Course Program

Up-and-down contest: how many can you save in a row?

Turn into birdies, for a 18-handicap player, ~15 minutes at Mulberry Fore Golf Course

Short GameAll teesProgram HCP 188 drills

Program Snapshot

Handicap range

4 to 45

Average HCP

18

Duration (single session)

3 hr 28 min

or

1 drill/day: 8 days · 26 min/day

Ideal tee

All

Skill Distribution

Scoring35%
Alignment13%
Aim12%
Accuracy11%
Distance Control11%
Visualization6%
Precision6%
Dispersion4%
Trajectory2%

Overview

Program Structure

Up-and-down contest: how many can you save in a row?. Save par clutch and up-and-down contest. Focus on Scoring, Alignment, Aim. For a 18-handicap player, in ~15 minutes.

Skill

Scoring

Shot

Pitch

What you will improve

  • Scoring
  • Alignment
  • Aim
  • Accuracy

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 | 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 Pitch | Rough | Uphill/Downhill
1

Make 4 piles of 9 balls each, with 2 piles uphill and 2 piles downhill, all 25–40 yards from the hole in the rough.

2

Mark 3 target zones on the green: Zone A (6 feet left), Zone B (6 feet behind), Zone C (6 feet right) of the hole.

3

Hit 36 total shots: 18 from uphill piles, 18 from downhill piles.

4

For each slope (uphill and downhill), split 18 shots into 3 groups of

5

Aim 6 shots at each zone (A, B, C) from the two piles on the same slope.

6

Alternate shots between the two piles on the same slope.

7

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

8

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

Scoring benchmarks

Repetitions36
Handicap+9+5+151219273654
Score302825201512853
02

Pitch | Scattered 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 | Scattered Piles | Quadrants
1

Make 4 piles of 9 balls each, with piles placed randomly 30–60 yards from the hole.

2

Mark 4 quadrants on the green around the hole using string or tees, each about 9 feet wide.

3

Hit 36 pitch shots, 9 to each quadrant.

4

From any pile, hit 9 balls trying to stop them in the first quadrant.

5

Move to a new pile and hit 9 balls to the second quadrant. Repeat for all quadrants.

6

Count balls that stop inside the target quadrant.

7

Count total balls in the correct quadrant and enter the number out of 36 attempts in the app.

Scoring benchmarks

Repetitions36
Handicap+9+5+151219273654
Score302825201612853
03

Pitch | Deep Rough and Other | Uphill/Downhill

Short Game

Hit 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 Pitch | Deep Rough and Other | Uphill/Downhill
1

Find a place on the uphill slope, 30 to 40 yards from the hole, to hit all shots.

2

Put a target (like a pin or club) at the hole or a visible spot on the green.

3

Split 36 shots into 2 groups of

4

Hit 18 balls from the uphill slope, trying to stop them close to the target.

5

Move to a similar place on the downhill slope at the same distance.

6

Hit 18 balls from the downhill slope at the same target.

7

Count how many balls stop in the chosen scoring area around the target (example: within 3 feet).

8

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

Scoring benchmarks

Repetitions36
Handicap+9+5+151219273654
Score3129262218141063
04

Pitch | Perpendicular Piles | Bullseye 2x

Short Game

Up to 5 players compete to stop a pitch shot in the bullseye. The best final score relative to PAR wins the challenge. One bucket of balls per player is needed.

26 minFocus: Short Game
Diagram for Pitch | Perpendicular Piles | Bullseye 2x
1

Set up 10 piles of balls in two lines that cross each other, with each pile about 3 yards/meters apart.

2

Place the piles 30 to 60 yards/meters from the hole on similar grass.

3

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

4

Take 36 shots: 18 try to land in the small circle, 18 try to land in the outer circle but not in the small circle.

5

Start with any pile and hit 18 shots for the small circle.

6

For the next 18 shots, try to land in the outer circle but not in the small circle.

7

Count a shot as a success if it lands in the circle you are aiming for.

8

After each shot, pick a different pile at random to hit from.

9

Count how many successful shots you made for each circle out of 36 attempts and enter your score in the app.

Scoring benchmarks

Repetitions36
Handicap+9+5+151219273654
Score3028252218141075
05

Pitch | Deep Rough and Other | Uphill/Downhill

Short Game

Hit 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 Pitch | Deep Rough and Other | Uphill/Downhill
1

Make 2 piles of 18 balls each, one uphill and one downhill, 30–60 yards from the hole.

2

Mark 3 target zones on the green: close (within 3 feet), medium (3 to 6 feet), far (6 to 10 feet) from the hole.

3

Hit 36 pitches in total, using both piles and aiming at all zones.

4

From the uphill pile, hit 3 shots at each zone (close, medium, far), for 9 shots.

5

From the downhill pile, repeat: 3 shots at each zone, for 9 shots.

6

Do steps 4 and 5 again, using both piles, until each slope has 18 shots (6 at each zone).

7

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

8

When finished, count successes and enter the number out of 36 attempts in the app.

Scoring benchmarks

Repetitions36
Handicap+9+5+151219273654
Score292724201612853
06

Pitch | 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 Pitch | Rough | Uphill/Downhill
1

Find two places in the rough: one uphill, one downhill, both 30 to 40 yards from the hole.

2

Put three markers at the edge of the green, each about 6 feet apart, to make three target zones (left, center, right).

3

Hit 36 pitch shots: 18 from uphill, 18 from downhill.

4

Split shots into six sets of

6

For each set, aim two shots at each target zone before moving to the next.

5

Keep ball setup the same. Only change aim for the next target zone.

6

After each shot, count it as a success if the ball stops in the correct target zone on the green.

7

After all 36 shots, count how many were successful and enter score in the app (out of 36 attempts).

Scoring benchmarks

Repetitions36
Handicap+9+5+151219273654
Score3129262218141074
07

Pitch| Scattered Piles | 3 Landing Zones

Short Game

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

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

Make 3 piles of 12 golf balls each between 30 and 60 yards from the hole.

2

On the green, set up 3 landing zones in a straight line 9 feet (3 meters) apart.

3

Hit 36 pitch shots in total, grouped into 3 sets of

4

Try to land the first 12 shots in Landing Zone 1, the next 12 in Landing Zone 2, and the last 12 in Landing Zone

5

You can hit from any pile, but keep the ball position the same.

6

Count every ball that stays in the right landing zone as a success.

7

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

Scoring benchmarks

Repetitions36
Handicap+9+5+151219273654
Score3230282520161285
08

Pitch | Parallel 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 | Parallel Piles | Quadrants
1

Set up 10 piles of balls in two lines, 5 piles in each line, 4 yards/meters between piles, and 5-10 yards/meters between lines.

2

Place the piles 30 to 60 yards/meters from the hole on any grass.

3

On the green near the hole, mark 4 areas using string or tees, each area is a quarter-circle with a 9-foot (3-meter) radius.

4

Hit 36 pitch shots in total, 9 shots toward each area.

5

Begin at any pile, hit 9 balls to the first area, then move to the next area until all 4 areas are used.

6

Count every ball that stops inside the area you aimed for as a success.

7

After 36 shots, count successes and enter the score in the app, out of 36 attempts.

Scoring benchmarks

Repetitions36
Handicap+9+5+151219273654
Score302825221713963

Next Step

Ready to start this program?

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