This clever 15-minute warm-up routine will dial in your short game

When it comes to dialing in the short game, there’s no other way to improve than to practice, practice, practice!

Unfortunately, when you walk up and down the driving range, there’s probably few amateur golfers actually putting in any work with their wedges, and most would rather hit a bunch of balls with their driver, woods, or irons.

Don’t get me wrong, those clubs are important — every club in your bag is — but if you’re trying to score lower and not just hit the ball better, focusing on the short game is the way to go.

And a man who knows a little bit about sticky wedge shots is GOLF Teacher to Watch Parker McLachlin, aka the Short Game Chef, who works with players of all abilities to hone their touch around the greens.

As someone who has taken a couple of lessons from McLachlin, I’ve witnessed his magic firsthand. He doesn’t just make you think differently about an upcoming wedge shot, but he simplifies the process, too, allowing you to stay free and use your natural athleticism. Great results often follow immediately.

Use this short game warm-up before your next round

Although practicing the short game might not be as fun as trying to bomb drives, if you understand how to actually organize your practice, it can be both enjoyable and effective.

To help, McLachlin shared an easy 15-minute warm-up routine that every player should add into their daily plan.

As the video above shows, he simply hits five balls from 15 yards off the green, targeting different flags on the practice green to help dial in both his touch and distance control.

After completing those five shots, McLachlin then moves back just 30 feet (to 25 yards), hitting five more balls. As you can probably see in the video, he’s really focusing on extending his backswing and follow through, and making sure his tempo is consistent each time.

When he’s done from that distance, McLachlin works on tighter lies, focusing on downhill greenside shots, ensuring he makes good contact and gets a feel for how the balls rolls once it lands on the green. These are often tricky types of shots — and can be round-wreckers without good practice and technique — so this is a key area for many mid-handicappers to save strokes from.

Finally, he moves to a higher, spinnier flop shot over a bunker, hitting five shots from this area. This allows him to open the face up, engage the bounce, and use the necessary speed to get some spin on the ball.

Put it all together and you’ve got a fun, challenging, and efficient short game warm-up that’s sure to improve your touch with the wedges. So ditch the driver and perfect your skills around the green the next time you’re at the practice range.

To see more short game tips from Parker McLachlin, head over to his website.

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Nick Dimengo

Golf.com Editor