Before putting central Hants right on the map (4)
I believe the answer is:
ante
'before' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)
'central hants right on the map' is the wordplay.
'central' says to take the centre.
'right on the map' becomes 'e' (I am not sure about this - if you are sure you should believe this answer much more).
The middle of 'hants' is 'ant'.
'ant'+'e'='ANTE'
'putting' is the link.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for ante that I've seen before include "A neat sort of prefix" , "Each player's initial contribution to the pot" , "Initial stake in a poker game" , "Poker pot starter" , "Preceding birth" .)