Break the boredom on the range and practice with a purpose

WINTER is here and for many of us who enjoy the game, it means that we tend to play much less golf, mainly because of the shorter days and, of course, the bad weather, although we seem to get that all year round in this country.

For the past number of winters, I must confess that

I have taken the lazy option and packed away the clubs altogether from the beginning of November until the following April and, as a result, my game has suffered over the past two years.

However, that’s going to change this winter and I have made up my mind that I am going to play golf and actually do some practice, something I’ve not done for many years for the simple reason that I hate hitting golf balls on a practice fairway or driving range, but desperate times require desperate measures.

I was speaking recently to a friend who practices a lot and asked I him how come he didn’t get bored hitting endless buckets of balls?

He simply said “I practice with a purpose” and when I pressed him further on the topic he explained to me that it’s pointless going to your local driving range and just hitting practice balls with every single club in the bag until you have exhausted yourself, you need to look at your previous game and practice accordingly.

After you come off the course having played a full round, make a little note of a few things and you can then formulate a practice plan.

For example, jot down things like the number of fairways you hit, the number of greens you hit, the number of putts you took, the number of times you got up and down from off the green or in a bunker and then to take it a stage further, take a note of the fairways and greens that you missed and whether you missed them right or left.

You can tell from these notes what you need to work on most the next time you visit the range, but in my case it’s my whole game that needs work.

Practice, of course, isn’t just about hitting balls, as the short game makes up for fifty per cent of the shots we hit so that needs work too, but practising on winter greens can have an adverse effect on your putting so maybe an indoor putting mat might be the solution.