

Bump-n-Run | Scattered Ball Lines | Bullseye 2x

Short Game

Scatter a bucket of balls next to the green (avg. bucket is 40 balls) into 8 equal lines of 5 balls and stop bump-n-run shots inside Bullseye. Count the number of balls in the inner and outer Bullseye.

26 minFocus: Short Game
Diagram for Bump-n-Run | Scattered Ball Lines | Bullseye 2x
1

Put 40 balls in 8 lines of 5 balls each around the green. Lines should be about 1 yard/meter apart and placed 1 to 10 yards/meters from the green and 5 to 30 yards/meters from the hole.

2

On the green, mark two circle zones around the hole: one with a 6-foot (2 meter) radius and another with a 15-foot (5 meter) radius.

3

Hit 36 bump-and-run shots—first 18 shots aiming for the small inner circle, then 18 shots aiming for the bigger outer circle.

4

Use any line of balls. Hit shots for the inner circle for 18 attempts, then switch to hitting shots for the outer circle for another 18 attempts. Change lines as wanted.

5

Count each ball that stops in the circle aimed for as a success.

6

After all 36 shots, add the number of successful shots out of 36 and enter your score in the app.

Scoring benchmarks

Repetitions36
Handicap+9+5+151219273654
Score3230282520161285
09

Bump-n-Run | Scattered Piles | Quadrants

Short Game

Up to 5 players compete to stop bump-n-run 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 Bump-n-Run | Scattered Piles | Quadrants
1

Prepare 36 balls and make 4 piles of 9 balls each.

2

Put each pile in a different spot, 1 to 10 yards from the green and 5 to 30 yards from the hole.

3

Mark 4 areas on the green using string or tees, each area should be about 6 feet across.

4

Hit 36 bump-n-run shots, trying to land 9 balls in each area.

5

Start from one pile, aim at one area, and hit all 9 balls. Move to the next pile and area.

6

Keep going until all 36 shots are done, 9 shots per area.

7

Count how many balls stopped in the target area each time.

8

After all 36 shots, enter how many successes out of 36 in the app.

Scoring benchmarks

Repetitions36
Handicap+9+5+151219273654
Score3129272318141074

Next Step

Ready to start this program?

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

Keep Ball Close To Hole | Maebashi Links