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How to improve my practice sessions


mattshaver
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I have a problem with practicing.  For whatever reason, I just can't seem to hit a good golf shot when I'm at the driving range.  But when I go out on the course, I swing a lot better and make a fair amount of good golf shots (at least as many as someone with my handicap can make...).

I've tried taking my normal routine before every shot.  I've tried picking a target.  I've tried to really focus that extra 10-20%, but nothing seems to work.

Does anyone have any suggestions?

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I've done wedges on up, the logic being that wedges are easier to hit and will build confidence for my practice session, as well as 3 iron down to wedges then 3W and driver, the logic being that the first few swings you make will be crap no matter what since you're still tight and haven't warmed up fully yet, so might as well hit a 3 iron, since no one hits a 3 iron well (i think i heard that on The Golf Channel somewhere...).  Neither seems to work better than the other.

What I also do is when I hit 3-4 really bad shots in a row, I'll go to 1/2 swings for a few balls to get a better feel for solid contact.  But then I end up just making half swings on what seems like half the bucket.

To be honest, I think I really just need to take a few lessons, but I'm holding off on that because of the $$ outlay involved.  $50 per half hour isn't cheap, and those are the cheapest rates I've seen around here.

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Lessons would surely help, yes, but try mixing up the clubs you hit. On the course you never pound 10 driver in a row, you go driver, iron, wedge, driver, iron, 3 wood, wedge, iron, driver, and so on.

Also I believe that 3 iron tip was from Tom Watson, but he did it with a 1 or 2 iron, and does it with whatever the the longest iron in his bag is now.

In my bag:

Driver: Titleist TSi3 | 15º 3-Wood: Ping G410 | 17º 2-Hybrid: Ping G410 | 19º 3-Iron: TaylorMade GAPR Lo |4-PW Irons: Nike VR Pro Combo | 54º SW, 60º LW: Titleist Vokey SM8 | Putter: Odyssey Toulon Las Vegas H7

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Here's what I do....maybe it'll help.

I start with about 5-6 half wedges to warm up, followed by 5-6 shots with each of, a mid iron, long iron, driver, and then back down with different irons.....this ends the warmup. I always have a target, at least a flag to hit over, if one is not in the right distance for the club in my hands.   Warm up is a bucket of balls.

After that I start practicing on just one thing I want to work on.  I hit about 15-20 balls, then switch clubs and hit just a few regular shots, then back to practice with that one thing again.

Now-a-days I'm working on different ball positions with the same club.  I'm hitting, say a 7 iron, off the front toe, 3 shots, then 3 shots off the right toe, then 3 shots in a normal position.  I've gotten to the point of hitting these shots during play also.  It helps alot "trying" different shots during practice tee time.  You learn alot about your swing when trying different ball positions, grips, setup, body position.....just see what happens with each small change.  I normally hit 2 large buckets each time I go out.

I've also done this same routine hitting 3 balls left to right, three balls right to left, then 3 balls striaght.  If you can learn to vary the ball flight, it helps your swing alot, since you learn whats making the ball fly in different directions.

BTW - the above balll position, off each toe, affects the ball flight a ton.  The left toe position and the ball goes sky high, the right toe position keeps the ball low.  It worked on the course yesterday 5 times when I tried the different shots!

Driver Callaway Diablo Edge --- Custom Sonartec 3, 5 and 7 woods made +1" stiff shafts --- Irons 5-L Ping G10 +1" 4.5* upright reg shafts --- ---Putter Tiger Shark

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Looking at your index of 36.4 I agree with your synopsis. YOU NEED LESSONS! If 90% of golfers spent 60% of the money they spend on equipment on lessons, we would lower the average index

PB
Canadian PGA Life Member
Peter Boyce Golf Academy
Strathroy, Ontario
:tmade:

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Originally Posted by canadianpro

Looking at your index of 36.4 I agree with your synopsis. YOU NEED LESSONS! If 90% of golfers spent 60% of the money they spend on equipment on lessons, we would lower the average index



Amen, brother. I wish I would've taken lessons when I was a 36 HC. I struggled for years before I finally broke down and started taking lessons. By then I had so many bad habits ingrained that it was a lot more difficult than it would've been otherwise. I've had lots of lessons and still take one every now and then and yet I still struggle with some of those old bad habits. It's a whole lot harder to unlearn a bad golf swing than it is to learn it right in the first place. Bottom line: the money I've spent on lessons is far and away the best investment I've ever made in my golf game.

