Are you practising too easy?

When a lot of golfers practice they are typically not really engaged in what is happening during their sessions.  They rush through their shots in a way that is very unlike the real thing on the course and aren’t recreating any kind of pressure they will be under on the course.  Always remember any time spent on the driving range or practice ground is with the purpose of making you better on the course.

Below are my top tips for getting the most out of your practice sessions;

• Take your time and pay attention to your results (ball flight, feels, etc)
• Pick targets!  Sounds obvious but not everyone does
• Don’t hit too many shots in succession with the same club or to the same target
• Don’t worry if you’re not getting into your normal rhythm on the range of hitting crisp 7 iron after crisp 7 iron
• If you’re struggling and practising worse than usual you are very likely getting better at golf at the same time, not to mention being set up for the pressures of a card in your hand in the weekend’s medal
• Don’t overthink mechanics/technique unless you are working with a qualified coach and are working on something specific
• If you are working on mechanics you can do more blocked practice but do this at the start of your session and not for the whole time
• Take on your friend in a competition of some form if you’re not alone
• Get feedback!

To get feedback you probably want to play games that you can score.  I recently heard of a great range game called “10 chance”.  It was mentioned by Karl Morris on his podcast show.  Basically you pick a club and an area to hit your ball between on the range.  You want your area to be pretty narrow so if anything it’s actually a harder shot than on the course.  E.g. if you’re hitting a driver make your imaginary fairway pretty tight.  If using an iron or wedge make your imaginary green small.  The aim of the game is to hit 10 shots and score 7 or better.  If you do score 7 or better the next time you play you make your target even narrower.  If you score under 7 you can make it wider next time.

So please try and add pressure into your sessions, don’t overthink swing technique, and try to get feedback.  I’m sure you’ll get a lot more from your practice and be much better prepared for your competitions come the weekend!

Please let me know how you’re getting on and subscribe to my blog if you haven’t already.

Good luck!