Range before a round??

[abraxas]

what do you guys do before playing a round?
do you hit some balls at the range? if so, do you go through all your clubs?

most days, i get to the course just in time to stretch a little bit and go on the putting green
thats it...
i know this kills me b/c i usually hit soo much better on the back 9 than the front 9

so im curious what everyone normally does!

[Zeph]

- First some easy swinging and stretching
- Hit three different irons, from high to low loft
- Hit a couple 3 woods
- Hit 5-10 drives
- Last 3 balls with the club I'm hitting at the first tee
- 5-10 minutes chipping
- 5-10 minutes putting
- Tee off!

If there is less time, I will prioritize the range to get my body warmed up and going.

[Woters]

Very much depends....on a comp day work through the bag wedge, 7, 5, 5W & Driver. Off to putting green for 10 mins minimum. Good stretch then off to the first.

A friendly game normally consists of bacon sandwiches pat on the back & tee off!!!

[saevel25]

I never go to the range before a round, unless its cold out and i need to warm up, or i am extra stiff that morning. I usually can do some stretches to get myself warmed up good. Jumping jacks work well to get the blood flow out to the fingers.

[James_Black]

If it's a competitions all I do is practice my putting, and I just head out on a normal day

[Drudersh]

Personal preference my man. I've tee'd off sans range many a time and posted a decent score but when it's available I do like to hit a few balls before the round. I prefer to start with a mid iron, either 8,7,6 depending on the length of the course I'm about to play. 8-10 shots with a mid iron, switch to a wedge, find your distances there, just a FEW shots with long irons, basically until I flush one and feel good about them, then hybrid and driver, finishing up with no more than 5 driver swings, it's too easy to get frustrated with the big stick! Don't hit too many!

Then putting of course for about 5 minutes, get the speed, that's all you really need.

[rjfan91]

when I was a 25+ handicap, I had a "When you have a swing like mine" mentality that I didn't think it was beneficial or worth the extra $4 or $5.

I've rethought this a little bit.

On a normal round, I still have the above mentality. However, occasionally I will vulture a few range balls if they are laying around with a 7i.

On a tournament round, I will go and hit a half-bucket or so with PW, 7i and 5w. Most of my hitting is done with the 7i. I do it mostly just to loosen my back and legs up.

[RC]

99 percent of the time at least 20-30 minutes on the range before playing.

[mfgorilla]

It's good to warm up at the range, but I have to make sure not to hit too much. I played a course last week and all they had was 1 size bucket (large). I ended up pounding balls and didn't hit the ball well until the fifth or sixth hole.

[popeyegolfer]

Usually I hit some range balls before I play, but there are some courses I play without a range. In the end I don't think it affects my round too much. As long as I control the first few shots I am warmed up by then. But I don't take and rip a driver as hard as I can if I didn't hit any range balls first.

[WUTiger]

I usually do stretching warm-up with inflated 65 cm. ball at home before I leave for the course. At the course, I lead off with chipping and putting, hit full shots with a couple of irons, a few FW woods and then a half-dozen drives. Then, some partial wedges and a couple of bunker shots.

Most courses have about 40 balls in small bucket. Before I tee off, I'll dump the remaining 12-15 balls in the shaded, shaggy rough by the practice tee. If nobody else finds them, I'll hit them after the round for fine-tuning a problem area from the day.

If I joined a country club with an exercise gym, I would do 15 minutes on the elliptical bike to warm up the body, and then head to the range.

[popeyegolfer]

I like to warm up with some balls but if I don't I am fine after 1 or 2 holes. I will also chip and hit a few putts to get the general speed of the greens.

[Par Fore]

what do you guys do before playing a round?

I find I play best when I get to the course at least an hour beforehand.....

5 mins stretching 15 mins putting 15 mins chipping 5 min warmup 15 mins on the range - 10 balls with 7 iron, a few with 4 iron, a few with 52 degree, and a few with my driver - just enough to warm up and see a good ball flight Hit the tee....I find the more prepared I am, the more relaxed I am on the first tee.... Most days, I do get there at least 30 minutes before....I check in, stretch, hit a few putts and chips, hit about 20-30 on the range, and play.

[chilly]

I try to get to the course an hour early. Start hitting some chips around the green, uphill and downhill lies to see how the green is rolling. The putt quite a bit, half hour total between chipping and putting if possible.

I'll then head to the range, hitting some 1/2-3/4 wedges. Hit 5 with the 9, 5 with 7, five with 5i, 5 with the 20* wedge, then five each with 3w and Driver. By that time I feel pretty well ready to play. From there I'll hit a few 50-70yd wedges, as they take the most feel for me. Maybe a few 20yd chips if I have time as well.

[bong_crosby]

I keep all the junk balls I find on the course, you know, the Top-Flites, Rams, Slazengers, and Pro V1s . I have a five-gallon bucket at home that I don't have a problem keeping filled. I throw about ten balls in my bag and hit those at the driving range as my warm up. I like having a limited number of balls as a warm up. IMO, if I have 35, 70, or 100 balls to pound, I'm not as focused. If I know I only have these ten balls to hit, then I treat them as if they were shots on the course and therefore take a more deliberate approach.

If you don't have your game, you're not going to find it in a bucket of 100 balls one hour prior to your tee time. If I only have ten balls to hit, then I can get that out of the way and go over to the chipping and putting area and work on stuff that CAN be tweaked prior to a round - the feel part.

Finally, like another person said, it's all personal. What works for one person won't necessarily work for another.

[allin]

I almost always go to the range first. My goal is to warm up, find some rythym and get an idea of what shot I am most comfortable with that day, or may need, knock down, hard draw, on windy days etc. If I find myself sliding into practice my technique mode I quit. I start with the 3 ball method on the putting green for about two minutes as speed guage, after that I switch to one ball at a time and finish it out, I feel it works better for the same reason, you are trying to get ready to make shots, not practice your technique.

[BallStriker]

Hitting the range is an absolute must for me -- imo, you have to get a feel for what your swing is producing. For me, I need some time to make adjustments if my swing is a bit off (over-drawing the ball usually), and I have to hit at least 5-10 drivers.

There is nothing worse than trying to find your swing on the course....I do whatever it takes to make sure I am comfortable and confident on the first tee.

[Meddle]

I keep all the junk balls I find on the course, you know, the Top-Flites, Rams, Slazengers, and Pro V1s

Dang, that's a really good idea! I usually just putt for 10 minutes before my round, but hitting off a few on the range would really be nice to get the confidence up before the round.