Course Program

Turn pitches into birdie looks—score from the fairway

Up-and-down contest, for a 23-handicap player, ~20 minutes at Washington County Golf Course

Short GameAll teesProgram HCP 23.36 drills70% match to course practice profile

Program Snapshot

Handicap range

10 to 45

Average HCP

23.3

Duration (single session)

2 hr 36 min

or

1 drill/day: 6 days · 26 min/day

Ideal tee

All

Skill Distribution

Scoring30%
Aim26%
Alignment17%
Dispersion14%
Distance Control10%
Precision4%

Overview

Program Structure

Turn pitches into birdie looks—score from the fairway. Turn into birdies and up-and-down contest. Focus on Scoring, Aim, Alignment, Dispersion, Distance Control, Precision. For a 23-handicap player, in ~20 minutes.

Skill

Scoring

Shot

Pitch

What you will improve

  • Scoring
  • Aim
  • Alignment
  • Dispersion

Program details

Sessions
6 focused drills
Recommended
2–3 sessions / week
Total duration
2 hr 36 min
or
1 drill per day
6 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 | Multiple Targets

Short Game

Up to 5 players compete to stop a pitch shot closest to the multiple target(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 | Multiple Targets
1

Pick 3 targets on the green at least 6 feet apart.

2

Put 36 balls into 6 piles of 6 balls, between 20 and 40 yards from the hole, on different slopes and grass types.

3

Split shots into 3 sets of

4

For the first 12 shots, aim to stop the ball close to target

5

For the next 12 shots, aim to stop close to target

6

For the last 12 shots, aim to stop close to target

7

A shot counts if the ball stops within 3 feet of the correct target.

8

Keep the ball setup the same for every shot.

9

Count how many balls ended close to the proper target, and enter your score out of 36 attempts.

Scoring benchmarks

Repetitions36
Handicap+9+5+151219273654
Score302825221713963
02

Pitch | Fairway | Above/Below Feet

Short Game

Hit 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 Pitch | Fairway | Above/Below Feet
1

Pick a place on the fairway where the ball is above your feet and about 30 to 40 yards from the hole.

2

Put 18 balls in a pile on your side at this spot.

3

Pick a target on the green and keep it the same for the first 6 shots.

4

Hit 6 pitch shots trying to get close to the target from the above-feet slope.

5

Change the target after every 6 shots. Do this 3 times for a total of 18 shots from this spot.

6

Move to a place where the ball is below your feet, again 30 to 40 yards from the hole.

7

Put 18 more balls in a pile at this new spot.

8

Do exactly the same as before: 6 shots per target, 3 targets, 18 shots total.

9

Count a shot as a success if the ball stops very close to the target.

0

After 36 shots, 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
Score3028262218131074
03

Pitch | Perpendicular Piles | 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. One bucket of balls per player is needed.

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

Place 10 piles of balls in two lines that cross each other, with 5 piles in each line, spaced 3 yards apart.

2

Put these piles on grass, 30 to 60 yards from the hole.

3

On the green, mark 9 clear stop zones using buckets, string, or tees, spaced evenly.

4

Hit 36 pitch shots, aiming 4 shots at each of the 9 stop zones.

5

From any pile, hit 4 balls trying to stop them in the first zone.

6

After 4 shots, aim at the next zone and hit 4 more shots, repeating for each zone.

7

Keep hitting 4 shots per stop zone until all 9 zones are done (total 36 shots).

8

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

9

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

Scoring benchmarks

Repetitions36
Handicap+9+5+151219273654
Score3129262218141074
04

Pitch | Parallel Ball Lines | Quadrants

Short Game

Align a bucket of balls (avg. bucket is 40 balls) into 2 parallel lines 20 balls per line and stop pitch shots inside quadrants. Count the number of successes.

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

Arrange 40 balls in 2 lines of 20 balls each, 5 to 10 yards apart, with 1 foot between each ball.

2

Set up a 15-foot circle on the green, and divide it into 4 equal quadrants using string or tees.

3

Hit 36 pitch shots: 18 from the first line and 18 from the second line.

4

Hit 9 shots at each quadrant, for 4 groups of 9 shots.

5

Hit 9 shots from the first line to the first quadrant.

6

Hit 9 shots from the second line to the second quadrant.

7

Hit 9 shots from the first line to the third quadrant.

8

Hit 9 shots from the second line to the fourth quadrant. Enter score in the app out of 36 attempts.

Scoring benchmarks

Repetitions36
Handicap+9+5+151219273654
Score312926221813963
05

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
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

Next Step

Ready to start this program?

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