Hitting into a Net

[RFKFREAK]

A room opened up in my house and is big enough to use to practice hitting golf balls. Now I'm shopping around for a net. Just curious, has anyone tried the Rukk Net? I know there are better options like building your own, but I'm probably not as hands on and rather just buy one instead of risking the walls and window of my poor craftsmanship. This one is a decent price (a lot lower than the Net Return) and it's portable. Anyone have this or tried it?

I know I'm bumping up a thread that hasn't been posted in in six months, but...

So, it's my understanding that my girlfriend's parents are getting me this net for Christmas (it's my understanding b/c I sent her the link to send to her parents).  Am curious what you're feedback is on this net.  I'm pretty excited.  I'm also planning on setting up and Evolvr account and also getting the all turf net because earlier this year I was at a range that had what I would call a standard mat and hurt my rib cage and back due to hitting the mat before the ball by a substantial amount and then being foolish and doing it kept swinging and doing it again and again.

Sadly, I don't have room to be able to hit balls indoors and since people were talking about shanks and what not, I think instead of my back yard, I'll use the net at this park that's about two blocks from my house...unless I get lazy.  Haha.

[RPMPIRE]

I know I'm bumping up a thread that hasn't been posted in in six months, but...

So, it's my understanding that my girlfriend's parents are getting me this net for Christmas (it's my understanding b/c I sent her the link to send to her parents).  Am curious what you're feedback is on this net.  I'm pretty excited.  I'm also planning on setting up and Evolvr account and also getting the all turf net because earlier this year I was at a range that had what I would call a standard mat and hurt my rib cage and back due to hitting the mat before the ball by a substantial amount and then being foolish and doing it kept swinging and doing it again and again.

Sadly, I don't have room to be able to hit balls indoors and since people were talking about shanks and what not, I think instead of my back yard, I'll use the net at this park that's about two blocks from my house...unless I get lazy.  Haha.

@RFKFREAK I actually got the ProAdvanced Net instead of the Rukk Net in February for indoor use and it worked fairly well for the first couple of months. The design is roughly the same, but not sure about the difference in quality of the net. I did manage to hit a shot that went through the net and hit the wall behind it, but no major damage. Because I had limited space, I was hitting pretty close to the net in one particular area and that's probably why it wore pretty heavily and eventually broke. I called their customer service and they requested pictures of the damaged net as well as any other damages caused and they were able to send me a replacement net in a week.

If you were hitting at a decent distance away from the net, I don't think you'd have much of a problem of the net breaking. The longest club I used with this net is a 3 iron and the net recepted it with no problems. If you were hitting indoors, I would still advise putting some type of padding behind it. The only thing is unless you're hitting close to the net (and even then be careful), you definitely can't use your wedges because it's fairly short and your shots will definitely clear the top. Also, there's really no shank protection so just be wary of that. It is a space saver when it's broken down, which is easy to do once you get the hang of it.

Unless you make your own home made net or are able to afford the Net Return, this is your next best option. The Rukk Net might have a better quality net, but I really can't provide any merit to that unless you think the higher price may get you better quality. So far, since that little incident, I haven't had problems.

[JonMA1]

Not sure if this is relevant, but I suspended a 10" wide strip of foam padding in front of and down the center of my net. First, I can tell by the "thud" where my shots are hitting and secondly, I thought it might help cut down on the wear and tear of the net.

As RPM noted, make sure you move a lot closer to the net if using higher lofted clubs.

[RFKFREAK]

Not sure if this is relevant, but I suspended a 10" wide strip of foam padding in front of and down the center of my net. First, I can tell by the "thud" where my shots are hitting and secondly, I thought it might help cut down on the wear and tear of the net. As RPM noted, make sure you move a lot closer to the net if using higher lofted clubs

I'm also wondering what I might be able to add to the sides of the net to catch shanks.

[JonMA1]

I'm also wondering what I might be able to add to the sides of the net to catch shanks.

That's a good question. I don't shank the ball often but I have missed to the right of the net a couple of times. The difference being that my setup is in my work shop where little damage will result. If I had it setup in the house, I suppose I'd either hit the "almost" golf balls or set up an old lazy boy chair or something to catch any wayward shots (usually low for me). In any event, standing closer to the net would increase your margin of error.

As you improve your swing, you'll gain more confidence (I know, that's funny coming from me). Eventually, this won't be an issue. Until then, the danger of breaking something in your house and the subsequent ridicule from your girlfriend will add a little risk to each swing.

[smellysell]

Here is my setup in my unfinished basement.  The ceiling is high enough to do full swings, but I can do 9-3s until my heart is content, which is better than nothing, especially since I've been working on a Slicefixer sort of swing and he swears by them. [URL=http://thesandtrap.com/content/type/61/id/66552/] [/URL]

So after using this completely screwed up my swing,I will warn anyone against using a net exclusively to practice. I ended last season at 16, and after hitting balls into the net all winter, seemingly much more solidly as the winter progressed, went out last spring and had lost 2-3 clubs distance, and gained a mega-slice. Eventually got everything back plus a little with a bunch of lessons, and even more practice after seeing my handicap balloon up to the mid 20s, but this winter I will only be putting.

