Drill Library

21 proven drills across every swing phase.

Wall Drill for Posture

Setup

Builds a repeatable athletic setup posture by using a wall to teach the correct hip hinge instead of slouching or standing too tall.

How to do it

  1. 1Stand with your back to a wall, heels about 15 cm (6 in) away from it.
  2. 2Push your hips straight back until your rear end touches the wall, keeping your back straight.
  3. 3Let your arms hang naturally under your shoulders and add a little knee flex.
  4. 4Hold that position for a few seconds, then step away and take your grip without changing anything.

Feel: Bowing from the hips like a waiter, not squatting or hunching your shoulders.

Equipment: none (any wall)

Alignment Stick Station

Setup

The classic two-stick range station that trains aim and body alignment, fixing the most common setup fault: shoulders and feet pointed way off target.

How to do it

  1. 1Lay one alignment stick on the ground pointing at your target, just outside the ball.
  2. 2Lay a second stick parallel to the first, along your toe line.
  3. 3Set your feet, knees, hips, and shoulders parallel to the toe-line stick (like railroad tracks).
  4. 4Hit balls checking after every few shots that your body is still parallel to the sticks.

Feel: Standing on the inside rail of railroad tracks while the ball travels down the outside rail.

Equipment: two alignment sticks (or two spare clubs)

Ball Position T-Drill

Setup

Uses a T of alignment sticks to make ball position consistent — a wandering ball position quietly ruins contact and start line.

How to do it

  1. 1Lay one stick down your target line and a second stick perpendicular to it, pointing at the ball, forming a T.
  2. 2For wedges and short irons, set the cross stick at the middle of your stance.
  3. 3For longer clubs, move the cross stick progressively forward, up to your lead heel for driver.
  4. 4Hit five balls with each club, setting up to the same cross-stick reference every time.

Feel: The ball finds the same spot in your stance automatically, without a second look.

Equipment: two alignment sticks

Towel Under the Arms (Connection Drill)

Takeaway

The famous connection drill: a towel across the chest and under both armpits keeps arms and body turning together instead of the arms lifting on their own.

How to do it

  1. 1Drape a towel across your chest and trap an end under each armpit.
  2. 2Make smooth half swings without letting the towel fall out.
  3. 3Focus on your chest, arms, and club moving away from the ball as one unit.
  4. 4Progress to three-quarter swings and light contact once the towel stays put.

Feel: Your arms stay glued to your chest and the big muscles do the moving.

Equipment: a small towel (or two golf gloves/headcovers)

Headcover Outside the Ball

Takeaway

A headcover placed just outside and behind the ball stops the two big path killers: sucking the club inside on the takeaway and coming over the top later.

How to do it

  1. 1Place a headcover about a clubhead-width outside the target line and 30 cm (12 in) behind the ball.
  2. 2Take the club back so it misses the headcover on the inside — straight back, not looped outward.
  3. 3Swing down so the club also misses the headcover, approaching the ball from the inside.
  4. 4Start with slow practice swings, then hit easy shots at half speed before going full.

Feel: The clubhead traces a gentle arc that never drifts outside the ball line.

Equipment: a headcover (or an empty water bottle)

One-Piece Takeaway (Triangle Drill)

Takeaway

Preserves the triangle formed by your arms and shoulders for the first metre of the swing, so the club starts back on plane without early wrist flicking.

How to do it

  1. 1At address, notice the triangle made by your two arms and shoulder line.
  2. 2Turn your chest to move the club back until the shaft is parallel to the ground, keeping the triangle intact.
  3. 3Check that the clubhead stays outside your hands and the face isn’t rolled open.
  4. 4Return to address and repeat ten times, then blend it into full swings.

Feel: The chest turn pushes the whole triangle back — hands stay quiet and passive.

Equipment: none

Club-Across-Chest Turn Drill

Backswing

Trains a full shoulder turn and proper spine tilt by rehearsing the body rotation with a club held across the chest — no arms to cheat with.

How to do it

  1. 1Cross your arms and hold a club against your chest, then take your golf posture.
  2. 2Turn your torso so the grip end points down at (or just outside) the ball position.
  3. 3Keep your trail knee flexed and feel pressure load into your trail heel.
  4. 4Turn through to the finish so the clubhead end points at the ball location, then repeat.

