Course Program

Stop Ball on Dime

Vary landing spot, for a 23-handicap player, ~20 minutes at The Creek

Short GameAll teesProgram HCP 23.19 drills67% match to course practice profile

Program Snapshot

Handicap range

8 to 45

Average HCP

23.1

Duration (single session)

3 hr 54 min

or

1 drill/day: 9 days · 26 min/day

Ideal tee

All

Skill Distribution

Distance Control32%
Accuracy13%
Alignment12%
Aim10%
Dispersion10%
Precision10%
Scoring9%
Trajectory4%

Overview

Program Structure

Stop Ball on Dime. Feel the green and stop on a dime. Focus on Distance Control, Accuracy, Alignment, Aim, Dispersion, Precision, Scoring, Trajectory. For a 23-handicap player, in ~20 minutes.

Skill

Distance Control

Shot

Chip

What you will improve

  • Distance Control
  • Accuracy
  • Alignment
  • Aim

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

Chip | Parallel Ball Lines | Multiple Targets

Short Game

Align a bucket of balls (avg. bucket is 40 balls) into 2 parallel lines 20 balls per line and stop chip shots close to multiple targets. Count the number of successes.

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

Place 36 balls in 2 straight lines of 18 balls, 6 yards apart. Balls in each line are 1 foot apart.

2

Put 3 flags on the green, each 10 feet apart.

3

Hit 36 chip shots, aiming 12 shots at each flag.

4

From the first line, hit 4 balls to the first flag.

5

From the second line, hit 4 balls to the first flag.

6

Repeat steps 4 and 5 until 12 balls are hit to the first flag.

7

Do the same method for the second flag: 4 shots from each line, until 12 shots are made.

8

Repeat for the third flag.

9

A shot is good if it stops within 10 feet of the target.

0

Add up your good shots and enter the score in the app, out of 36 tries.

Scoring benchmarks

Repetitions36
Handicap+9+5+151219273654
Score282624201612964
02

Chip | Scattered Piles | Quadrants

Short Game

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

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

Scatter 40 balls into 8 piles of 5 balls each between 5 and 30 yards from the hole.

2

On the green, use markers to make a 6-foot circle around the hole and divide it into 4 quadrants.

3

Hit 36 chip shots.

4

Hit 9 shots at each of the 4 quadrants.

5

Hit each shot from a different pile and try to land it in the right quadrant.

6

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

7

Enter number of successful shots out of 36 attempts in the app.

Scoring benchmarks

Repetitions36
Handicap+9+5+151219273654
Score3230282520161285
03

Chip | 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 chip shots inside landing zones. Count the number of successes.

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

Place 36 balls into 9 piles of 4 balls each. Arrange piles in two lines, with 4 in one line and 5 in the other, 5-10 yards apart and 2 yards between piles.

2

On the green, set up 3 landing zones side by side, 6 feet apart, using sticks, clubs, or string.

3

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

4

Hit 12 chip shots at the first landing zone from any piles.

5

Hit 12 chip shots at the second landing zone. Change piles if wanted.

6

Hit 12 chip shots at the third landing zone. Change piles if wanted.

7

Count a success each time the ball stays in the correct landing zone.

8

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

Scoring benchmarks

Repetitions36
Handicap+9+5+151219273654
Score3028262218141074
04

Chip | Fairway | Uphill/Downhill

Short Game

Up to 5 players hit two buckets of balls (avg. bucket is 40 balls) from the sloped fairway; one bucket from the uphill slope and one bucket from the downhill slope.

26 minFocus: Short Game
Diagram for Chip | Fairway | Uphill/Downhill
1

Set up 3 target zones on the green, 5 feet apart in a straight line from closest to farthest from the hole.

2

Place balls at the edge of the fairway on two slopes: uphill and downhill, each about 15 yards from the hole.

3

Hit 18 chip shots from the uphill slope and 18 chip shots from the downhill slope.

4

For each slope, hit 6 shots to each zone, in order.

5

Start with the uphill slope: hit 6 shots to Zone 1, then 6 to Zone 2, then 6 to Zone

6

Move to the downhill slope: hit 6 shots to each zone in order.

