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range performance!!


billatthebar
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anyone else take a while at the range to get warmed up (pains muscles etc etc....) then hit good balls for a while, then tail off towards the end and start hitting fat,thin and all other flavors of terrible shot?  really bugs me but when i go home pissed off im busting to go back to the range again within an hour! how many balls do you hit in a typical range session??

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I used to be a range rat. I easily hit 300-500 balls (one of the benefits of working at a golf course, free range balls). Now, and I got this from reading Golf My Way by Nicklaus, I go with a purpose and stay until I complete my goal. If it takes less than 50 balls, so be it. If it takes 150, that's fine too.

As for warming up... I always take about 5-10 minutes to stretch. I then take swings without hitting balls for a while. And then I warm up with wedges first and work my way up to driver, usually hitting every 2 clubs.

I don't share your problem of tailing off towards the end. Sounds like maybe you're losing focus and just hitting balls as you progress through the basket maybe?

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I say yes. But! This is because, my usual range session has been the exact same since I started hitting range balls. Start with my sand wedge, approach, pitching, 9,8, etc.... when I start getting to my 5,4,3,3w, and into my, lately, banana ball driver. This is probably due to a combination of-

1. The fact that I struggle with said 5,4,3,3w,driver

2. Fatigue

I usually hit "a big bag" which is usually around 60-70 balls.

I also, on my last ball, pull out my sand wedge, talk myself up in my head like I am approaching #18 at Augusta in contention of the leader board. Trying to put some "made up pressure" per se. I then aim for the closest flag, usually getting close so it is a nice end to the session, or at least a satisfying feeling to drive home on.

- Brice

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3 Wood: :callaway: X Hot (15d)

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ill start with PW always i try and stretch etc but im usually so excited to be there that maybe i rush - ill duff the first few balls ( usually) then button one - once i find that spot ill move up the clubs hitting crisp (not every time mind...) i always hang around the 6 7 8 irons a long time as i like trying to perfect those but i feel i maybe hit the balls too quickly as after a while i start losing distance and then the mishits creep back in - its unfortunate as ill leave feeling like ive accomplished nothing! maybe i just need to slow it down a bit!

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If you're just hitting balls without a purpose, you're not getting any better. Have a purpose, a plan, a goal, etc. And stay focused on it. I would often get sidetracked because I made a few bad swings with a particular club and then that became my concern. Then, after trying to work that problem out, at the end of the session I'd realize I never even started on what I originally went for.

I also often step back after every 3-4 balls, grab a different club, and go through my whole pre-shot routine. The purpose of that is to make sure I don't start machine-gunning balls. In a round of golf, you almost never hit back to back shots with the same club. So practicing that way doesn't make much sense. I also feel it helps me stay focused when I step back, maybe let my mind wander for a moment or two (think about calling that girl from the other night or whatever it is that's on my mind) and then reset and refocus on what I'm working on.

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If I'm not working on something specific (trying to get my driver to not slice, dialing in my hybrids, etc.), I'll usually warm up w/ wedges or mid irons, then play a course in my head:  hit a tee club, appropriate iron depending on tee shot, approach wedge, etc., to get on the green.  Putting is of course done another time.

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If I hit at >80% the whole time, I also get tired and pissed off at the end. The sore muscles show up a day or two later. Sometimes, I do this to let off steam, but nothing more.

When I hit 50%-70% effort and work on form and concentrate on all those swing thoughts then I end up feeling invigorated after a range session.

I hit roughly 200-240 balls per day in my back yard or at the range. 120 to 160 for warm up (<40% effort) and 80 balls with form thoughts at 50% to 80%(very few) effort. This is mainly for exercise (keep those pounds off). With this training method, I feel good after hitting.

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i like the idea of playin a course in your head - are you honest with yourself?? like i mean do you play the course just using your carry distances? the ball wont roll like that on the course afterall.  i also hit my best shots swinging maybe <70% i really feel like i can crush the ball into the mat at that kind of power and i get extremely satisfying ball flight from those shots - my natural iron shot is a draw but when i really push it i get a lot of blocked shots to the right then i start trying to compensate by rolling my wrists a bit much (i think) through impact and i end up striking poorly and hurting myself - i think ill try the course idea in my head, automatic 2 putts?? im feeling good about this round :D

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Originally Posted by billatthebar

anyone else take a while at the range to get warmed up (pains muscles etc etc....) then hit good balls for a while, then tail off towards the end and start hitting fat,thin and all other flavors of terrible shot?  really bugs me but when i go home pissed off im busting to go back to the range again within an hour! how many balls do you hit in a typical range session??

