5 Solo Practice Tips for Effective Driving Range Session
If you have played golf for a long time, you likely know how important it is to get golf lessons from time to time. Lessons can get your swing back on track, give you some confidence in your ability, and make it more attainable to reach your goals.
However, taking a golf lesson every time you go to the range would not be cost effective. At some point you need to learn the art of solo practice.
If you want to make the most of your time on the driving range, but don’t feel like you know how to do it, these are the tips to take.
Key Takeaways
Save this guide for the next time you go to the driving range, but if you want the quick takeaway right now here are the key points to keep in mind.
- Having a driving range practice plan in place before you go will make your time more effective.
- Use technology like video, launch monitor data, and HackMotion to monitor your progress and stay on track. Track this progress over time.
- Have a stockpile of go-to drills you can use when something comes up in your swing.
- Coach yourself and be hard on yourself at the same time. Don’t accept poor shots because they are within range; try to learn from them.
- Incorporate pressure into the practice routine, and ensure that the shots count so you can take that with you on the course.
Contents
5 Key Tips to Practice Alone at the Driving Range
1. Put Together a Driving Range Practice Plan
A driving range practice plan is a must have for all golfers working on practicing by themselves. To set up a driving range practice plan, you need to know three things.
- How much time do you have to practice.
- What equipment do you have with you.
- The issues you are having in your golf game.
If you have this information, you can set up a perfect driving range practice plan with a warm-up routine, drills, and checkpoints to ensure success. If you thought it was hard to spend an hour on the range practicing, you’ll soon think otherwise and wonder where all the time went.
We put together a driving range practice plan that you can customize for yourself; take a look here.
2. Use Technology
Golf technology is accessible to golfers of all levels. You don’t have to be a professional to take a video of your swing or record some data from a portable launch monitor. Certain tools you invest in for your golf game can make a big difference in your ability to practice alone and be effective.
The three easiest ways to incorporate technology include portable launch monitors, cell phone video, and the HackMotion.
Launch Monitor
A launch monitor can give you data about your distances, including both carry and total distance. The more advanced models track spin rates and club path to help you work on more advanced swing dynamics.
However, a simple launch monitor that gives you distance will help you fine-tune your yardages and determine if you are making progress.
Cell Phone
Your cellphone is a great way to capture video of your golf swing. Take this video and play it back in slow motion to analyze it. Make sure you are doing some down-the-line video and some face-on video.
You’ll notice different things from both angles.
HackMotion
Wearing the HackMotion while you practice at the range will help you correct your wrist angles so the clubface is square at impact. The square clubface is a result of a wrist that is slightly flexed or flat at impact.
Most amateur players end up with too much extension in the lead wrist. HackMotion will help you get that fixed and track your progress over time.
3. Have a List of Drills Ready to Go
Drills are a huge component of becoming a better golfer. As part of your solo practice you will want some great drills to focus on.
These drills can be pulled out when you are struggling or even when you just want to fine-tune your skills.
Here are three of our favorite drills and a list of resources where you can find more specific drills to help your golf game.
Motorcycle Drill for Improved Clubface Control
Using HackMotion while you work on the motorcycle drill will give you more advanced data and insights. However, you don’t need to use it.
Take a look at how coach Tyler Ferrell uses this action at the top of his backswing to deliver the club with a square clubface.
9 to 3 Drill from Sean Foley
If your golf swing doesn’t work from waist high to waist high, what makes you think it will work as you increase the swing? It won’t!
Use this Sean Foley drill to get you there.
Takeaway Drill
Eric Cogorno has a variety of golf drills that can take your game to the next level.
Start with this takeaway one where you can get your swing started out the right way and then improve on it from there.
More Specific Drills
If you know an area of your game that needs help, here are some other resources for finding the best golf drills.
- Top Drills to Control Wrist Mechanics
- Productive Driving Range Drills
- Must-Have Driver Drills
- Drills for Ball Striking
- Backswing Drills
4. Coach Yourself
You can learn to be a coach for yourself. You’ll have to dedicate a little time to understanding your swing, what you do well, and what you struggle with. However, becoming your own coach is incredibly beneficial.
One of the most important steps here is to start being just a little harder on yourself about what a good shot is.
A slice that goes 15 yards right of the target isn’t great. Don’t aim a little left and call it a good shot. Learn to control the clubface of your golf club through proper wrist motion and get that sliced straightened out.
You may not have the knowledge and experience that golf professionals do, but you can learn a lot about what works for you and turn that into your own coaching season.
5. Incorporate Pressure Into Your Practice Session
To make the driving range more like the golf course, you have to add in a little pressure. There is no pressure with a large field in front of you and nothing riding on the shots.
Here are a few ways to incorporate pressure, make your shots count, and eventually lower your scores.
- Create games: while you are practicing, make games for yourself, like hitting every target or green but not being able to move on until you have hit the prior one.
- Pick a target every time: swinging a golf club with no target or direction in mind is really just exercise, pick a target every time you swing.
- Meet your end goals before you can leave: set a goal for yourself before you leave the driving range, make sure to meet this before you leave (ie. hit three straight shots, get within 10 feet of a target, etc.)
How to Make Solo Practice More Enjoyable
Now that you have the basics of what it takes to practice alone on the driving range, here are some of the things you can do to make the process more enjoyable.
- If you like to listen to music, bring an outdoor speaker with you and listen to it as you work on your game. You may need to be mindful of this if there are other golfers on the driving range at the same time.
- In addition, see if you have friends who also want to work on their golf game. Practicing with a friend can be great for increasing competition and pressure.
- Finally, reward yourself with some golf. After spending an hour on the range, go out and play nine holes to see how your practice is helping you. You’ll be surprised by the difference it can make in your game.
Final Thoughts
If working with an instructor on the driving range isn’t an option, you’ll have to become the instructor.
Plenty of mid- to high-handicap golfers have used a combination of technology and research to become better players by working on their game the right way.
Remember, you’ll need a practice plan and the right mindset, and from there, you should be able to take your game to the next level.
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