7

Count a shot as successful if the ball stops inside the target zone.

8

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

Scoring benchmarks

Repetitions36
Handicap+9+5+151219273654
Score3129272318141074
05

Chip | 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 chip shots inside quadrants. Count the number of successes.

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

Place 36 balls in two lines that cross, with 18 balls in each line.

2

Keep the balls about 1 foot apart, with lines set up 5 to 30 yards from the hole.

3

On the green, divide a 6-foot circle around the hole into 4 equal parts.

4

Split the 36 chip shots into 4 groups of 9 balls.

5

Aim the first 9 shots at the first part of the circle.

6

Switch to the other line and aim the next 9 balls at the second part. Keep switching lines and aim at the next parts until all 36 balls are chipped.

7

Count how many balls land in the right part each time.

8

Enter the number of successful chips out of 36 attempts in the app.

Scoring benchmarks

Repetitions36
Handicap+9+5+151219273654
Score3129262218141174
06

Chip | 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 chip shots inside landing zones. Count the number of successes.

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

Put 40 balls into 8 piles, with 5 balls in each pile, between 5 and 30 yards from the hole.

2

On the green, mark 3 zones in a straight line, each zone 6 feet apart.

3

Hit 36 chip shots in total, split into 3 sets of 12 shots.

4

For the first 12 shots, aim to land the ball in Zone

5

For the next 12 shots, aim for Zone

6

For the last 12 shots, aim for Zone

7

Choose any pile to hit from, switch piles if wanted.

8

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

9

After all 36 shots, enter score in the app, out of 36 attempts.

Scoring benchmarks

Repetitions36
Handicap+9+5+151219273654
Score3230282520161285
07

Chip | Rough | Uphill/Downhill

Short Game

Up to 5 players 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 Chip | Rough | Uphill/Downhill
1

Prepare 36 golf balls in 3 piles of 12 balls each.

2

Set up 3 target zones on the putting green: one uphill, one flat, one downhill.

3

From the rough, 5 to 30 yards away, chip 12 balls to land and stop in the uphill zone.

4

Chip 12 balls to the flat zone.

5

Chip 12 balls to the downhill zone.

6

A shot counts as a success if the ball lands and stops in the correct zone.

7

Keep the ball setup the same for each shot. Only change which zone to aim for.

8

Count how many shots landed and stopped in the right zones out of 36 attempts, and enter the score in the app.

Scoring benchmarks

Repetitions36
Handicap+9+5+151219273654
Score312926221713963
08

Chip | 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 Chip | Fairway | Flat
1

Make 3 piles of 12 golf balls each. Put the piles between 5 and 30 yards from the hole.

2

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

3

Hit 12 balls from each pile to each target zone. First 12 to Zone 1, next 12 to Zone 2, last 12 to Zone

4

Use the same setup for all shots. Aim to land each ball in the target zones.

5

Count shots that land and stop in the target zone.

6

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

Scoring benchmarks

Repetitions36
Handicap+9+5+151219273654
Score3129272318141074
09

Chip | Scattered Ball Lines | 9 Stop Zones

Short Game

Scatter a bucket of balls (avg. bucket is 40 balls) into 8 equal lines of 5 balls and stop chip shots inside 9 Stop Zones. Count the number of successful stops.

26 minFocus: Short Game
Diagram for Chip | Scattered Ball Lines | 9 Stop Zones
1

Place 40 balls in 8 lines of 5 balls each on grass or slope between 5 and 30 yards from the hole.

2

On the green, make 9 stop zones using buckets, string, or tees. Spread them out where chip shots can stop.

3

Set up 36 chip shots in 9 groups of 4 shots.

4

For each group, aim to stop balls in one of the 9 stop zones.

5

Hit 4 balls from one line toward the first zone.

6

Move to another line and aim for the next zone. Keep going until all 9 zones have 4 shots each.

7

Count each shot stopping inside the target zone as a success.

8

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

Scoring benchmarks

Repetitions36
Handicap+9+5+151219273654
Score312926221813964

Next Step

Ready to start this program?

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

Stop Ball on Dime | The Creek