I bet this is more towards your endurance physically. Most of us have a lot of desk jobs, so our muslces are stiff. Then you go out, get loosened up, and you can get lost hitting golf balls. Meaning lost track of time, how many you hit, it might be hot out, you might haven't eaten in a while, ect.. Then your tired, you basically are doing partial squats,  holding your address position, so your legs get tired. You'd be shocked about how much a work out you get hitting golf balls, especially if you get near 150+. I hit 150 the other day, it was mid 80's out. i was like, "SHIT THIS IS A LOT OF GOLF BALLS", i was getting tired.

So when i go to the range, i try to pace myself. Heck go take a break, get a drink, sit down, enjoy the day. Nothing worse than ingraining a bad swing habit because your getting tired, or muscle fatigue.

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im 28 and work a very physical job - long hours and alot of sweating!! i seize up fast after work tho which is why it takes me a while to loosen at the range, i guess after that i only have a few good hits in me before i get tired and sore again!  definately need to slow down though - wrists are in terrible shape alot of of us have tendonitis in them and that causes all kinds of problems hitting golf balls

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Originally Posted by saevel25

I bet this is more towards your endurance physically. Most of us have a lot of desk jobs, so our muslces are stiff. Then you go out, get loosened up, and you can get lost hitting golf balls. Meaning lost track of time, how many you hit, it might be hot out, you might haven't eaten in a while, ect.. Then your tired, you basically are doing partial squats,  holding your address position, so your legs get tired. You'd be shocked about how much a work out you get hitting golf balls, especially if you get near 150+. I hit 150 the other day, it was mid 80's out. i was like, "SHIT THIS IS A LOT OF GOLF BALLS", i was getting tired.

So when i go to the range, i try to pace myself. Heck go take a break, get a drink, sit down, enjoy the day. Nothing worse than ingraining a bad swing habit because your getting tired, or muscle fatigue.

Actually felt like this today at the range. I had to rush hitting about 100 balls because I went during my lunch break in 80 degree weather, which is not that bad except the sun was beating down us. After hitting about 70 balls, I was starting to feel fatigue and started hitting pretty poor iron shots. So I just resorted to practice hitting pitch shots. I'm still feeling a little tired sitting in my office (might also be the TGIF feeling).

Normally, I do pace myself and a bucket of 100 balls normally would last me over one and a half hours on the range and I'll still have energy for maybe another small or medium bucket. But rushing and the direct sunlight definitely drains you and it does affect your performance.

Best Regards,
Ryan

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My on course swing is better and more consistent than my range swing. Go figure! :-\

Yours in earnest, Jason.
Call me Ernest, or EJ or Ernie.

PSA - "If you find yourself in a hole, STOP DIGGING!"

My Whackin' Sticks: :cleveland: 330cc 2003 Launcher 10.5*  :tmade: RBZ HL 3w  :nickent: 3DX DC 3H, 3DX RC 4H  :callaway: X-22 5-AW  :nike:SV tour 56* SW :mizuno: MP-T11 60* LW :bridgestone: customized TD-03 putter :tmade:Penta TP3   :aimpoint:

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The way I practice for muscle memory at the driving range is.  I go to the range about 5 times a week.  I hit one club all week and each session I hit about 150-200 balls.  I take every ball seriously and aim at one target the whole time.  So by the end of the week I've hit one club around 700-1000 times.  I only play off grass and never hit off the artificial mats.  Why would I practice on something that's not on the course.

The reason I started doing this is because when I got into the sport I was already a very good dart player and ping pong player.  I started thinking about how I trained with my teachers on those sports and repetition was the only thing that mattered.  I would throw 1000 darts everyday at triple 20 all week.  Then move to the next spot on the dart board.  Or do backhands on the ping pong table for months.  Once you master each section you put it all together as a cohesive style that's polished.

I use to just get a large bucket and swing my whole bag.  But really what's the point?  It's not like you'll really get some training in hitting each club 15 times. With a total of 60 hits per club a week.  I'm in it for the long haul of training my body.   So I take into account that over the course of 5 months I should have improved significantly from my practice then how I used to practice at the range.

Pros.

I only bring one club to the range.  No more lugging my bag around.

I put in %1300 more hits on one club if I hit around 200 balls per session.

