“We’re talking about practice. We ain’t talking about the game. We’re talking about practice, man.” Alan Iverson 2006. Yes, we are talking about practice. Because, unlike Mr. Iverson, most of us need to know how to practice golf better to hone our skills and lower our scores.
Practice without purpose is a waste of energy. Practicing without a plan or any knowledge will do nothing to improve your game. Hitting the jumbo bucket at the local driving range, using nothing but your Driver will not improve your game.
It will actually do the opposite, so how do we practice with purpose then? How can we take ourselves from heading to the driving range for a pointless grip and rip session to a strategic round of practice that will knock swings off our score?
Should you have a routine how to practice golf better Yes, but not just any old routine.
Should you hit every club 3 times, then head home? Maybe, but maybe not.
Let’s navigate through all of these questions and talk about how you can have a specifically designed plan or cheatsheet for practice rounds that result in lower scores.
3 Golf Practice Don’ts
1. Don’t hit a large bucket of balls with a rapid-fire approach. This does little more than tire you out physically and mentally.
2. Don’t start off with your driver. Most golfers like hitting the driver. “Driver for show” right? It’s best to warm up to a driver. Get some shorter, easier swings in before moving on to the driver.
3. Do not hit only one club over and over (like I used to) for an hour. No one uses only one club during an entire round of golf. You have 10-12 clubs in your bag. Use them.
7 Golf Practice Do’s
1. Always aim at a specified target. Know the distance of these targets. Most driving ranges have markers or targets with yardage listed on them. If not, purchase a range finder like this or this. Keep in mind that most driving ranges are at least 100 yards wide. Set yourself some “boundary” lines on each side of your target.
2. Use alignment sticks like this during your practice. Use two of them. One for your target line and one to align your feet. This will help you naturally get into position when on the course.
3. Have a plan and develop a routine. This eliminates the lazy temptation to grab the jumbo bucket and your driver.
4. Spend extra time on irons and wedges (scoring irons). The most used clubs in your bag will be your scoring irons. These are the clubs that get you on the green. Get to know them well!
5. Head to the putting green before wrapping up. If we drive for show, then we putt for doe. So make time for the putting green. You will need to practice all aspects of your game to lower your score.
6. Use Tech to your advantage. Film your swing with your phone. No excuses here. We all have very capable tools at our disposal. Make better use of them than the mindless scroll.
7. “Play” a round on the range. Meaning: grab an old scorecard from your bag. Play holes 1-9 just like you would in a real round. This will take some imagination and honesty.
Conclusion
Practice done right will help increase your muscle memory and lead to better, more consistent shots. Better, more consistent shots equal lower scores.
The goal is always fewer strokes. We all should be striving to reduce strokes from each and every round of golf we play.
Wishful thinking, hoping, and crossing your fingers won’t make you better at golf. No, my friend. Getting better takes intention. Practicing with purpose.
If done right, practicing can be both fun and purposeful. Resulting in happy-dance kinda joy when you post a low score on your next round!
Let’s golf! And remember to have a Parvelous round!
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