In the Bag:
Driver: Cleveland Launcher Ultralight XL 270

FW: Taylor Made 300 17 degree 
3-PW: Mizuno MX-23

AW: Mizuno TP-T11 52/07 (Bent to 50)
SW: Mizuno TP-T11 56/10

LW: Mizuno TP-T11 60/05

Putter: Original Ping Zing

Ball: Wilson Staff FG Tour

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Originally Posted by mattshaver

I have a problem with practicing.  For whatever reason, I just can't seem to hit a good golf shot when I'm at the driving range.  But when I go out on the course, I swing a lot better and make a fair amount of good golf shots (at least as many as someone with my handicap can make...).

I've tried taking my normal routine before every shot.  I've tried picking a target.  I've tried to really focus that extra 10-20%, but nothing seems to work.

Does anyone have any suggestions?


I wish I was like that... seems to be the opposite for me thought, decent on the range, crap on the course (although some recent changes may have fixed that, we'll see).

After you get warmed up, I'd try "playing" on the range... Hit a driver then a mid-iron, another driver than maybe a wedge.  If you can visualize your home course and kind of play that, that would be good.  Just make sure that you are giving yourself targets and setting up "fairways" so you can see how you are doing.  One of the mistakes I use to make is not hitting at a target... shots that seemed decent on the range were actually pretty lousy.

596's advice is also very good... If you are working on something in particular do what he said, if not than I'd try to play on the range and see if that helps.

Tristan Hilton

My Equipment: 
PXG 0211 Driver (Diamana S+ 60; 10.5°) · PXG 0211 FWs (Diamana S+ 60; 15° and 21°) · PXG 0211 Hybrids (MMT 80; 22°, 25°, and 28°) · PXG 0311P Gen 2 Irons (SteelFiber i95; 7-PW) · Edel Wedges (KBS Hi-Rev; 50°, 55°, 60°) · Edel Classic Blade Putter (32") · Vice Pro or Maxfli Tour · Pinned Prism Rangefinder · Star Grips · Flightscope Mevo · TRUE Linkswear Shoes · Sun Mountain C130S Bag

On my MacBook Pro:
Analyzr Pro

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I find that I can be lights out on the range, or the course, but never both on the same day.  If I show up at the course and hit a bucket to warm up and everything is going great...chances are my round will be terrible.  If I can't seem to make solid contact on the range, I tend to have a great round.

As for practicing, I like to switch from short to long club back and forth until I meet in the middle.  60*, Driver, 56*, 3 wood, 52*, Hybrid, PW, 4i, 9i, 5i, 8i, 6i, 7i and start over.  I try to hit different shots with each club as well.   If I don't do this I find myself just pounding away aimlessly at drivers or 6 irons.

I'll also visualize different shots at my home course and try to make them on the range.  Whether it's on the tee box, second shot into a par 5, etc...and try to hit the trajectory/shape that each shot would require.

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I start out with my PW one handed.  Once I can make solid contact with each arm, then I try it two handed.  Once I grab the stick with two hands, it feel like cheating.

The other thing I do is hit a few balls with a club, then switch.  Switch targets, switch clubs, switch ball flights, switch anything.  Just pounding golf balls does very little in comparison to switching it up.

Also, hit a few balls, and then take a break.  You never hit 150 golf shots in a row and I would venture to say that very few people can effectively do that.  Fatigue will come into play after several swings and technique will slip out the window.

In my Ogio Cart Bag
Driver: 460 10.5 R7
4- S Wedge: R7 CGB Max
Putter: Afinity Cheapo Putter
Balls: I generally use them

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I sometimes start with wedges, sometimes with long irons, but always with less than full shots.  I start by stretching, then taking slow swings without a ball just to loosen up.  The first few swings with a ball have one goal and only one goal: to make solid contact with the clubface.  Distance, direction, spin, etc, are not important, as I'm just trying to remember the feeling of hitting the ball squarely.  If it's not going well, I'll take a little break and relax and go back to swinging without a ball until I feel relaxed again, then try.  Until I get a few solid contacts in a row, I don't start swinging more than about a half-swing.  If it's a practice day and I have a lot of trouble getting to consistent contact, I may decide to make it a drill day instead of worrying about full swings too much.  If it's a warm-up for a round and things aren't going well, well, I try to just find some way to get to where I at least hit the ball solid.

