It always surprises me that anyone brings anything other than their driver to the driving range. Inevitably, most people who go there are interested in just beating balls with their driver as hard as they can. So why bring the whole bag of clubs? Of course, they wonder why they never improve at the game of golf despite their frequent visits to the driving range. Basically, they are just spraying balls around the range and are lucky to hit any two balls within 50 yards of each other. Eventually, they quit going to range because they deem it a waste of time.
On a recent trip to the range, I observed one golfer’s awe over another’s seeming mastery of long iron shots. Of the five or so balls I watched him hit, the closest two were perhaps 35 yards apart. The point is, anybody can hit it into the ocean. But don’t treat the driving range like one. Hit to a specific target on every shot. That sounds remarkably like the game of golf – hitting to targets. If you want to improve at golf do the same at the range.
As I mentioned before, most of your time at the range (after warming up) should be hitting your go to shots. If my go-to shots are an 8-iron from 140-145 yards and a half-swing 9-iron from 100, then I want to be emptying most of that bucket on those two targets. Eventually, when your on the course, your confidence in these shots will be huge and confidence is a huge part of the game of golf. If you are just hitting balls out in the ocean, do yourself a favor and stay home. The range will do you no good.
The rest of your bucket of balls should be invested into shots you had difficulty with the last time on the course and on the short game. To realize what shots you had difficulty with the last time you played, you must mentally go over your round. Not many people do this, choosing instead to put the round out of their mind as quickly as possible. Spend a few minutes after your round thinking about where you lost most of your strokes. Learn and improve from your mistakes by recognizing and correcting them. As with the go-to shots and I will stress it again, those shots (problem shots and short game) should also be made at a specific target. I don’t care if you are chipping it 2 yards. There better be a specific target 2 yards away or you are wasting your time and money.
Always spend a good chunk of time on your short game including putting. If I have a bad round, the culprit is usually poor putting. When practicing putting, focus on the 3-6 footers then move on to longer putts especially if your lag putting is weak.
No prizes are given to those who can get the most balls into the air at one time. Take your time. Hitting 80 balls in 20 minutes will not improve your golf game.
If you find yourself unable to concentrate, then consider making up little games. See how many times you can hit a green consecutively. Visualize each shot on your favorite course and play a few holes or play a few holes of the next course where you will golf. Envision the first tee, plot out the boundaries of the fairway onto the range, hit your tee shot, and envision how it would end up on the course. Line up your next shot, picture the green on the range and hit to it. Changing clubs as necessary with each shot. Practice must simulate as closely as possible the real deal.
The range has always served as a fountain of knowledge for me. You will usually discover something about your swing there, so bring a small note pad and jot down a line or two about your visit there each time you go. You may put down what you worked on, how it went, and/or what you discovered if you made a certain adjustment for example.
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