Whats your practice routine?

While I'm getting my swing back, I use around a half hour a day with the camera at home just to make sure I'm practising the right things. I work (real go and get paid work) from 12pm to 8pm, so I usually go down to the club in the morning and hit 1 or 2 hundred balls - concentrating on making my ideal practise swing into my actual golf swing. (not worrying about where I hit the balls). Before I play 9 holes, on the range I will hit 50 or so balls, not worrying about my swing - only where they go. Then I play 9 holes. On the course I am only worried about my alignment and watching the ball.

So all in all I probably practice 4 or 5 days a week for 3 hours with 9 holes when I feel like it. I the only thing I hate is the first 5 minutes after getting myself out of bed, the rest I really enjoy..

A good routine focuses on improvement rather than just beating balls. I make sure to set up a good "practice station" where I put clubs down to make sure my alignment is practiced properly. Then I make sure to focus on targets and not just beat balls aimlessly because we don't play golf like that.

Depends where you are in your game. If you're after a quick change in your swing you should have your focus on one or two swing thoughts not where the ball is going. If you’re happy with your swing, yes, you should be concentrating on targets. Once I have my swing where I want it, it only takes me a few weeks to get hitting to target accurately and consistently.

I see on your site that you are an aspiring tour player. I was a full time player before I took a break for a few years. I know it sounds wimpy but it was too much pressure for me and I wasn't making enough money. It's a tough life when your co-workers (other players) are just there to beat you into the ground if they can. Hope you turn out to be the next Tiger and that I can say I talked to that guy on the net!

i like to practice on the range like i am playing. after i make each hit or swing. i walk away from it. put down another ball and step back behind just like on the course. spot my shot, due my alignment, and swing. if i miss or screw up. i stil walk away and fight geting another ball while i am still in this stance. Lately, i have been changing clubs no matter what after each swing/hit. A medium bucket can take two hours with this method.

All good stuff.

Something I picked up from Dave Pelz is to hold your finish and watch the ball flight to it's end, what ever the result. We need feedback to learn and turning away from a bad shot to pick up another ball before the previous has landed does not give our brain the information it needs to understand what went wrong.

hi
when i go to the range i tend to do same as brian and hold my finnish even on the bad shots, i also take a note book and a pen, i draw a green on 4 or 5 pages first and mark the page with what club i am using, then after each shot i put a dot where the ball landed this shows me later how far and how the balls grouped, it also make me walk away and set up fresh like paterick said, it also means i can see how my grouping is week to week, if i try and draw it i mark the spot with a d as most of my shots fade i know the always come in from the left. i find since doing this i focuse more when at the range.
bill

I really like that idea, Bill - about tracking your dispersion.

This is year 4 for me (Canadian seasons), and I've vowed to spend the entire year working on my swing. I used to have a regular round on Sunday - I've told the Mrs that I'm not playing anymore - I'll be at the range instead (1 hour drive, 2 round trip). I can full swing PW and SW in my backyard, but it doesn't tell me much (well, ok, yes it does, it tells me when I get overactive hands).

This year is the year of building the perfect (for me) swing.

__________________
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A new highlight: Golfing the home course on Christmas Day.

I say it too often: If it's golf club shaped, you can play with it.

For the record, I'm a club doctor, not a swing doctor.

hi lowpost
dont try and do to many things at once, consentrate on one thing only and work on that till you have it to a standard that your happy with, i have tried doing to many things and it did not work, now one thing at a time, that builds confedence too.
bill

Bill,

Nice idea that ball tracking, I also like the way it breaks up the routine to prevent machine gun hitting.

hi brian
that was why i did started taking the note book to stop me hitting shot after shot without moving my stance.
it has given me a lot on info taking notes and i understand what i can and cant do lot more too,
bill

The majority of my range practice these days focuses on precision. I pick out targets at various distances and work on landing balls as tight as I can around them. I like to hit a target using different clubs so that I can produce differing ball trajectories for the same distance.

after stretching and swinging 2 clubs i usually hit a couple of dozen wedge shots then another couple of dozen with mid irons.
with the last 50 i get a score card out and play holes as if im on my local course to mix up my club use.
i never tip the balls out of the bucket i step back from last shot and pick up another one and go through my preshot routine.
that way it feels more realistic

Hello:

Always, always use an alignmet aid of some type. Golf shaft, yardstick, string whatever to make sure you are square to your target and get used to spot checking your feet, knees and shoulders. Make sure you sight your target after making sure you are square to get used to what the correct set-up will feel and look like.

Whenever I go to a pro tournament I spend a good deal of time at the range watching their routines and they always use alignment aids of some type for all full shots. If they do it it is probably not a bad idea for the rest of us.