Course Program

Can you stop the ball close from 30 yards?

Vary landing spot, for a 18-handicap player, ~15 minutes at Sunset Grove Country Club

Short GameAll teesProgram HCP 17.98 drills70% match to course practice profile

Program Snapshot

Handicap range

7 to 45

Average HCP

17.9

Duration (single session)

3 hr 28 min

or

1 drill/day: 8 days · 26 min/day

Ideal tee

All

Skill Distribution

Distance Control40%
Aim15%
Dispersion12%
Scoring8%
Precision8%
Trajectory7%
Accuracy6%
Alignment4%

Overview

Program Structure

Can you stop the ball close from 30 yards?. Feel the green and stop on a dime. Focus on Distance Control, Aim, Dispersion, Scoring, Precision, Trajectory, Accuracy, Alignment. For a 18-handicap player, in ~15 minutes.

Skill

Distance Control

Shot

Pitch

What you will improve

  • Distance Control
  • Aim
  • Dispersion
  • Scoring

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 | Scattered Piles | Quadrants

Short Game

Scatter a bucket of balls (avg. bucket is 40 balls) into 8 equal piles of 5 balls and stop pitch shots inside quadrants. Count the number of successes.

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

Make 4 piles of 9 balls each, with the piles 30–60 yards from the hole on different ground.

2

On the green, mark out a 15-foot circle around the hole and divide the circle into 4 equal parts.

3

Hit 9 shots from a pile to try and stop the ball in the first part of the circle.

4

Move to another pile and hit 9 shots for the second part.

5

Repeat for the third and fourth parts, from any pile.

6

Count each ball that stops in the right part as a success.

7

Enter number of successes in the app, out of 36 attempts.

Scoring benchmarks

Repetitions36
Handicap+9+5+151219273654
Score3028252218141063
02

Pitch | Scattered Ball Lines | Multiple Targets

Short Game

Scatter a bucket of balls (avg. bucket is 40 balls) into 8 equal lines of 5 balls and stop pitch shots close to multiple targets. Count the number of successes.

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

Make 8 lines with 5 balls in each line, spread out the lines on grass about 30 to 60 meters from the hole.

2

Put 6 flags around the green, each at least 3 meters apart.

3

Use 36 balls, split into 6 groups of 6 balls.

4

For each group, pick one flag and hit all 6 balls to land near that flag.

5

Move to the next flag and hit the next group, until using all 6 flags.

6

Count each ball that stops within 3 meters of the flag.

7

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

Scoring benchmarks

Repetitions36
Handicap+9+5+151219273654
Score3028262218141074
03

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
04

Pitch | Scattered Ball Lines | Quadrants

Short Game

Scatter a bucket of balls (avg. bucket is 40 balls) into 8 equal lines of 5 balls and stop pitch shots inside quadrants. Count the number of successes.

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

Scatter 40 balls in 8 lines of 5 balls each, spaced 1 yard/meter apart, between 30 and 60 yards/meters from the hole.

2

Divide a 15-foot (5-meter) circle around the hole into 4 equal quadrants using string or tees.

3

Hit 36 pitch shots, in 8 groups of 5 balls each, aiming at a specific quadrant for each group.

4

For each group of 5 shots, pick one quadrant as the target and try to stop all 5 balls inside it.

5

Change target quadrant after every group, using all 4 quadrants at least once. The last group can target any quadrant.

6

Count every ball that stops in the chosen quadrant as a success.

7

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

Scoring benchmarks

Repetitions36
Handicap+9+5+151219273654
Score3129262218141074
05

Pitch | Parallel Piles | 3 Landing Zones

Short Game

Align a bucket of balls (avg. bucket is 40 balls) into 10 equal parallel piles of 4 balls and hit-and-land pitch shots inside landing zones. Count the number of successes.

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

Arrange 36 balls into 9 piles of 4 balls each, 30 to 60 yards from the hole.

2

On the green, make 3 landing zones spaced 9 feet apart.

3

Hit 36 pitch shots, aiming for 12 shots in each zone.

4

Start from any pile, switch piles after every shot, and aim for Zone 1 for the first 12 shots.

5

After 12 shots in Zone 1, aim for Zone 2 for 12 shots, then Zone 3 for the last 12 shots.

6

Count each shot that stays inside the target zone.

7

At the end, add up the number of successful shots and enter the score in the app, out of 36 attempts.

Scoring benchmarks

Repetitions36
Handicap+9+5+151219273654
Score3230282520161285
06

Pitch | Perpendicular Piles | Quadrants

Short Game

Align a bucket of balls (avg. bucket is 40 balls) into 10 equal perpendicular piles of 4 balls and stop pitch shots inside quadrants. Count the number of successes.

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

Set up 2 lines of 5 piles, each with 4 balls. Lines should be 5 to 10 yards/meters apart, piles 2 yards/meters apart.

2

Place lines 30 to 60 yards/meters from the hole, on grass, any slope.

3

On the green, use string or tees to make a circle with a 15-foot (5 meter) radius around the hole. Divide this circle into 4 equal parts.

4

Hit 36 pitch shots from the piles to the green, 9 shots for each of the 4 parts.

5

Hit from different piles, aiming for the current part. Finish all 9 shots in one part before switching.

6

Count each shot that stops in the right part.

7

Add up total successful shots. Enter score in the app, out of 36 attempts.

Scoring benchmarks

Repetitions36
Handicap+9+5+151219273654
Score3028262218141074
07

Pitch | Parallel Ball Lines | 9 Stop Zones

Short Game

Up to 5 players compete to stop a pitch shot in the stop zone(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 | 9 Stop Zones
1

Set up 9 stop zones on the green using markers, buckets, tees, or string.

2

Place 4 lines of 9 balls off the green, with each ball 1 foot apart. Keep each line 5 yards apart and between 30 and 60 yards from the hole.

3

Hit 36 pitch shots total, 4 shots for each of the 9 stop zones.

4

Start at any ball line. Hit 4 balls toward the first stop zone. Repeat for each stop zone, hitting 4 balls per zone.

5

After each shot, see if the ball stopped in the right zone. Count balls that stopped inside the correct zone.

6

Keep ball positions and distance the same. Only change your target zone after every 4 shots.

7

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

Scoring benchmarks

Repetitions36
Handicap+9+5+151219273654
Score3129262218141063
08

Pitch | Parallel Ball Lines | 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. Up to 80 balls are needed.

26 minFocus: Short Game
Diagram for Pitch | Parallel Ball Lines | 3 Landing Zones
1

Place 4 lines of 5 balls. Balls in each line are 1 foot apart. Lines are 5 yards apart and 20 to 40 yards from the hole.

2

Mark 3 landing zones on the green, each 6 feet apart.

3

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

4

Use one line for 12 shots at the first zone, another line for 12 shots at the second zone, and the last line for 12 shots at the third zone.

5

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

6

Add up successful shots and enter the number 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.