Wedge Practice??

[ddouni98]

I want to practice my wedges a lot but unfortunately the courses near me don't have any pitching greens. I could use the range but it's not that good of a quality either. So I was wondering if it's an ok thing to get a tee time and if there is no one behind you, just staying at one hole to practice? And is there other ways I can practice my wedge play?

[Hammer 4]

I learned at the range, and in my yard. If you have enough space in your back, or front yard, you can learn anything from flop shots to short pitch, and chip shots..

[PirateJim]

  ddouni98 said:

[COLOR=222222]I want to practice my wedges a lot but unfortunately the courses near me don't have any pitching greens. I could use the range but it's not that good of a quality either. So I was wondering if it's an ok thing to get a tee time and if there is no one behind you, just staying at one hole to practice? And is there other ways I can practice my wedge play?[/COLOR]

I don't think I would recommend just parking on one hole to practice, but so long as nobody is behind you, you should eaisly get away with hitting six or eight pitches and chips per hole and then move along. That might be better practice anyhow. Don't forget bunker practice, and don't forget to rake. If the course is busier and you need to keep moving along, there is often time to hit a pitch or two while waiting to tee off or hit from the fairway, but I would keep those down to short ones. That might help your game in other ways too. Sitting and watching the group ahead can be wearing. If you do not have much lawn at home look around for a public park or the like that has some decent grassy areas you could practice in. You will find a warmer welcome if you are not taking big divots! But for non-full-swing pitches you really don't need to take much of a divot.

[Hammer 4]

Be careful about using public parks to practice golf. All parks here in So. Cali prohibit doing any type of golfing.

[Pretzel]

Provided that you are not holding up play or taking massive divots and the course manager doesn't mind, I see nothing wrong with that. I know I do it when I hit a poor pitch or chip, or even just one that is different than what I wanted. I'll just drop a second ball right there and hit it if there isn't another group right behind me.

[MULVn8tor]

I do this a lot If I'm playing alone and no one is behind me I'll practice a different shot on each hole. Like ill drop maybe 7 or 8 balls from 100 yards and hit them all Next hole I'll maybe do 4 or 5 from 150. Making sure that if a group does come up behind you, you can quickly pick up te balls and move on

[Teamanglerx]

I do a lot of wedge practice in my back yard using trees and birdfeeder posts as a the pins / targets.

[Hardballs]

Op! I do this occasionally, there is a couple of holes on my course where a small gap can occur and allow a couple of minutes chipping/lobbing practice, as long your not being a nuisance to others or damaging the course it's fine! A good time to get practise in is to go out first light on the back 9! You should find some days you'll have the whole back 9 to yourself to experiment a bit.

[dfreuter415]

  ddouni98 said:

I want to practice my wedges a lot but unfortunately the courses near me don't have any pitching greens. I could use the range but it's not that good of a quality either. So I was wondering if it's an ok thing to get a tee time and if there is no one behind you, just staying at one hole to practice? And is there other ways I can practice my wedge play?

My wife's grandfather always told me, "If you want to play this game well, get out there and hit a lot of wedges."  So, I feel that you are on the right track to game improvement. But, finding a place can sometimes be hard.

If you get permission from the pro shop, on course practicing would work.  However, practicing your wedges on a course does not seem like a good idea, especially if you do not get permission, for a couple of reasons. 1) The greens keeper might get a little upset at the number of divots that you would make on any one hole; and 2) Even if there is no one behind you, golfers on the course might not feel that a course should be used as a practice facility.

I know that Hammer 4 said that parks in Southern California do not permit golfing, but if you do not have the options of a range or backyard, this is probably your best option.  I have used public parks where I can put targets at specific distances to work on my short game and it is a great way to spend an hour or two.

[MS256]

I practice those shots just about anywhere from the yard to the range to the living room but nothing really completely takes the place of a green. I need to know how different shots are reacting on the ground and if they are landing soft and trickling out, hop and stop, check and roll (and how much roll) ect.

[Hammer 4]

  MS256 said:

I practice those shots just about anywhere from the yard to the range to the living room but nothing really completely takes the place of a green. I need to know how different shots are reacting on the ground and if they are landing soft and trickling out, hop and stop, check and roll (and how much roll) ect.

I did the same. regarding public parks here in so.cali being illegal to practice any golf, it may be o.k. in your state. I have to admit, I have found secluded spots in a couple of parks to practice..lol