Short Game
The short game is the play around the green: chipping, pitching, bunker shots and putting.
The short game covers everything that happens closer to the hole, roughly within a hundred metres. This includes the chip from the edge, the higher pitch over obstacles, the shot from the bunker and, of course, the putt. In German golf language, the same area is called short game. Statistically, the largest share of all strokes in a round happens in this zone, not off the tee. Whoever is solid here can compensate for weak long shots and still post good scores.
In practice, the short game decides your score. One example: your approach misses the green by ten metres to the left. Instead of two more strokes, you chip the ball to within a metre and hole the putt — par saved, even though the green was not hit in regulation. Exactly these saves are measured by the statistic scrambling. Professionals train the short area for hours every day, because that is where the scores are made, not in hitting the longest drives.
A typical amateur mistake is one-sided practice on the driving range. The full swing is fun and visible, but the strokes around the green decide the round. A sensible rule: at least half of your practice time belongs to the short game. Also wrong is the assumption that short shots are easy. They demand a feel for distance and touch, and both come only through repetition from different lies and with different clubs.
FAQ
How much of my practice time should go into the short game?
A sensible rule of thumb: at least half. Statistically, the largest share of all strokes in a round happens within a hundred metres of the hole, not off the tee. Anyone who practises only the full swing on the driving range is practising the most impressive but least important part of their game.
Which shots should I start with in the short game?
Start with the chip from the edge of the green, because it is the simplest and most common rescue shot. After that come the higher pitch over obstacles and the bunker shot, and putting belongs in every practice session anyway. Variety matters: practise from different lies and with different clubs, so that a feel for distance develops.
Can a good short game compensate for a weak tee shot?
Yes, up to a point — and that is exactly what the scrambling statistic measures: how often you save par even though you did not hit the green in regulation. A clean chip to within a metre and a putt save the par after two average strokes. In the long run, a strong short game lowers your score more reliably than twenty extra metres off the tee.