I also think it's helpful to have a particular goal in mind when practicing, something more specific than just hitting great shots over and over.  It's too hard to evaluate whether a particular shot was good or not unless it's perfect, so aiming for good contact, distance, trajectory, direction, or whatever can be helpful.  Then every now and then or at the end aim to hit a couple where everything comes together, but just trying to hit it better over and over is too vague to really focus your efforts.

In the bag:
FT-iQ 10° driver, FT 21° neutral 3H
T-Zoid Forged 15° 3W, MX-23 4-PW
Harmonized 52° GW, Tom Watson 56° SW, X-Forged Vintage 60° LW
White Hot XG #1 Putter, 33"

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Originally Posted by JetFan1983

Watching Golf Evolution videos is a nice place to start.



100% agree with this (as is evident with my thread from earlier today http://thesandtrap.com/forum/thread/42823/golf-evolution-videos).  I can't say enough good stuff about this... progress makes me happy and I'm very happy right now.

Tristan Hilton

My Equipment: 
PXG 0211 Driver (Diamana S+ 60; 10.5°) · PXG 0211 FWs (Diamana S+ 60; 15° and 21°) · PXG 0211 Hybrids (MMT 80; 22°, 25°, and 28°) · PXG 0311P Gen 2 Irons (SteelFiber i95; 7-PW) · Edel Wedges (KBS Hi-Rev; 50°, 55°, 60°) · Edel Classic Blade Putter (32") · Vice Pro or Maxfli Tour · Pinned Prism Rangefinder · Star Grips · Flightscope Mevo · TRUE Linkswear Shoes · Sun Mountain C130S Bag

On my MacBook Pro:
Analyzr Pro

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Do your preshot routine for every practice shot, do not just wack the ball, concentrate on what you want to do. If not then just focus on drills.. Make every shot count. Quality over Quantity

Matt Dougherty, P.E.
 fasdfa dfdsaf 

What's in My Bag
Driver; :pxg: 0311 Gen 5,  3-Wood: 
:titleist: 917h3 ,  Hybrid:  :titleist: 915 2-Hybrid,  Irons: Sub 70 TAIII Fordged
Wedges: :edel: (52, 56, 60),  Putter: :edel:,  Ball: :snell: MTB,  Shoe: :true_linkswear:,  Rangfinder: :leupold:
Bag: :ping:

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Originally Posted by saevel25

Do your preshot routine for every practice shot, do not just wack the ball, concentrate on what you want to do. If not then just focus on drills.. Make every shot count. Quality over Quantity



This is something that I really need to work on... I really don't have a pre-shot routine and I definitely don't go through one on the range.  Just one more thing for me to work on I guess.

Tristan Hilton

My Equipment: 
PXG 0211 Driver (Diamana S+ 60; 10.5°) · PXG 0211 FWs (Diamana S+ 60; 15° and 21°) · PXG 0211 Hybrids (MMT 80; 22°, 25°, and 28°) · PXG 0311P Gen 2 Irons (SteelFiber i95; 7-PW) · Edel Wedges (KBS Hi-Rev; 50°, 55°, 60°) · Edel Classic Blade Putter (32") · Vice Pro or Maxfli Tour · Pinned Prism Rangefinder · Star Grips · Flightscope Mevo · TRUE Linkswear Shoes · Sun Mountain C130S Bag

On my MacBook Pro:
Analyzr Pro

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When you go to the range, you have to be working on something specific. Just hitting balls doesn't get you anywhere because you're not consciously putting a positive habit into your head. But you have to know what you're doing so that what you're working on will actually help you become a better golfer.

Hence, lessons, and working on what the pro taught you.

Pretty much that simple.

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Have fun and have realistic expectations when you practice.  I always try to focus on putting, chipping around the green and from 10, 20 yards from the hole to help me get up and down to make birdie, save par or even to save boogie with a one putt.

What part of your game do you want to improve?  at 36 index if you are shooting 108 or 6 shots per hole, the short game will help you break 100 consistently.

How many putts per round?

How many up and downs to one putt?

How about practicing putting and chiping around the green when you practice and forget the driving range.  The money you save at the range can go to lessons.

Titleist 910 D2 9.5 Driver
Titleist 910 F15 & 21 degree fairway wood
Titleist 910 hybrid 24 degree
Mizuno Mp33 5 - PW
52/1056/1160/5

"Yonex ADX Blade putter, odyssey two ball blade putter, both  33"

ProV-1

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Note: This thread is 4841 days old. We appreciate that you found this thread instead of starting a new one, but if you plan to post here please make sure it's still relevant. If not, please start a new topic. Thank you!

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