What's Your Driving Range Routine?

Re: What's Your Driving Range Routine?

I alternate each session with odd and then even clubs so that I get used to hitting each club. I will start with the shortest club until the hits are fairly good, and then move on to the next club. If I can't get good hits with this club, then I will go back and start over to try and capture a good rhthym and swing and then progress on to the next club. At the very end of the practice session, I will start with the lowest club and hit one ball progressing to the next club with the idea of hitting a good shot with each club. If a chipping and pitching area is available, I will then practice this for a while and then move on to putting. Doing the slow swings after the range allows me to cool down.

Re: What's Your Driving Range Routine?

Mine is smilar except I always start with an 8 or 9 then every other club. I almost always hit a few drivers (6-8) then finish with wedges. I save 15-20 balls to come back and finish with after chipping and putting and play pretend holes just concentrating on relaxation and tempo.

Re: What's Your Driving Range Routine?

The nearest driving range to me is about 30 minutes drive away so a round trip takes an hour, plus it is absolutely crap. The balls are bad and I get in to trouble from whoever is on duty if I hit driver because I knock it over the back fence, plus it costs me about $20 in balls, go 3 times a week and it costs me $60 so all up the driving range is useless to me.

Fortunately I live about 10 minutes walk from the course I am a member at and they have an area off to the side of the course where I can take my own balls and practice, it's only long enough to hit about a 7 iron but once it gets late in the evening and nobody is on the course (or very few people anyway) I can hit whatever I like out on to the 4th and 5th fairways. Once or twice a year I go on to ebay and buy about 100 used "B grade quality" balls of whatever type I am currently using so I always have good quality rocks in my shag bag.

I try to practice about 2 or 3 evenings a week in summer or mornings in winter for 2 or 3 hours. I walk to the course so I will usually only take 4 or 5 clubs, normally a wedge, 9 iron, 7 iron 5 iron and a driver or 3 wood. Sometimes I'll take even number clubs plus a hybrid and sometimes I'll take a long iron instead of the 5 iron etc, I try to mix it up a bit. I play forged irons so I try to share out the practice duties across the set as much as I can to minimise wearing out certain clubs.

My normal practice routine consists of doing a bit of stretching, walking to the course is great because it lets you loosen up a bit on the way. After stretching I hit about 20 little pitches with a wedge and then I'll hit about 50 balls with each club except the driver, my shag bag holds about 50 balls so I usually just empty the bag with a club then go pick them up and come back and move on to a longer club. I am always very careful to lay a few clubs on the ground along my target line to use for alignment purposes, and I always hit to a specific target. After picking the balls up and as I am walking back I always drop 10 balls at a random distance and hit pitch shots back to where I am set up.

After working through all of my clubs except for the driver I head back towards the clubhouse. On my way I have to cross the course and walk along a few holes. If there is nobody around I'll pick a tee and drop 20 or 30 balls and hit drivers or 3 woods down the fairway, I find this works better for me than banging away with a driver in to the open as it forces me to be accountable for where each drive finishes, it hits the fairway or it doesn't.

After doing this I'll pick a green and then throw balls all around it and hit chip shots from wherever they finish up. If it's a thursday or a friday then I'll have my putter with me so I'll only chip for about 15 minutes then go to the putting green for an hour, on other days I'll chip for 30 minutes and not putt. After finishing my chipping or putting I pack up and head for home.

I'm also lucky enough to have an area over my back fence at home where I can hit pitch shots up to about 70 yards or so. Most days I'll go out there and hit about 50 pitch shots first thing in the morning. I work from home so if I get frutrated (or bored) with something I am working on I'll also go out there in the middle of the day and hit a few more.

I generally manage to play between 1 and 3 rounds a week. You'd figure that with as much practice as I do and playing a reasonable amount that I'll eventually be able to play a bit!

Re: What's Your Driving Range Routine?

I would usually start off with a Sand Wedge and end with my 3 Iron as far as my irons go. Then hit a few with my hybrid, and then tee some up for my driver. As I am starting off, I am concentrating on my tempo, ball contact, and basically hitting the ball straight (not concerning myself with any targets just yet). After I have had enough time to 'warm up' and feel confident I have struck the ball well and accurate (or maybe 20 balls or so...), I would use the rest of the time on the range to play practice 'holes'. Basically playing a round of golf in my mind, by using a driver for my first shot, then choose a pin for my second shot and fire right at it. If I miss the green for my second shot , I try and chip the ball into the nets which are about 20/30 yards in so I can work on my short game as well.

To sum it up, my routine would be to warm up from my SW-3 Iron, hit a few with my Hybrid and Driver, and once I have established comfortability, to go ahead and 'play' practice holes with the remainder of my time at the range. Once I started off in golf, I basically went to the range and smashed balls aimlessly no where without switching the clubs up, almost like a little kid going to the range. I didnt realize how precious range time is, and it definately helped me develop a habit of getting used game situations when playing on the course.

Re: What's Your Driving Range Routine?

I stretch first, take plenty of warm up swings then start with a PW, then one other iron, usually an 8. Then either hybrid or 3 wood, then driver. This gets me through about 50 balls.

The other half of the bucket I spend on distance wedges or knockdowns, or both. I make sure at least half my balls are spent on distance-control short game shots. Today it was 50 yard sand wedges and 110 yard 9 irons, just trying to hit my target and control the trajectory.

This takes me about an hour, and I try to do it every day on my lunch break.

Re: What's Your Driving Range Routine?

I usually go odd/even myself, going up from 9..... but I always make sure I take PW shots after drives, that's the usual order anyway.

Re: What's Your Driving Range Routine?

If I'm warming up before a round, I only take my Cleveland Halo hybrids (1i, 3i, and 5i) and my driver. I only hit a small bucket, hitting equal amounts of each club...my first couple of swings are 1/2 to 3/4 swings, then I work my way up to full cuts.

Then I go to the putting/chipping green and spend the rest of the time before the round...probably a total of 30 minutes. This gets me loose, but doesn't fatigue my hands. If I hit too many balls, my hands get fatigue and I start shanking...go figure.

If I'm practicing, I start out with my SW and go through a progression up to my driver and back down to the SW. I only hit one large bucket maybe twice a week. The rest of the time is putting and chipping...total time 1hour 15 minutes.

Re: What's Your Driving Range Routine?

Begin on chipping green for about 45 minutes working on . . .

1. Proper contact on clubface middle -
2. Proper hands leading impacts -
3. Shots at targets varying clubs (includes short chips, long chip & runs, flops etc.. )

Full Swing next, working on one or two very specific items my instructor and I are presently addressing. Max of 45 minutes. Usually just 3 clubs. Gap or Pw, 7 or 8, and 5 or hybrid. A few woods at end - like 5w or Driver.

Finish putting green for 45 more minutes with long lags, then, 8 to 12 feet, and short putting drills.

I spend a while out there each time, but hey, I like practice!