Feel: Your back turns to face the target while your lower body stays stable and loaded.

Equipment: one club

Back-to-Target Turn Drill

Backswing

A mirror checkpoint drill for completing the backswing turn — short, armsy backswings cost both power and sequencing.

How to do it

  1. 1Set up side-on to a mirror (or film yourself face-on).
  2. 2Swing to the top and stop: your lead shoulder should be under your chin and your back facing the target.
  3. 3Check the trail knee still has flex and your head hasn’t swayed off the ball.
  4. 4Hold two seconds, recheck, then swing through. Do ten slow reps.

Feel: You coil your upper body against a braced trail leg, like winding a spring.

Equipment: none (a mirror or phone camera helps)

Pump Drill

Transition

The classic anti-over-the-top move: repeated “pumps” from the top teach the club to drop into the inside slot as the lower body starts first.

How to do it

  1. 1Swing to the top of your backswing and pause.
  2. 2Pump the club halfway down by shifting into your lead side and letting your arms drop — then return to the top.
  3. 3Repeat the pump three times, feeling the hands drop toward your trail hip pocket each time.
  4. 4On the third pump, keep going and hit the ball at 70% speed.

Feel: The club falls behind you into the slot while your hips lead the way.

Equipment: none

Pause-at-the-Top Drill

Transition

Inserting a deliberate one-second pause at the top kills the rushed, snatchy transition and forces the downswing to start from the ground up.

How to do it

  1. 1Make a normal, full backswing and stop completely at the top.
  2. 2Count “one-thousand-one” while holding your coil.
  3. 3Start the downswing by pressing into your lead foot — not by throwing your hands.
  4. 4Hit smooth shots this way; the ball should still fly surprisingly far.

Feel: The lower body starts the race while the club is still waiting at the top.

Equipment: none

Step-Change Drill (Step Into It)

Transition

Borrowed from throwing sports: stepping toward the target during the swing ingrains the pressure shift that should start every downswing.

How to do it

  1. 1Set up to a ball with your feet together.
  2. 2Start your backswing, and as the club reaches the top, step your lead foot toward the target into its normal position.
  3. 3Let the step trigger the downswing and swing through to a full finish.
  4. 4Start without a ball, then hit easy shots once the timing feels natural.

Feel: Like a pitcher striding toward home plate — weight flows forward before the arms fire.

Equipment: none

Whoosh Drill

Downswing

Swinging a club upside down and listening for where the “whoosh” happens exposes early release: the loudest noise should be at the ball, not at the top.

How to do it

  1. 1Flip a club upside down and grip it just below the clubhead.
  2. 2Make full-speed swings and listen for the whoosh of the shaft.
  3. 3If the whoosh happens early (behind you), you are casting — releasing speed too soon.
  4. 4Keep swinging until the loudest whoosh happens down where the ball would be, past your lead thigh.

Feel: You save the speed for the bottom — lazy from the top, fast through the ball.

Equipment: one club

Alignment-Stick Plane Gate

Downswing

A stick angled in the ground behind you gives instant feedback on downswing path: swing under it and you attack from the inside, hit it and you came over the top.

How to do it

  1. 1Push an alignment stick into the ground a metre behind the ball, angled up at roughly your shaft angle and leaning away from the target line.
  2. 2Take slow practice swings, dropping the club under the stick on the way down.
  3. 3If you clip the stick, rehearse the feeling of your hands dropping closer to your body from the top.
  4. 4Hit half-speed shots, keeping every downswing under the stick.

Feel: The club shallows and swings out to right field (for a right-hander) through impact.

Equipment: one alignment stick

Impact Bag Drill

Impact

Hitting a soft bag freezes your impact position so you can build forward shaft lean, a flat lead wrist, and weight on the lead side — the ingredients of compression.

How to do it

  1. 1Place an impact bag (or a duffel stuffed with towels) where the ball would be.
  2. 2Make slow half swings and stop the clubhead against the bag.
  3. 3At contact check: hands ahead of the clubhead, lead wrist flat, hips slightly open, most weight on the lead foot.
  4. 4Gradually add speed, striking the bag firmly while holding that same shape.

Feel: You lean the shaft forward and trap the bag with your whole body, not just your hands.

