is a good session at the range empowering?

[deronsizemore]

I'm not aware of any out and out ranges that have grass over here. A few of the bigger golf courses have decent ranges, but you have to be playing there to use them. Of course, most have practice grounds but once again you have to be a member, or at least playing as a guest for the day, to use them.

Yeah some ranges over here have what they call 80% balls which don't fly as far just because their range isn't that long, but they don't feel any different to me off the clubface than a normal ball. Here's the range I usually go to: http://manowargolf.com . It's a great facility.

[Smiffy]

Yeah some ranges over here have what they call 80% balls which don't fly as far just because their range isn't that long, but they don't feel any different to me off the clubface than a normal ball.

Do you hit them off of grass or do you have mats like we have over here?

I wouldn't mind so much if you could hit off of grass, at least you get to make proper contact with the ball. But you catch it a little heavy on mats and you can do some damage to your wrists. I've hit off of some mats before that had really thick artificial grass which wasn't too bad, but most of our mats are threadbare leading to a lot of thinned shots.

[deronsizemore]

Do you hit them off of grass or do you have mats like we have over here?

The last couple of days I've hit off of mats simply because it's rained for a week straight. I typically hit off of the grass though when it's not raining or too cold. When it's cold outside they have heated stalls that they allow you to hit from.

[Ty Haegs]

thats me. I am dominating balls with the driver on the range then I cant hit it straight for my life on the course.

head is getting in the way ;)

My take on it is... at the range people have the mindset that says "hey if I don't hit this ball good, it's ok because I can just try again." Whereas on the course you know if you screw up then it will cost you a stroke... which in return usually leads to people over-analyzing everything about their swing rather than just hitting it as they do at the range. And hitting balls at the range can be very deceiving. What I mean is if you hit 50 balls with your driver chances are 15-20 of those will not be great drives. Sure you are hitting a majority of them good but you are also hitting a lot more balls than you would on the course with your driver. So therefore when you only hit 10 out of 18 fairways it feels like a crappy day of driving but in reality it is just as good as your day at the range. That is just my .02 wow what a mouthful. lol I am sure it won't make sense to some people what I am trying to say.

[retexan599]

For me, the range is mostly about trying variations on swing setup -- how does it feel if I stand this much closer/further from the ball; what happens if I make my grip really strong/weak, what if I open/close the club face a little, etc. I do find that it takes more than one round, maybe several to really ingrain a learning from the range. So, I try not to change too many things in any given period of time.

[Ovalevader]

The range for me is pretty random as to how i'll score my next round, but always allows me to see what I have as for as distance and control goes. Last round I played the session at the range before it was brilliant. I was shaping everything all over the place, hitting 4 iron 220 yards, and bouncing balls off pins with my wedge.

That round happened to be a pretty good round, with the highlight being a 220 yard 4 iron that needed to be drawn over really tall trees and come down pretty soft on the green. I had remember my ball flight being really high on the range, so I decided to go for it, otherwise I would have probably punched out.

[jdub]

we all been there, train all week then play with someone and shank a shot right off the bat lol

[Brakkus]

The range can lead to a false sense of security,as a course has all different lies and elevations a killer for those of us who can't golf more than once a month or so.Also as has been said it's easy to find a groove with one club at the range whereas you have one shot to get it right at the course.Most of it is mental as most of us on here have a swing good enough to get round our local club probably in a better score than we do.

I stopped hitting the range as much and started hitting the pitch and putt course to simulate course pressure.The range has one with holes from 125 yards down to 65.It has no bunkers and the greens have no give,so they are fast,and they are no bigger than your concrete patio at home.It's a par 3 track so getting a par is very good.It gets me into the thought process of up&down; as you are most chipping onto the green even if you are only 20 ft away.The best I have done is 30 but the biggest achievement for me is handling the mental challenge,learning to hit a target with my wedge,chipping close,and 1 putting.

[n8dogg2669]

I actually think short game transfers very well from the range/putting area. For me it has anyway. Probably because it's something that's hard to find a good facility to practice on.

it does for me. my wedge game was really weak and inconsistant from 30-100 yards, to where now i really feel confident hitting different distances and controling the golf ball. and it has givin me the ability to trust myself hitting short shots.

[Ty Haegs]

I just wish my range had grass I could hit from :(

[Doctorfro]

Today, our range was closed for maintenance and so I decided to go walk nine holes. What a far better practice session than I usually get from any range time. Hitting shots, walking, getting rhythm, dropping another ball when I hit a bad shot to see if I could make a correction, extra putting work; it was a nice session that ended with me striping the ball down the middle with driver and hitting some flush iron shots. Mentally, I'm far more prepared and confident going into my next round. Not to mention playing is far more fun. I shot 39 (always counted the first ball).

[cougar978]

last night I was at the range, and I hit the ball very well. With few exceptions, I was picking my spot and hitting towards that spot. I was hitting my driver straight and was consistenly hitting it pretty far. So my question to you is this. When you hit the ball well at the range, do you feel impowered that you are out for a better round? Or is it decieving?

I think I get bored at the range and will hit some real stinkers as a result - I view it more as homework over an exam - when I concentrate and don't do stupid shit, I am confident I can hang with most anyone out there.

Bottom line is, having a good practice round is fine, but don't deceive yourself into thinking that it will all translate to the course. You should expect to hit some bad shots here and there, because that's what happens on the course.

[atrapasuenos]

I think in my case, it's no empowering... but I'm working on taking what I practice on the range to the golf course.

Cheers!