What is the best way to warm up?

[owens251109]

Morning. what is the best way to warm up on the range before a round? i find my self starting with dirver, if that goes well i go to my short irons then start bouncing around to see how im hitting evey club. but then for some reason when i get to the first tee, i feel as i have do idea what my driver will do. any help? thanks p.s or it could just be a mental thing of over thinking.

[Hey Joe]

I am a noob, so take it for what it is worth.

I spend a few minutes stretching, not just swing a club around, but full on stretching.  Then I will take a few irons and slowly swing back and forth.  Sand wedge with no ball, just grove a swing back and forth and sweep the grass with a 3-9 swing.

I then work through a few irons and hopefully find myself hitting well.  Then I pull out the trouble maker (driver) and hit a few slices just to make sure the golf fairy didn't sprinkle some magic dust on it since the last time out.

I then will save a few balls and go back to a wedge for a last swing grove session before heading over to putt for a few minutes.

Last step: head to the 1st tee, close my eyes for a quick minute and enjoy the morning sun and give thanks that I am about to do what I love.

Joe

[owens251109]

I am a noob, so take it for what it is worth. I spend a few minutes stretching, not just swing a club around, but full on stretching.  Then I will take a few irons and slowly swing back and forth.  Sand wedge with no ball, just grove a swing back and forth and sweep the grass with a 3-9 swing.   I then work through a few irons and hopefully find myself hitting well.  Then I pull out the trouble maker (driver) and hit a few slices just to make sure the golf fairy didn't sprinkle some magic dust on it since the last time out. I then will save a few balls and go back to a wedge for a last swing grove session before heading over to putt for a few minutes. [SIZE=13px]Last step: head to the 1st tee, close my eyes for a quick minute and enjoy the morning sun and give thanks that I am about to do what I love.[/SIZE] [SIZE=13px]Joe[/SIZE] [SIZE=13px] [/SIZE]

joe. thanks for the advice. I should have been more clear on my post, i usually stretch out for about 5-10 mins, then take 2 clubs most likely my 7 and 8 iron. to swing back and forth to get lose. then i pick up the driver. I think my question is how do i carry over the confidence from the range to the first tee. thanks.

[RonTheSavage]

thanks for the advice. I should have been more clear on my post, i usually stretch out for about 5-10 mins, then take 2 clubs most likely my 7 and 8 iron. to swing back and forth to get lose. then i pick up the driver. I think my question is how do i carry over the confidence from the range to the first tee.

thanks.

You're a single digit capper right? I think you're doing just fine.

[Club Rat]

I will vary my warm up routine's, but they all begin with 1/2 or 3/4 easy swings with different clubs.

Some days I may begin with the 8 iron or pitching wedge.

Sometime, I start with my 5 iron.

My thoughts are making square impacts and finishing my follow through, while swinging smoothly.

I have often heard, Tom Watson would use a long iron to warm up with to feel tempo and a fluid slow, long swing as his routine. So, I made it my habit using this method.

I guess it would not matter which club a person uses, but I think most will begin with slow easy swings to start.

Club Rat

[Club Rat]

Quote:

Originally Posted by owens251109

Quote:

but then for some reason when i get to the first tee, i feel as i have do idea what my driver will do. any help?

First tee shots - thoughts, "pick a target, line up, relax and make a good swing"

Before hand, a couple of waggles, a couple of easy swings, what ever pre-shot routine you may have.

The key to any drive is full commitment to the swing, do not try to steer the shot.

Club Rat

[Maddog10]

After stretching, I begin with some half wedge shots. This helps me loosen up a little bit and just get a feel for things. Then I progressively move through my irons in a 9-7-5 pattern to work my way up in swing aggressiveness. At the peak of my warmup I hit a few balls with all of my woods (5W, 3W, and D) so that I'm confident in the flight pattern when I step on the first tee. After that I spot check my irons and end up back with my wedge.