[RFKFREAK]

[quote name="smellysell" url="/t/53895/hitting-into-a-net/180#post_801038"]Here is my setup in my unfinished basement.  The ceiling is high enough to do full swings, but I can do 9-3s until my heart is content, which is better than nothing, especially since I've been working on a Slicefixer sort of swing and he swears by them. [URL=http://thesandtrap.com/content/type/61/id/66552/] [/URL]

So after using this completely screwed up my swing,I will warn anyone against using a net exclusively to practice. I ended last season at 16, and after hitting balls into the net all winter, seemingly much more solidly as the winter progressed, went out last spring and had lost 2-3 clubs distance, and gained a mega-slice. Eventually got everything back plus a little with a bunch of lessons, and even more practice after seeing my handicap balloon up to the mid 20s, but this winter I will only be putting.[/quote] Did you record your swings while using the net last winter so that you or an instructor could analyze it?

[smellysell]

I recorded it, but didn't have an instructor watching. I'm sure if I had been doing it with some guidance, the results could have been different.

[RFKFREAK]

I recorded it, but didn't have an instructor watching. I'm sure if I had been doing it with some guidance, the results could have been different.

Yeah, I mean, I don't think at this stage of the game I can say to my gf's parents, "No, I don't want a net anymore."  Haha.

[MS256]

I'm also wondering what I might be able to add to the sides of the net to catch shanks.

You could buy an extra piece of netting to run down the right side (doesn't cost very much), or rig up a tarp or bed sheet. Even if I had never shanked a ball in my life (certainly not true for me) I would probably have my first right through my TV just when I least expected it.

Sometimes when I am really playing badly I actually get more out of hitting the ball into a net for a while because I'm not really worried about where the ball is going, and I'm only thinking about making solid impact.

Just wish I had high enough ceilings to hit balls in my house, but it's not even close. If I ever move that will be high on my wish list in a new house.

Like some others have said, don't fully trust any net. I've had several and eventually hit a ball through all of them (but mine were outdoors so they deteriorate faster).

[march11934]

Just curious about what everyone is looking for while hitting into a net. For me it's the feel of the strike. You know when you pure one. You don't need to watch it fly down the range to know it was hit well. How many slices felt good coming off the club??? I hit my PW to 7 iron to just practice hitting as purely as i can. I know the feel and the sound of a well hit shot. My 5 iron is more of a practice swinging to achieve a pure show. Long irons above a 6 is where i get weak. I carry a 6 and a 5. The rest are hybrids. For wedges i hang a strip of plastic down the middle of the net so i don't turn my head to watch the path. I can hear if i hit the plastic strip and i know if my chip shots are on line.

[RFKFREAK]

Just curious about what everyone is looking for while hitting into a net. For me it's the feel of the strike. You know when you pure one. You don't need to watch it fly down the range to know it was hit well. How many slices felt good coming off the club??? I hit my PW to 7 iron to just practice hitting as purely as i can. I know the feel and the sound of a well hit shot. My 5 iron is more of a practice swinging to achieve a pure show. Long irons above a 6 is where i get weak. I carry a 6 and a 5. The rest are hybrids. For wedges i hang a strip of plastic down the middle of the net so i don't turn my head to watch the path. I can hear if i hit the plastic strip and i know if my chip shots are on line.

I'm not good enough to know if I struck the ball well just from hitting it. My goal with the net is to learn to be consistent when striking the ball so as to avoid topping and chunking the ball.

[march11934]

I'm not good enough to know if I struck the ball well just from hitting it.

My goal with the net is to learn to be consistent when striking the ball so as to avoid topping and chunking the ball.

I have done drills starting with about 50% swing rate and work my self into a full swing. Don't like swinging at 50% at the range. Feels like a waste of money. Swinging softly helps solidify good balance and posture. You should be able to feel a good shot when swinging softly. Once you et a groove just ramp up the power until you get into a full swing. I actually find that hard to do at the range because i want to hit the ball for distance as well as accuracy when on the range. I guess i agree with the original posts about not being able to hold back on the range.

[lajito64]

i know without a video this may be hard. but is there a "rule of thumb" for what i may be doing wrong??.......i am topping or skulling most of my wegde shots. i think mentally i'm afraid if i swing "lower" i'll bring up a pound of dirt and the shot will only go 10 feet. so is there a general thing new golfers are doing wrong when they top the ball? Thanks in advance

[iacas]

i know without a video this may be hard. but is there a "rule of thumb" for what i may be doing wrong??.......i am topping or skulling most of my wegde shots. i think mentally i'm afraid if i swing "lower" i'll bring up a pound of dirt and the shot will only go 10 feet.

so is there a general thing new golfers are doing wrong when they top the ball?

Thanks in advance

This isn't really the topic here, but often fat and thin shots are the same cause: low point is too far back. When you pull up, you thin it. When you don't, you hit behind the ball (fat).

I'd look at more of the the threads in the instructional forum, and check out videos relating to Keys #1 and #2 at http://purestrike5sk.com/videos.php .

[march11934]

I am no instructor so maybe they might have better ideas but i have helped out friends with the same issues with these two recommendations.

1- You may be pulling your eyes off the ball just before impact which tends to shift your posture. Try to remember what the ball looked like after the hit. if you have a mental image you kept your eyes and head still through the slot and you should end up with a clean strike.

2- I had one friend that would keep the ball far away form their body so they would have to extend their hands out away from their body. Try a more compact swing where your hands a literally almost touching just above your knees. Will allow you to incorporate your body turn into the swing.

Both of these have worked for me and a few friends when i saw they were having the same issues.

Regards.

[RFKFREAK]

Got the Rukket net for Christmas.  Got home yesterday and opened it then.

There's snow on the ground so haven't been able to use it.

Supposed to snow another 9 inches this week.

[Hammer 4]

I just won a new hitting net on ebay. My question is, is there something other than the feeling of a well struck ball to look for when hitting into a net. I've never had one before, and always went by the feel, and flight of the ball, or am I over thinking this..?