Equipment: impact bag or a duffel bag stuffed with towels

9-to-3 Drill (Punch Shots)

Impact

The most-prescribed drill in golf: half swings from 9 o’clock to 3 o’clock build crisp, ball-first contact and a square face without full-swing complications.

How to do it

  1. 1Take a mid-iron and set up normally with a slightly narrower stance.
  2. 2Swing your lead arm back to 9 o’clock (parallel to the ground) with a light wrist hinge.
  3. 3Swing through to 3 o’clock on the other side, chest facing the target, hands finishing low.
  4. 4Strike ball then turf, and hold the 3 o’clock finish for two seconds on every rep.

Feel: A firm, compact punch — ball first, turf second, chest turning through.

Equipment: none

Tee Gate Drill (Center Strike)

Impact

Two tees form a gate just wider than the clubhead; swinging through without touching either tee trains center-face contact, the fastest way to gain distance.

How to do it

  1. 1Push two tees into the ground forming a gate about a centimetre wider than your clubhead, with the ball centred between them.
  2. 2Hit easy half shots, swinging the clubhead cleanly through the gate.
  3. 3Clip the outer tee and you are hitting it off the heel; the inner tee means toe strikes.
  4. 4Widen the gate if you struggle, and narrow it as your strike tightens up.

Feel: The sweet spot threads the needle through the gate every time.

Equipment: two tees

Hold-the-Finish Drill

Finish

Holding a full, balanced finish for three seconds after every shot back-fills good habits: you cannot finish in balance if the swing before it was out of control.

How to do it

  1. 1Hit a shot at 80% effort and swing all the way to a complete finish.
  2. 2Hold the pose for a slow three-count: weight stacked on the lead leg, trail toe down.
  3. 3Check that your belt buckle and chest face the target and you could lift your trail foot.
  4. 4If you wobble or fall out of the pose, slow the next swing down until you can hold it.

Feel: Posing for the camera — tall, balanced, and facing the target until the ball lands.

Equipment: none

Belt Buckle to the Target

Finish

A simple rotation-completion cue: finishing with the belt buckle at the target guarantees the hips kept turning through impact instead of stalling.

How to do it

  1. 1Make practice swings focusing only on where your belt buckle points at the end.
  2. 2Finish with the buckle (and chest) facing the target, hips fully rotated.
  3. 3Let the trail foot release up onto its toe as the hips pull it around.
  4. 4Hit balls with the single thought: “turn the buckle to the target.”

Feel: Your hips keep spinning through the ball and drag everything else around with them.

Equipment: none

3:1 Tempo Counting Drill

Tempo

Tour players swing with a backswing roughly three times longer than the downswing. Counting a “one-two-three… one” rhythm out loud grooves that ratio.

How to do it

  1. 1Without a ball, swing while counting evenly: “one-two-three” to the top of the backswing.
  2. 2Say “one” as you swing down and through impact — the downswing gets a single beat.
  3. 3Keep the count (and swing) smooth; don’t jump on the downswing beat.
  4. 4Add a ball and keep counting out loud, matching your strike to the final beat.

Feel: Unhurried going back, one decisive beat coming down — like a waltz ending in a snap.

Equipment: none (a metronome app is a nice upgrade)

Feet-Together Drill

Tempo

Hitting balls with your feet touching removes the lower-body safety net, instantly exposing lunges and over-swinging while grooving balance and smooth tempo.

How to do it

  1. 1Take a mid-iron and stand with your feet touching, ball centred.
  2. 2Make three-quarter swings at about 60% effort and hit the ball.
  3. 3If you stumble or fall off balance, you swung too hard — slow down until you finish steady.
  4. 4Hit ten balls this way, then return to a normal stance and keep the same smoothness.

Feel: The club swings around a quiet, centered body — effortless instead of forced.

Equipment: none

Continuous Swing Drill (Swing the Fence)

Tempo

Swinging back and forth continuously without stopping, like swishing a stick through tall grass, melts tension and restores natural rhythm when the swing gets mechanical.

How to do it

  1. 1Take your setup without a ball and start swinging back and through continuously.
  2. 2Make eight to ten uninterrupted swings, brushing the same spot of turf each time.
  3. 3Let the momentum of each swing start the next one — no pauses, no steering.
  4. 4Step up to a ball and hit it with the same flowing, non-stop feeling.

Feel: The club swings you — loose arms, brushing the grass in an even rhythm.

Equipment: none