Course Program

Turn flops into par saves—score from the sand or rough

Up-and-down contest, for a 27-handicap player, ~20 minutes at The Links Of Tuscaloosa

Short GameAll teesProgram HCP 27.17 drills66% match to course practice profile

Program Snapshot

Handicap range

8 to 45

Average HCP

27.1

Duration (single session)

3 hr 2 min

or

1 drill/day: 7 days · 26 min/day

Ideal tee

All

Skill Distribution

Scoring32%
Alignment21%
Aim19%
Accuracy15%
Distance Control8%
Visualization3%
Dispersion1%

Overview

Program Structure

Turn flops into par saves—score from the sand or rough. Save par clutch and turn into par saves. Focus on Scoring, Alignment, Aim. For a 27-handicap player, in ~20 minutes.

Skill

Scoring

Shot

Flop

What you will improve

  • Scoring
  • Alignment
  • Aim
  • Accuracy

Program details

Sessions
7 focused drills
Recommended
2–3 sessions / week
Total duration
3 hr 2 min
or
1 drill per day
7 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

Flop | Fairway | Above/Below Feet

Short Game

Hit flop 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 Flop | Fairway | Above/Below Feet
1

Set up two targets on the green about 10 to 15 yards apart.

2

Get 36 balls and split them into 2 groups of

3

Hit 18 flop shots from a slope with the ball above your feet, aiming at the first target.

4

Hit 18 flop shots from a slope with the ball below your feet, aiming at the second target.

5

Count how many balls land and stop within 3 feet of each target. These are successes.

6

Keep your ball setup the same for all shots.

7

After all 36 shots, record how many were successful out of 36 in the app.

Scoring benchmarks

Repetitions36
Handicap+9+5+151219273654
Score3028262218141174
02

Flop | Scattered Piles | Bullseye 2x

Short Game

Up to 5 players compete to stop a flop 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 Flop | Scattered Piles | Bullseye 2x
1

Pick two random spots 5-20 yards from the hole and place two piles of balls. Make spots and surfaces random but similar.

2

Make two circles on the green with string or tees: one circle 6 feet from the hole, one circle 15 feet from the hole.

3

Hit 36 flop shots: 18 shots at the small circle, 18 shots at the big circle.

4

At the first pile, hit 9 balls at the small circle, then 9 at the big circle.

5

At the second pile, again hit 9 at the small circle, then 9 at the big circle.

6

Count balls that stop inside the small circle as birdie. Count balls in the big circle (but outside small) as par.

7

Add up all balls that stayed in both circles. Enter score in the app, out of 36 attempts.

Scoring benchmarks

Repetitions36
Handicap+9+5+151219273654
Score282623181411853
03

Flop | Deep Rough and Other | Above/Below Feet

Short Game

Hit flop 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 Flop | Deep Rough and Other | Above/Below Feet
1

Put 18 balls in one bucket for shots above your feet, and 18 balls in another bucket for shots below your feet.

2

On the practice green, set up 3 target zones in a row, about 10 to 15 feet from the hole.

3

Split the 36 balls into 3 groups of 12 balls.

4

For the first 12 balls, hit from above feet and aim for Target Zone

5

For the next 12 balls, hit from below feet and aim for Target Zone

6

For the last 12 balls, switch between above and below feet every 2 balls and aim for Target Zone

7

Always keep the ball on the correct slope as needed, only change which target zone you aim at as above.

8

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

9

When done, count how many successes out of 36 and enter the score in the app.

Scoring benchmarks

Repetitions36
Handicap+9+5+151219273654
Score282624201612853
04

Flop | Perpendicular Piles | 9 Stop Zones

Short Game

Align a bucket of balls (avg. bucket is 40 balls) into 10 equal perpendicular piles of 4 balls and stop flop shots inside 9 Stop Zones. Count the number of successful stops.

26 minFocus: Short Game
Diagram for Flop | Perpendicular Piles | 9 Stop Zones
1

Place 40 balls into 10 piles of 4 balls each, with the piles in two lines of 5 piles. Lines are about 7 yards apart, and piles are about 2 yards apart within each line.

2

Mark 9 stop zones as a 3-by-3 grid using tees, string, or markers. Zones are about 3 feet apart.

3

Hit 36 balls in total, aiming to land 4 balls in each of the 9 stop zones.

4

Hit 4 balls at the first stop zone from any pile, then move to the next zone and hit 4 balls there. Repeat until all 9 zones are done.

5

Each time a ball stops in the correct zone, count a point.

6

After 36 shots, add up 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
Score312926221713963
05

Flop | Rough | Flat

Short Game

Hit flop shot two buckets of balls (avg. bucket is 40 balls) from the flat rough grass.

26 minFocus: Short Game
Diagram for Flop | Rough | Flat
1

Find a flat spot in the rough, 5 to 20 yards from the hole.

2

Set up three targets on the green, spaced apart for three landing zones.

3

Hit 36 flop shots; 12 shots at each target.

4

Keep ball position the same for all shots, only aim at the next target after 12 shots.

5

Try to land the ball softly in the target zone.

6

Count each shot that lands and stops in the correct zone as a success.

7

After 36 shots (12 per target), add up your total successful shots and enter your score in the app, out of 36 attempts.

Scoring benchmarks

Repetitions36
Handicap+9+5+151219273654
Score302825201612853
06

Flop | Deep Rough and Other | Uphill/Downhill

Short Game

Hit flop 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 Flop | Deep Rough and Other | Uphill/Downhill
1

Make 4 piles of 9 balls: 2 piles uphill in deep rough, 2 piles downhill in deep rough, all 5 to 20 yards from the hole.

2

Mark 3 landing zones on the green in a line, each 6 feet apart: Zone A (closest), Zone B (middle), Zone C (farthest).

3

Hit 36 flop shots: 3 groups of 12 shots.

4

For first 12 shots, hit from uphill piles aiming for Zone A, switching between the two piles after each shot.

5

For next 12 shots, hit from uphill piles aiming for Zone B, switch piles after each shot.

6

For last 12 shots, hit from downhill piles aiming for Zone C, switch piles after each shot.

7

A shot counts if it lands and stops in the target zone.

8

Use same ball position every time. Only change aim for zone and slope.

9

Count how many landed in the target zone out of 36 and enter score in the app.

Scoring benchmarks

Repetitions36
Handicap+9+5+151219273654
Score3028262218141074
07

Flop | Parallel Piles | Bullseye 2x

Short Game

Up to 5 players compete to stop a flop 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 Flop | Parallel Piles | Bullseye 2x
1

Arrange 10 piles of balls in two lines, with 5 piles in each line. Each pile is 4 yards or meters apart. The two lines are 5 to 10 yards or meters apart.

2

Put the piles between 5 and 40 yards or meters from the hole. Do not put them on the green.

3

On the green, use string or tees to make two circles around the hole: one small circle with a 6-foot (2-meter) radius and one big circle with a 15-foot (5-meter) radius.

4

Hit flop shots from each pile. Try to land the ball in the circles. Balls in the small circle are best, in the big circle are medium, and outside both circles are misses.

5

Hit 36 total flop shots. This means 3 sets of 12 shots.

6

For the first 12 shots, aim for the small circle. For the next 12, aim for the area between the two circles. For the last 12, aim anywhere inside the big circle.

7

Pick any pile to start. Hit one flop shot from each pile. Cover all piles evenly.

8

Count each ball that lands where you aimed.

9

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

Scoring benchmarks

Repetitions36
Handicap+9+5+151219273654
Score302825201612853

Next Step

Ready to start this program?

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

Turn flops into par saves—score from the sand or rough | The Links Of Tuscaloosa