Practicing chipping, pitching, bunkers

[glebert]

I'm trying to improve my short game, as it is definitely a weakness, but the courses I play don't have chipping greens or practice bunkers. I can practice chipping and pitching in my backyard but it is hard to estimate how far the ball would roll on a green (as opposed to my crabgrass).

I actually got scolded the other day for practicing chipping around the first tee. They had "No chipping" signs on the putting green, so I was doing little chips in the grass along the road, and was told that even that wasn't allowed!

What do you guys do?

[zeg]

I often chip into a bucket or onto a towel. You don't get a feel for the run out, but you really need to be able to control where you land to control that anyway.

[OnePutt]

You could shave a 10 foot square in your yard, then have the surrounding area a little higher and chip towards a bucket or something in the middle. Pretty straightforward, obviously you'll have less roll in your yard though.

[ScottyWrrn]

when you go to the driving range if you have a chipping green practice your short game more than hitting balls practice flop shots, bump and runs, bunker shots if possible, and putts

[Jay-Bird]

I do this ...

[ks8829]

alot of driving ranges have chipping area that you pay $5 an hour to practice on and others are free.

[shankapotamus]

Just practice chipping to a bucket in your yard. Then when you're on the course take a mental note of how much roll you get. I used to hit 10 or so chips every green during the weekday evenings when the course was empty.

[phyrstlion]

I practice with a bucket in the yard. I chip or pitch from varying distances. My goal is to get it close. If I can do that, then the mechanics of my swing should be solid when I am on the course. Unfortunately, my grass isn't of the same quality as a putting green, so I don't get a feel for my roll.