Is taking a divot on practice swing ok?

[baw1]

Before each shot I take one practice shot. This helps my muscle memory get a feel for the club and distance to the ball/ground, etc.. When I am able to brush the ground or take a divot on the practice swing my actual shot tends to be good. If I miss the ground on the practice shot and then proceed with the actual shot, it is usually not a good shot. I am concerned about violating etiquette by taking divots on the practice swing, but I also want to hit a good shot. Thoughts on this?

[SavvySwede]

You are NEVER supposed to take a divot on a practice swing. As a golf course worker and as a golfer i find the mere thought of it appalling. Please respect the course.

[Lihu]

Before each shot I take one practice shot. This helps my muscle memory get a feel for the club and distance to the ball/ground, etc.. When I am able to brush the ground or take a divot on the practice swing my actual shot tends to be good. If I miss the ground on the practice shot and then proceed with the actual shot, it is usually not a good shot. I am concerned about violating etiquette by taking divots on the practice swing, but I also want to hit a good shot. Thoughts on this?

For anyone other than a grounds keeper, no problem.

I always try to thin my shots whenever there is one nearby.

[baw1]

You are NEVER supposed to take a divot on a practice swing. As a golf course worker and as a golfer i find the mere thought of it appalling. Please respect the course.

Thanks for your reply. I want to "respect" the course and follow proper etiquette. This is the reason for my post. I am relatively new to the game so trying to understand how people deal with this. As an experienced golfer yourself, do you not have the need for practice shots or taking divots on them? Perhaps its just a psychological thing for me and I really don't need to dig in?

[aaronwright21]

Nobody cares besides the maintenance men.  It happens on 90% of shots so whats the difference if it's from a practice or real swing.  Obviously don't go hackin away at the fairways, but if you chunk a practice swing, don't worry about it! Not a big deal at all.

[brice]

Thanks for your reply. I want to "respect" the course and follow proper etiquette. This is the reason for my post. I am relatively new to the game so trying to understand how people deal with this. As an experienced golfer yourself, do you not have the need for practice shots or taking divots on them? Perhaps its just a psychological thing for me and I really don't need to dig in?

I don't think there's really a need to make a full swing. I just swing the club around a little bit brushing the ground to get comfortable with what club I'm about to swing. I used to take take full practice swings too though, but the owner of the golf course I grew up on broke me of that habit lol

[Dave2512]

The only time I take a full practice swing is if I am trying to get a feel for hacking it out of rough. Otherwise it's going through the motions, literally.

[vangator]

Not on your practice putts. Fill in your divots.

[baw1]

Nobody cares besides the maintenance men.  It happens on 90% of shots so whats the difference if it's from a practice or real swing.  Obviously don't go hackin away at the fairways, but if you chunk a practice swing, don't worry about it! Not a big deal at all.

Your response makes sense. I guess my main curiosity is how "better" golfers are able to execute their swing without a practice swing or full practice swing (which may include taking a small divot). The touring pros don't appear to do it either. I hit my shots thin when I rush my practice shot or don't at least brush the ground during the practice shot.

[Lihu]

Your response makes sense. I guess my main curiosity is how "better" golfers are able to execute their swing without a practice swing or full practice swing (which may include taking a small divot). The touring pros don't appear to do it either. I hit my shots thin when I rush my practice shot or don't at least brush the ground during the practice shot.

That's one reason they're better.

I also need a full swing and not just a "feel swing", but I suppose as you gain experience you also know what to expect more than when you are relatively new or if you just made a swing change.

[baw1]

That's one reason they're better.

I also need a full swing and not just a "feel swing", but I suppose as you gain experience you also know what to expect more than when you are relatively new or if you just made a swing change.

So the better you are the more ingrained it is within you. Especially if you have been playing for a long time. The muscle memory and coordination and "feel" are there so the club knows where to go to make the proper contact with the ball. Is that what you are saying?

[Lihu]

So the better you are the more ingrained it is within you. Especially if you have been playing for a long time. The muscle memory and coordination and "feel" are there so the club knows where to go to make the proper contact with the ball. Is that what you are saying?

That's what I'm guessing, anyway. Even I'm taking less time to setup now, so it's probably experience. It takes time to mature as a golfer.

[MS256]

Nobody likes to have their ball end up in a divot.

Every time you take a divot with a practice swing the odds go up that somebody is going to end up in one of them.

It accidentally happens to most of us occasionally with a fat practice swing but guys that intentionally do it make me cringe a little.

[jballard388]

I am pretty new to golfing but I always take a divot on my practice swing. But that being said I always try to fill in my divot from my practice swing and my actual swing. If I dont take my practice swing the same as my real swing I always top the ball and get on top of it. Is this just a mental thing or just due to my lack of experience.

[flopster]

One of the main reasons better players don't take "full" swings before the actual shot is because your just tiring yourself with all these extra swings, think about it, how many practice swings do you take on the range before you hit the ball? none, so why do you need it on the course? I can understand an easy half swing just to loosen up a little but to take a full swing with divot on the course is completely unnecessary and your just tearing up the course more than it needs to be and yes I care and I'm not a greenskeeper but it's real irritating watching some noob hack up the course with 2 or 3 practice chops and then scrape the ball 80 yards and walk away from the damage.

[Mr. Desmond]

No to divot

When you are taking a practice swing, it may be for several reasons. Among them:

Relaxation

Rehearsing a swing thought

Typically, it's a swing through the air and not ground. As long as you keep your spine angle or inclination to the ball during the swing, an "air" swing is fine, if that is what you are practicing.

Agree with the members who asked that you respect the course and other golfers by not damaging the course with more divots.

And if you are new, learn to repair ball marks on the green correctly:

http://golf.about.com/od/golfcourses/ss/ballmarkrepair.htm

For a divot repair tool, smaller prongs that are close to each other are the ones to purchase.

[joekelly]

Hey, why not take that practice swing in the rough?  Then even the junior greenskeeper can't object.

But lately i have been thinking about a comment i read here that has helped me a ton when i take practice swings. You know, every swing i take fill my mind with stuff.  From the head to the hands, up to the arms, to the hips and finally the shoulders, it's a massive mental overload.  Often results in poor shots.

But if i focus on keeping the distance from my nose to the ball unchanged,  there is no more dipping down and hitting fat, and swish. A great practice swing. Brush the grass, no divot.

[Zeph]

I don't do it and I don't like people doing it. If you can't hit the ball without first taking a practice divot, you should work on fixing that.

If everyone started taking divots on their practice swings, the number of divot holes would in theory double. Ideally as far as the course management (the grass) goes, we shouldn't be taking divots, but the design of the clubs means it's the most effective way to hit the ball. Since we can't get rid of that, we should at least limit the divots to as few as possible.

If I take a practice swing, it's a smooth and slow one, well over the ground. I don't take full address position and pretend to hit the shot. Just pick up the club and swing it through the air.

Finding your ball in a divot hole compared to finding it flat on the fairway is a big deal.