The 9-Shot Landing Zone
The 9-Shot Landing Zone is a scoring skills drill from The Adaptive Golfer. Score nine wedge shots to three targets by landing-zone proximity, out of a maximum of 27. It trains wedge proximity, and your result is measured as Practice Strokes Gained against your handicap band.
VIDEO TRANSCRIPT
Here's the Nine-Shot Landing Zone. It tests whether you can land a wedge where you aim, not just somewhere near the pin. Set three targets at varied distances. Around fifty, seventy, and ninety yards works well. Give each target a landing zone - a circle about twenty yards in diameter. That circle - which gives you about 30 feet on any side of the target - is your scoring ring. Pick targets that match no matrix number perfectly. That forces a real club-selection decision before every shot. Hit nine shots. Three at each target, in random order, never three in a row at the same one. Score three points inside ten feet. Two points from ten to twenty. One point from twenty to thirty. Zero beyond that. Record your total out of twenty-seven. For a mid handicap, aim for eighteen to twenty-two out of twenty-seven. Log every rep in The Adaptive Golfer.
How to do The 9-Shot Landing Zone
- Set three targets at varied distances (e.g. 50, 70, 90 yards), each ringed by a scoring zone about 30 feet on any side.
- Hit nine shots — three at each target, in random order, never three in a row at the same one.
- Score 3 points inside 10 feet, 2 for 10–20 feet, 1 for 20–30 feet, and 0 beyond 30 feet.
- Record the total out of 27.
Setting targets that exactly match your matrix distances, which makes it recalibration rather than performance. Use targets that match no matrix number perfectly to force the club-selection decision.
▲ LEVEL UP
Narrow the 3-point zone from 10 feet to 8, then 6, raising the benchmark accordingly.
How The 9-Shot Landing Zone is scored
Score points up to a maximum of 27.
Here is what each handicap band should be hitting (points, higher is better):
| HANDICAP BAND | TARGET |
|---|---|
| Scratch (0–2) | — |
| 3–7 | 22–25 |
| 8–13 | 18–22 |
| 14–19 | 14–18 |
| 20+ | 10–14 |
Your result is converted to Practice Strokes Gained against your band, so you always know if you are above, at, or below where you should be.
Log each rep and see whether you are above, at, or below your band — not just the target.
The 5-pillar diagnosis tells you whether this drill is even the thing costing you strokes.
A four-week plan picks your drills and recalculates as your numbers move.
As seen in Chapter 25 — Drill 6 of The Adaptive Golfer. The drills, benchmarks, and plans in the app are built on the published methodology.
The 9-Shot Landing Zone FAQ
Score nine wedge shots to three targets by landing-zone proximity, out of a maximum of 27.
A mid-handicap golfer (8 to 13) should aim for 18 to 22 points.
It builds your scoring skills, specifically wedge proximity.
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Log The 9-Shot Landing Zone in The Adaptive Golfer and see your Practice Strokes Gained against your handicap band.
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