60-minute practice plan
The ultimate one-hour golf practice routine
A focused hour should train the shots you use on the course—not just the club that feels best on the range. This golf practice routine gives every minute a purpose and every block a score.
At a glance
Your 60-minute plan
| Time | Focus | Goal |
|---|---|---|
| 0–8 min | Warm up | Move well and find your tempo |
| 8–20 min | Putting | Start line and distance control |
| 20–35 min | Short game | Different lies and landing spots |
| 35–50 min | Approach shots | Contact, target and club changes |
| 50–55 min | Tee shots | A dependable fairway pattern |
| 55–60 min | Pressure finish | Commit when every shot counts |
0–8 minutes
Warm up and find your tempo
Start with movement, not full-speed drivers. Make a few gentle rotations and hip hinges, then hit short wedge shots before gradually lengthening the swing.
- 1Make 8–10 half swings with a wedge, beginning without a ball if needed.
- 2Hit 5 balls at roughly 50% effort, then 5 at 70%.
- 3Choose one clear target and finish balanced after every swing.
Record: how many of the final 5 shots started toward your target?
8–20 minutes
Putting: start line, then pace
Use the first half to sharpen short-putt control and the second half to practise distance. Avoid rolling a pile of balls from one place without a target.
- 1Start-line gate: place two tees just wider than the putter head. Make 10 putts from 1 metre through the gate.
- 2Lag ladder: putt one ball from 6, 9 and 12 metres. Try to finish each inside one putter length of the hole.
- 3Repeat the ladder once, changing the line or hole.
Record: short putts holed out of 10, plus lag putts inside one putter length out of 6.
20–35 minutes
Short game: nine different problems
Take one ball and play nine up-and-down attempts. Change the lie, landing spot or club each time so every shot requires a fresh decision.
- 1Choose three easy, three medium and three difficult starting positions.
- 2Read each shot, choose a landing spot, then play the chip or pitch and hole the putt.
- 3Score every station as a par 3. Nine holes gives a par of 27.
Record: total score and number of up-and-downs. Keep the same test for future sessions.
35–50 minutes
Approach shots: change the question
Move away from repeating one club. Pick a target for every ball and rotate through three clubs to make the practice closer to the decisions you face on the course.
- 1Hit 3 balls with a short iron, 3 with a mid-iron and 3 with a wedge.
- 2Change club after every shot for the final 6 balls.
- 3Use your full pre-shot routine and picture the intended flight before swinging.
Record: solid strikes and shots finishing inside your chosen target area out of 15.
50–55 minutes
Tee shots: find one playable shape
This is not a speed test. Pick a fairway between two range targets and hit the club you would trust on a demanding tee shot.
- 1Hit 5 tee shots with a complete pre-shot routine.
- 2Keep one intended shape and one fairway target.
- 3Count a ball only when its starting line and curve would leave a playable next shot.
Record: playable tee shots out of 5.
55–60 minutes
Finish under pressure
Return to the putting green and give the final five minutes a consequence. A simple finish makes concentration—not ball count—the priority.
- 1Choose three putts from about 1.2 metres around one hole.
- 2Make all three in succession to complete the challenge.
- 3If you miss, restart from the first position until time expires.
Record: completed or not completed. That is your benchmark for next time.
Make it yours
Adjust the routine to your game
Keep the warm-up and pressure finish, then move up to ten minutes toward the area costing you the most shots. Take those minutes from your strongest area so the full session still ends at one hour.
New golfer
Spend the extra time on putting and simple chips. Use fewer clubs and larger targets.
Mid-handicapper
Track misses by direction. Give extra time to the pattern that appears most often on the course.
Low-handicapper
Narrow target zones, vary trajectories and make every final block a scored challenge.
What to record after practice
Write down the five scores from the session and one sentence about your most common miss. On your next visit, repeat the same tests before changing the routine. Comparable scores are more useful than remembering whether the session merely felt good.
- Short putts holed / 10
- Lag putts close / 6
- Short-game score / 27
- Approach targets hit / 15
- Playable tee shots / 5
- Pressure finish: yes or no
Practice with purpose
A clear plan for every session.
DIALLED turns your available time and goals into a focused golf practice plan. Join the waitlist for launch updates.
See how DIALLED worksFurther reading
This routine draws on established practice principles, including changing clubs and targets rather than repeating one shot. For more perspectives, see advice from Golf Digest and Golf Monthly.