Musings about practice vs play time

[kilbyman]

So for every 4 rounds of golf, I might go to the driving range once (membership makes course free, driving range costs money.) I'm thinking of only allowing myself to play once a week, and practicing ball striking on other days when I would be playing. Playing so much leaves me with frustration that I'm not improving on a round to round basis. Leave some comments if you want.

~Ian

[chilly]

I'd say for high hcp'ers, practice is more important then actually playing. I try to hit balls 2-3x more often then actually playing, and I find it really helps reduce my scores. Getting irons or short game grooved makes rounds so much easier. You do have to play the course to learn, but it's not a place where you can generally work on your swing.

[dbuck]

GOOD practice will ultimately lower your score more than just playing. Don't just beat balls for the sake of it. Practice with a purpose and once you accomplish or make progress on that purpose, work on something else or end your session. If you hit 3-5 in a row the way you want to, stop with a positive thought in mind. If you have been swinging well and you hit several bad ones in a row, stop or work on something else. Spend at least 50% of your practice time on the short game to include putting--but again work with a purpose.

[kilbyman]

I've played the course at least a hundred times. So playing to learn on my home course isn't quite as important any more. I'm going to shoot for the hit 2-3x as often as I play.

[sean_miller]

How busy is your course? There are countless ways to play a practice round. Not all of them are about learning the course.

Flub a shot? Drop some practice balls and work on it right then and there - take advantage of that membership!