This may sound like a lot of shots but it's really not. I'm not a big warm-up guy honestly. I want to hit some shots to get loose and see what's feeling right/wrong that day, but I never finish a bag of balls during my warm-up. I'd say I hit 5 with the wedge starting out, then 2 or 3 with each iron, 2 or 3 with each wood, maybe 4 with a driver, and then just 1 with each iron heading back down, ending with probably 5 more with the wedge. All in all about 25-30 balls probably, with 10 of those being feel shots with a wedge.

[KrazyTrain18]

I usually stretch and putt first, then I work my way up through clubs on the range, usually I don't hit them all.  I usually go (54,9I,7I,Hybrid,3W,D)

then If I have more time before teeing off, I will putt again.

[chip n run]

joe.

thanks for the advice. I should have been more clear on my post, i usually stretch out for about 5-10 mins, then take 2 clubs most likely my 7 and 8 iron. to swing back and forth to get lose. then i pick up the driver. I think my question is how do i carry over the confidence from the range to the first tee.

thanks.

For driver on first tee, I put the VERY smoothest swing I can produce on it.  It probably won't be my longest drive of the day, but I am more wanting a well timed solid strike to get off to a good start.

[RFKFREAK]

Usually stretch beforehand, then hit a few balls with a wedge or short iron.  I tend to hit those better than I hit anything else so that helps me build up my confidence.

Then I'll use some mid irons, my 3 wood, and then the big dog.  I try to make some nice easy swings to try and get in rhythm and also to try and keep that confidence.

I use the driver last since most courses I play at, I'll be teeing off on the first hole with the driver so I want that to be the last thing I hit before I step up to the tee.

If I happen to not be hitting the driver well during my warm up, I do the logical thing and hope for the best.

[billchao]

I should have been more clear on my post, i usually stretch out for about 5-10 mins, then take 2 clubs most likely my 7 and 8 iron. to swing back and forth to get lose. then i pick up the driver. I think my question is how do i carry over the confidence from the range to the first tee.

Sounds to me like you already have a better warm up routine than most people I know (no warm up at all). I actually putt and chip after I stretch; I rarely hit the range before a round.

but then for some reason when i get to the first tee, i feel as i have do idea what my driver will do.

Do you have this problem with your driver on the range? If not, it's probably mental. I'll bet most of us have some form of first tee jitters. What usually works for me when I'm not feeling it is to take a shorter club and make a 3/4 swing. Hitting the first fairway of the day usually gets my confidence going.

[Dables]

Bigger question for me is, how do you warm up at a course with no range? that's fairly common up here, and I struggle with just making a bunch of practice swings on the first tee. I am typically good for going 5-7 strokes lower on a course with a range.

[bubble]

I love to practice 2-3 hours and start my rounds totally washed out. I know it's not great but I love it. I've rarelly played without the minimum hour of warming up. I'm mad about this.

ball striking : I basically hit a lot of wedges. then hit 1 short, 1 mid and 1 long iron for a couple of balls, finish with a few rescues/woods. I hate hitting the driver though, I'll hit one or two balls maybe. Then I will hit again a couple of wedge shots, mostly researching partial shots, distances and hights.

chiping : I chip/pitch/flop a load with six playing balls(in my bag exclusively for this purpose, last about a year) then I collect them with my club into a range basket to gain time. I go all around and explore various lies, distances, shot shapes and clubs.

Putting : I putt right handed a bit with 3 balls (in my bag exclusively for this purpose) then putt often distances as 3.6.9.12 meters and draw back all misses until holed out. So i mostly hit 3-15 feet putts.

I dont know what I have with this ball in my bag thing but I like having those 6 proviwans for short game that get totaly used in a year, and 3 brand new proviwans for putting.

[saevel25]

If I have time, I go work out, or use resistance bands to warm up the muscles. Then I like to do some balance yoga to get my smaller muscles firing, get those hip adductors going. From there I like to hit wedges, then work my way up to the driver.