I build muscle memory, no more different swings every club switch and I can repeat my hit over and over.

Build overall muscle and stamina for longer range time.

Cons.

It can be very tedious work, however that's what practice is.

Expensive, going to the range as much as I do can cost you alot of cash ( find coupons/deals online, shop around different ranges)  There are some courses that offer range balls a a fraction of the cost of a driving range. (I have the opportunity to hit range balls, all I can hit for 5 dollars where I live)

At first it's tiring and can take a toll on your muscles

I hope this idea helps some of you that are trying to get past bogie golf.  I now shoot around +/-8 over on a 72, my best game was 4 over.  I was a bogie golfer a year ago.  Given i'm sure I spend alot of time practicing, however I realized that the industry wants you to play the rest of your life to get somewhat better.  You can expedite your game play by the amount you practice.  I've been playing golf now for 3 years and everyone I play with doesn't understand how I play like I do.  But I tell them practice and I realized their idea of practice isn't nearly as close to my regiment. If you only spend one session a week driving might as well put use to it instead of just wacking balls with every club.  There's nothing more frustrating then hitting 5 out of your last 10 balls you hit with a club.  Then going to play a round and just flub or slice a ball.  Then wonder why you hit like that because you hit better on the range.  After your swings are down pat, you work on spins and curves.

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Originally Posted by zynthesis

It can be very tedious work, however that's what practice is.

I completely disagree.

You're not practicing anything. You're not changing anything. You're not really improving - you're just hitting the same club a few hundred times.

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Not really sure what you mean. Are you saying typing on a keyboard for 2 minutes a day is just as effective a typing on keyboard for 4 hours? And 2 minutes of quality practice Is as effective as 4 hours of quality practice? "Edit" When people ask about how long it takes to get pretty decent at golf, I ask them how many golf balls do you think a pro has hit in his life. Everyone always says a million. I ask them how many golf balls they hit this week? They say maybe 100.
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Originally Posted by zynthesis

Not really sure what you mean. Are you saying typing on a keyboard for 2 minutes a day is just as effective a typing on keyboard for 4 hours? And 2 minutes of quality practice Is as effective as 4 hours of quality practice?

"Edit"

When people ask about how long it takes to get pretty decent at golf, I ask them how many golf balls do you think a pro has hit in his life. Everyone always says a million. I ask them how many golf balls they hit this week? They say maybe 100.

No, he's saying that 4 hours of banging balls ISN'T "quality practice."  It's just 4 hours of banging balls.  You have to be working on something to get anything out of it, otherwise you're more likely to be grooving bad habits, or simply just wasting your time.

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Originally Posted by Golfingdad

No, he's saying that 4 hours of banging balls ISN'T "quality practice."  It's just 4 hours of banging balls.  You have to be working on something to get anything out of it, otherwise you're more likely to be grooving bad habits, or simply just wasting your time.

You don't know jackshit ya stupid monkey!

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Yours in earnest, Jason.
Call me Ernest, or EJ or Ernie.

PSA - "If you find yourself in a hole, STOP DIGGING!"

My Whackin' Sticks: :cleveland: 330cc 2003 Launcher 10.5*  :tmade: RBZ HL 3w  :nickent: 3DX DC 3H, 3DX RC 4H  :callaway: X-22 5-AW  :nike:SV tour 56* SW :mizuno: MP-T11 60* LW :bridgestone: customized TD-03 putter :tmade:Penta TP3   :aimpoint:

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I am always just working on contact - developing my basic full-swing . .so I tend to hit through balls pretty fast and definitely get tired by the end of the bucket (of 100).

I always start out by trying to hit the 100 yard "green" (my range has small raised area "greens" around the flags) as many times as I can with my sandwedge, gap wedge and pitching wedge.  I'll do that for about 30 balls and then I work on hitting my clubs solidly . .sometimes I focus on driver, sometimes irons.  I find myself hitting, making small adjustments, hitting again, etc.

I take lessons semi-regularly and usually have ideas that I'm trying to incorporate . .but I don't really hit my clubs all that solidly so that's what all the ideas are usually about . .closing the clubface, trying to hit draws, etc.  At my last lesson my teacher said I should try and learn to draw the driver (I can draw all my other clubs) so my last 2 range sessions have been 30 100 yard shots followed by 70 driver-draw attempts . .with probably less than 10 successes, lol.

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Note: This thread is 3939 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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