A chip does not end when the ball lands. It flies first, then rolls. That makes two separate decisions useful: where should the ball first touch the green, and how far is it likely to travel after that? A player who aims only at the flag may miss an important distinction: the shot can land exactly as intended but still release too far.
THE SOURCE AND ITS LIMITS
On 23 October 2026, Graham Averill wrote about five practice drills in his MyGolfSpy Scratch By 50 series. He reported that his handicap had changed from 13 to 7.5 over six months while working on multiple parts of his game. That is a personal account, not a controlled study. We cannot attribute his progress to one drill or promise the same result to readers.
One exercise, the Landing Zone, involves putting a towel on a practice green and trying to land chips on it, initially paying less attention to where the ball finishes. Averill then experiments with different lies and trajectories. The session below develops that observation into a repeatable self-check; its 24-shot format is a GOLFTWITT editorial proposal, not a protocol tested by MyGolfSpy.
WHY LANDING AND FINISH ARE DIFFERENT TARGETS
A lower chip that releases along the green and a higher shot that stops sooner may need very different landing spots. Club choice, delivered loft, contact quality, ball speed, slope, turf and moisture all influence the relationship. There is no universal rule that every chip should land a fixed distance onto the green.
Suppose the flag is roughly 12 metres away and the front edge of the green is three metres ahead. Instead of aiming vaguely “at the flag,” identify a safe patch of green for the ball's first bounce. Watch how far the ball releases. If you change clubs, grass conditions or slope, re-evaluate that patch rather than insisting on the same landing spot.
SET UP A SAFE PRACTICE AREA
Use a designated short-game practice area with no one in the line of fire. A small flat towel can indicate a landing zone where the facility allows it; otherwise use an existing visual feature or an imagined circle. Never place aids where other players could trip or have their shots disrupted. Choose a familiar wedge, similar balls and a simple, relatively level lie.
Begin close enough that reaching the green is comfortable. A landing target perhaps 1–2 metres across is one possible starting point, not a mandatory standard. Widen it if you are learning; narrow it only if a wider target no longer offers useful feedback.
A 24-SHOT PRACTICE CHECK
Round 1: six baseline chips. Play toward one flag as you normally would. Note the location of the first bounce, final resting distance from the flag and whether each contact was reasonably clean. This is your comparison set.
Round 2: six landing-zone chips. Keep the same club, lie and start position, but nominate a specific patch of green before each swing. Record how many first bounces land inside that patch. Separately record how many balls finish within a personal target radius, such as two metres. A good landing result and a good finishing result are not identical.
Round 3: six chips to a new landing spot. Keep the club, change the destination or starting distance and call your intended first-bounce point before swinging. Resist rebuilding your mechanics in the middle of the set. Look at both landing accuracy and roll-out.
Round 4: six decisions under mild variation. Alternate between two safe starting positions or two distances. Choose the landing area anew each time. Where the practice area permits it, one slightly longer-grass lie can be included, but log it separately from fairway-style lies: turf changes the challenge.
WHAT TO TRACK
Keep three simple numbers: first-bounce hits inside the zone, balls finishing inside your chosen radius, and clearly heavy or thin contacts. Avoid making a conclusion from the single best chip. Repeat the test later under comparable conditions, noting differences in slope, wind, moisture and ball type. The purpose is to learn what you can reproduce, not to manufacture a flattering statistic.
WHEN A DIFFERENT SHOT IS WISER
A low-running chip is not the answer when an obstacle blocks the route or there is no safe running room. Equally, a highly lofted flop from a tight lie can be unforgiving. Do not force a dramatic launch merely for appearance; select a realistic option for the lie and consult a coach when uncertain. Practise only where ball flight and spectators can be controlled.
THE TAKEAWAY
Thinking about the first bounce makes short-game decisions more specific. The Landing Zone concept is a coachable practice cue from one golfer's account; the 24-shot progression here is an editorial observation tool, not evidence of guaranteed lower scores.
Source: Graham Averill, MyGolfSpy, 23 October 2026, “Scratch By 50: 5 Drills That Have Helped Me Drop 5 Strokes Off My Handicap.” https://mygolfspy.com/news-opinion/scratch-by-50-5-drills-that-have-helped-me-drop-5-strokes-off-my-handicap/
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