Here is a simple little drill that will work wonders with your short game. No fancy equipment is needed, in fact you have all the stuff you need right in your golf bag. In fact, it includes your golf bag!

The idea of this drill goes back to Sandy’s chipping fundamentals. Let’s review them. But, first the key idea of successful chipping.

Get the ball safely on the green as soon as possible with enough "run" to reach the hole. In other words, you don’t want to fly the ball too far onto the green with all the vagaries of feel that would take.

My first principle: Have only one stroke. Change clubs to vary distance. For example, If you are close to the green and close to the flagstick, you might hit a sand wedge. If you were close to the green, but far from the flagstick, you might hit a 7-iron or more.

There is no set formula. You have to experiment with your own swing, the weight and loft of your clubs, etc. It is like tuning up a musical instrument.

The other four principles are these:

1. Choke the club down nearly to the “metal” (or graphite).
2. Keep your weight leftward and back toward your heels.
3. During the stroke, do not let the clubhead pass your hands before your hands have passed your chin.
4. Minimize your body movement. Keep your head very still in space, both horizontally as well as vertically.

The drill I like is where I take my bag, as in the photo, put down some balls about two yards from it, and put a towel where I want the balls to land. Then I practice the single stroke I want, changing clubs when I want to hit to different targets.

I try to hit the shots to just skim over the bag to achieve the idea of landing consistently and not manipulating the speed of the swing to achieve different distances.

This drill can be practiced right in your back lawn, at the local high school or park. Just learning to control the tempo and range of the swing to go from the pile of balls you see in the photo to the towel just beyond will work wonders for your short game.

Remember that 70% of the golf game is played under 100 yards. Make this important part of the game your strength to cut those removable ugly strokes off your handicap.

(c) Sandy Bunker, 2007

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