How Do YOU Practice?

OneFootShort

Well-known member
Joined
Aug 11, 2020
Messages
417
Reaction score
368
Location
Kansas City Area
Handicap
3
Here in the KC area, it's brutally cold out with snow on the ground. Hard to imagine that we are on the backside of the cold weather and about to start the golf season again. Reading @Tenputt 's thread about improvement, I saw a lot of "I want to get better" type answers. How do you plan to do that? Sometimes we get lost in the shuffle of beating balls or just hitting random putts/chips/etc.

Here is my plan on how I will practice. This is just a general idea and malleable:

Driving Range: I like to play the target game. Start at the shortest pin, go through your entire pre-shot routine, take 3 shots at each pin, analyse what happened. Take your weakest pin or shot and work on it from there.

Chipping Area: I take 3 balls and just throw them down in the rough and however/wherever they land, is where I play from. No noodling around the ball to improve the lie. I try to envision a 3-4ft circle around the hole with the goal to be inside of it and FINISH OUT THE PUTTS. I feel this helps me determine shot type out of certain lies, finding a landing area, etc.

Pitching/Sand Area: Not much routine here, needs improvement. Hit a few 30-40yd pitches and then practice clean-outs out of the sand.

Putting: I like the old standard "wagon wheel" drill if you will from 3 feet, 5 feet, and 10 feet. I need to be better about lag putting practice.

I only like to take 30 min at each station during a practice time. I know it sounds way too short of a time-frame to get better but it helps me not get exhausted (I'm not in shape, though round is a shape), and helps me not get bored/burnt out. I can always work on another club the next day or day after.

How do you all like to practice? Drills? Scenarios?
 
I am currently working on my game indoors with mirrors and video. Trying to groove things I am working on with an instructor, until I can get out. I have been hitting foam balls and making sure I can try and get repeatable results I am looking for.
 
I practice putting indoors and out but not much else.
 
I have started taking lessons again. And I’m using my SkyTrak when it is too cold to hit the course and doing the drills he game me. So far I think I’m making some good progress.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
I’m building a garage sim. Will start getting some baseline data when my flight monitor gets here in a few weeks. Haven’t played in years, so I need to regap my bag. Then I’ll start working on my swing daily.

Might take some lessons if I can get a vaccination before the end of summer, or I might take some online lessons if I get too impatient.
 
Bucket of 30 balls. Practice (my) fundamental movements and hit a ball every now and then to check. Last ten balls are pitches. That all takes maybe a half hour. Putting green for chipping and putting. That takes at least an hour, and, you probably know what I'm saying, most of the time I am the only one on the practice green on a day when the range is full.
 
Need to improve my full swing practice. Right now I mash balls for a while into a net using SkyTrak. I do record my swings so I can watch and cringe after. Putting, I use a SKLZ mat and roll putts. Occasionally I’ll add a gate and mirror to challenge myself or reset.
 
I took a lesson this winter, but only go to the range a few times a year. I will practice prior to a tournament chipping/pitching, about 5 drives, 5 hybrid shots, and 10 7 iron shots. I am getting older with some arthritis in my right ankle that doesn't allow me to practice much. I still am a 14 hc that will get down to 12 this year.
 
Putter and putting mat.
 
Currently while there is snow on the ground and I am rehabbing from double knee replacements, my practice consists of putting in the basement to a red solo cup laid down. Hey, at least it's something!
 
I try to have one, maybe two things to work on that I will do for 30 minutes or so. After which I will move on to hit one/two balls per club at different targets at differing distances. Then I finish up with chipping at various targets.
Today I spent time doing Faldo‘s pre set and takeaway drills. Helped tighten up my dispersion a bit.

To be perfectly honest, some days it’s tough not to just mindlessly bash balls out there too.
 
I play an executive course, I tried the driving range but it bores the snot out me. The executive course is adjacent to the range, I can't resist. I never get bored when every shot has a different target and purpose.
 
I play an executive course, I tried the driving range but it bores the snot out me. The executive course is adjacent to the range, I can't resist. I never get bored when every shot has a different target and purpose.
I’m assuming that’s Pheasant Run. I’ve never played that but would like to try it one of these days.
 
Prior I was Practicing once a week but now I am going 2 times a week.

Driving range one day
2nd day chipping and more chipping.
Started last week and have already seen a small improvement last round.



Sent from my SM-N981U using Tapatalk
 
Putting: I go all around the hole putting balls on a line at 2, 4, 6 foot. I then lag putt balls from a few different parts of the green (3 balls at a time) until my round starts

Range: I only hit 8 iron,4 iron, and my 4 wood at the range. I try to keep it simple and if I can hit those consistently then I know my game is ok. I NEVER hit my driver at the driving range and it is the best part of my game.

Chipping: I try to hit a few shots from regular spots at around 5 and 10 yards away and then hit chips from bad spots directly off the green.
 
