Golf Short Game Practice Plan for 7 and 8 Year Olds
At 7 and 8, the short game is a tossing game that borrows a club: land the ball on a towel, watch it hop and roll, celebrate. The chip's technique is genuinely tiny (a putting-like stroke with a lofted club, hands quiet, brushing the grass), which is exactly why small kids can own it, and why wise golf parents start here instead of the driver.
Thirty minutes with one lofted club (a junior wedge or 9-iron), a few balls (foam or real by space), and towels as landing pads. The framing that organizes all of it: chipping is a game of LANDING SPOTS, not holes: pick where it lands, and the roll is the fun surprise that becomes skill later. Underhand tosses teach the idea before the club complicates it.
This plan was written for every 7 and 8 year old. ParentEdge writes one for yours.
Built around their game, their goals, and what they’re working on.
What club should a 7 year old chip with?
One junior lofted club (a wedge or 9-iron) covers the whole curriculum: enough loft that the brush pops the ball up, enough club that towels get reached. One club, learned deeply, beats a bag of choices at this age by a mile.
Foam balls or real ones for backyard chipping?
By space and windows: foam and airflow balls behave honestly enough for landing-spot games and save every neighbor relationship. Real balls upgrade the roll's truth when space allows. The skills (brush, landing spots, swing sizes) transfer completely either way.
How do I stop the scooping motion?
Setup and picture, never lecture: hands ahead at address, weight favoring the front foot, the brush-the-grass image, and "the loft does the lifting" as the house mantra. Scooping is a helpful instinct pointed the wrong way; the setup makes the right motion the easy one.