APPROACH · DRILL GUIDE
Target Counter
A random zone from your range each time, like 120–130 yards. Hit until a ball finishes in it, then log how many balls it took: the fewer, the better your distances.
Free in your browser. Also on iPhone, iPad and Apple Watch.
WHY IT WORKS
The problem, and the fix
Hitting one ball at a new distance tells you whether you found the green, not how far off your yardages are. When it misses, you never find out what it would take.
Staying on a target until a ball finishes in it turns every miss into an adjustment: a club more, a smaller swing, a firmer strike. The number of balls each distance takes shows which yardages you own and which you don’t.
The goal: Find the zone in fewer balls at every distance in your range, and know which distances still take two or three.
How it works
Five steps from opening the drill to a number for every zone.
- 1In Settings, choose your distance range and step. The step is how deep each zone is: 80 to 160 yards in 10-yard zones unless you change it.
- 2The app gives you a random zone, like 120–130 yards. Pick your club and hit.
- 3Short or long of it? Adjust (a club more, a smaller swing) and hit again at the same zone, until one finishes in it.
- 4Set how many balls it took on the slider (1 to 10, or type it) and tap Log, or tap Didn’t get it.
- 5The next zone comes up. Skip passes a zone without logging anything, Undo takes back the last one, and Finish ends the session.
SEE IT IN ACTION
On iPad, iPhone and the web
Target Counter looks the same everywhere: in your browser on a phone, a tablet or a computer, and in the iPhone and iPad app. On a wide screen it uses two columns, so the buttons stay in reach.
THE ANSWER
One number per zone
Set the balls it took on the slider and tap Log. Under it the app shows what usually happens at this zone (“usually 2.3 here”), and under Didn’t get it, the chance you don’t get it.
On a keyboard, 1 to 9 log that many balls, 0 logs 10 and X is Didn’t get it.
Settings
Settings take effect from the next target and follow you between your devices when you sign in.
Shortest and longest, 10 to 400 yards: 80 to 160 to start. Each zone is drawn so it stays inside your range.
How deep each zone is, 1 to 50 yards: 10 to start, so a zone reads like 120–130 yards.
The slider runs from 1 to 10. Took more? Tap the keyboard button and type it, up to 50.
Progress and badges
Every target is saved, so you can see your distances tighten over weeks.
Your headline: the average balls it took to reach the zone over your last 50 targets, with Targets, First ball (the share you got with the first ball) and Didn’t get it.
A table of every zone: targets, average balls, first ball and didn’t get it, so the yardages that cost you stand out. The Balls to the zone graph puts a dot on every recent target, with misses on top.
First session, 100 targets, 500 targets, 5 first-ball greens in a row, and Dialed in: the first ball in the zone at half the targets or more in a session of at least 10.
Coaching tips
Go through your full routine on the first ball, as on the course. The first-ball share is the number that matters there.
After a miss, change one thing: a club more, or a smaller swing. Change two and you won’t know which one worked.
If one zone keeps taking three or four, that’s the gap in your yardages. Spend your next session there.
SOUND AND HANDS-FREE
Keep your hands on the club
With Voice prompts on, the app says each zone as it comes up (“60 to 70 yards.”). Voice prompts are off to start: turn them on in Profile, or with the drill’s Voice button for one session. Turn on Hands-free and it listens for your answer. Things you can say:
Works in browsers with speech recognition, such as Chrome and Safari, and in the iPhone app. You can always tap instead.
Questions
What counts as in the zone?
A ball that finishes between the zone’s two distances: for 120–130 yards, one that ends up 120 to 130 yards away.
Why isn’t there a short or long button?
The drill counts balls, not misses. How many balls each zone takes is the number that shows which yardages you own.
Do I need a launch monitor?
No. Range flags and a rangefinder work. A launch monitor or simulator just makes each distance exact.
Can I use it on my Apple Watch?
Yes: turn the crown to the number of balls, then tap Log, or Didn’t get it. It also runs on iPhone and iPad, with the same history when you sign in.
Ready for Target Counter?
Open it in your browser and get your first zone. Practice as a guest, or sign in to sync with the iPhone app.
By David Golfs · Questions? david@davidgolfs.com