In my 20's when I first started playing I hit a ton of balls and took some lessons. it helped me. after 5+ years playing I could shoot high 80's every now and again. Fast forward 20-30 years and I realize what I was doing was simply repeating things over and over not improving technique. Let me restate again, what I was practicing was refinement of what I was previously doing which was flawed. So I was optimizing flaws. Probably better then nothing but forget a score in the 70s

Practice now is most frequently golf workouts that re-enforce keeping arms connected with torso, working on my putting setup so that I strike a ball with pure roll, hitting 35 birdie balls off my driveway and continually reading old books on the fundamentals of grip, grip pressure and grip through the swing. 10x better then banging balls on a range with no real thought in mind. what I like about old books over an instructor is that I can refer to them over and over. I pick up on true meaning of words each time I read which is about every 6 months
 
My practice:

Range: I worry nothing about swing at all. Can look goofy or look amazing I do not care. I play ball flight games. draw, fade, low, high. Does not matter how far it goes I just feel what my body does to make those shots happen. Focus on, if I can do those shots on command I can play golf.... NOT golf swing. The range is the area you are hitting balls to learn reals vs. feels. Why practice a new position, or movement pattern with a ball? That is what mirrors and video at home are for. Do I want to look pretty, or have command over the ball? Start small work my way up, on how you make a ball do what I want. That is my thought process.

Putting green: 2 balls. Read putt and do just like in a round and hit it. If I make it, try to make it again. If not, see if I can micro adjust to my miss and hit the second ball. Then figure out, was it a miss read or miss stroke.

Chipping/ pitching: 3 balls only. But all at different parts of the green. One shot only like you have on the course. I have to figure out how to do it right and judge distance, spin, and roll the first time. I learn nothing from pitching to the same target for a shag bag worth of balls except how to hit that one shot. Yes it sucks at the starts since it is 99% failure but that number came down and I got to a point where I feel confident judging distance, read, roll, on the first go.

Course: I try lots of dumb shots in goof off round I am not keeping score on which for me is about 50% of the time. I just want to see if I can pull them off or if I have the feel for them. I also make sure to call my shot my shots to my buddies to see if we can make them. You would be surprised how fast you can start scoring better when you and some friends are play dumb games on the course.

I also practice drinking beer after the round..... I feel that is important, to talk about the best shot you hit all day and how awesome you are to stay positive cause golf is hard.
 
During this winter, I’ve barely practiced at all. Once the weather warms a bit, I can only practice for an hour to another hour and a half at a time before I have to sit down. Works out to 30 minutes each for range, chipping and putting. I’m always tinkering with my swing so I work on repeating any new move until it feels natural hitting into my home net. I’ll then take that to the range and see if the new move is working. I also work a lot on trying to eliminate my big miss where I block out and push my drives. I’m always working on something while hitting balls into the net or at the range, I never just beat balls without some purpose.
For chipping practice, I practice with one type of chip shot at a time. I’ll move the ball around in my stance to see how much spin each position will give. Next time, I’ll try with a different club and distance until I’m comfortable I can repeat the shot at will.
Ill then do some putting practice. I work on my lag putting trying very long putts and putting everything out with the goal to at least, 2 putt every time.
 
I'm already decent at hitting the easy shots, so a lot of my practice routines involve those tougher shots we all run into when playing.

Hitting balls off uneven lies, out of semi rough, taller rough, sandys, divots, forced carries, flop shots, and anything else I can think of. I do this, so as not to be surprised when playing for a score.

On longer shots, i look to land balls in acceptable landing areas. As my shots get shorter, those landing areas get smaller. Thank you Earnest Jones for that tidbit.

My pitches/chips/putts all involve practicing green reads. My chipping/putting strokes are basically identical, so green reads are important. Thanks to Paul Runyon for that tidbit.

I practice putts mostly from 10' feet and closer. Very seldom do I have first putts longer than 10' feet. This is because what should be my first putts are usually pitches, and chips. I'm not a big gir guy.

I spend a lot practice time on my grip, club face alignment, and my one piece take away.

Another part of my swing I work on is my tempo, timing, rythem, and balance. No matter which club I'm using, I want to use the same swing speed. I want the club to take care of the distance needed.

It may sound strange, but I'm tougher on myself when practicing, than I am when playing for a score.
 
I don't practice as much as a person should. I mostly just play. I chip in the front yard because its convenient, and it keeps the short game and shot making feels reasonably in tune. I play around putting at home, hit the range a couple times a year.
 
Roll 2 or 3 putts on the practice green before a round. That’s about it.
 
How do you all like to practice? Drills? Scenarios?

Judging by the results, improperly.

Most of my practice occurs within the cycle of making progress when hitting into a net indoors, then failing to apply that progress outdoors. When outdoors, I'll make partial to full swings into the field but something (my brain) prevents me from executing the stuff I've accomplished indoors.

The thing is, I'm not sure how to get out of that cycle. I know it's not working, but I don't know any other way. There are a couple of drills that help to a small degree.
 
Back
Top