Driving range

[wade410]

Made to the range two days in a row now but I dont know if I am wasting my money. The problem is that the range I have been going to has done away with the mats currently and has you hitting in the grass in front of the mats. Well it is now dirt instead of grass. Will this change how ball will behave hitting it off the deck. Thx Wade

[ZenGolfer]

If anything, it will be better because it will force you to learn how to hit down on the ball because you wont have any fluff to use in order to get under the ball.

[GolfSpy WD]

If anything, it will be better because it will force you to learn how to hit down on the ball because you wont have any fluff to use in order to get under the ball.

 

+1. Anytime you hit the slightly fat shot, you'll notice it on dirt. It's a great way to practice.

[Shambles]

If you are using forged, hitting off bare ground is very likely to accelerate the wear of the plating on the flange and also of the lower part of the face if you are also a digger. On stainless it does not matter.

 

This has no effect on the playability of the clubs but does affect the mental state of some golfers.

 

 

Shambles

[JMiller]

I personally hate hitting off mats, I refuse to practice most time when this is only place I can hit from. Only time in my life I have ever gotten wrist injury from golf is hitting off a mat that was rock hard. If the dirt is hard pan then you run the risk of wrist injury, the club bouncing into the ball when hit a little fat which turns a fat shot into a thin one.

 

I only really like to hit from grass practice areas, it gives you a better simulation of what a course would be like, a mat anything fat you get away with, anything on the grass / dirt that has give errors will show up faster.

[wade410]

Thanks for the replies I am just having some confidence issues with my new irons and I was just wondering

[RookieBlue7]

Not to mention it's a PITA to get the green plastic rub marks off the soles of clubs. That along with just hating the feeling is why I hate hitting off of mats. Only time I do, to be honest, is when I'm in a store hitting their demos or used clubs.

[Shambles]

I'm a sweeper by preference so mats don't bother me all that much. The only thing that bothers me about them is when they are well past their time or have warped.

 

 

Shambles

[revkev]

Interestingly in the ask the pro area we have our resident pro, James, telling us not to waste time at the driving range but rather to go and invest more time on the short game.

 

Had to throw that in.

 

Now to reality - 99 percent of golfers who don't go to the range don't work on their short game either - their attitude is, "Why practice when I can play?" While I appreciate that attitude it has to come with a realization that they will never improve. You will in fact get the best results by working hard on your short game.

 

The rest of us go to the range for a variety of reason from just wacking balls to serious work with all kinds of gadgets and doohickies. One of the reasons I go to the range is to gain confidence for the course - I won't hit a ton of balls when I'm doing this - just enough to hit some solid, straight, the proper distance and shape. If I'm going to do that and the conditions are such that I'll have to work too hard or will hit some bad shots no matter what I do, ie. dirt, I'll pass and go straight to the practice green. You can ingrain bad habits every bit as easily as you can good habits and a lack of confidence is a huge bad habit to carry out onto the golf course.

 

If however I'm working on some aspect of my swing or I'm having some trouble with the crispness of my ball stricking I'll sometimes look for a more difficult area on the range, one that's very tight or best of all a bit down hill towards the target.

 

I know I would not take a new set of irons out to practice under conditions that were less than ideal. I'd want to hit the course thinking, "I can't miss with these!" and not about the three consecutive chunks I hit with my 5 iron on the range.

 

Also a very overlooked part of new irons is how the ball reacts when chipped - make sure you do spend a little time with them hitting chips and pitches on the practice green.

 

Enjoy

[RoverRick]

 

Now to reality - 99 percent of golfers who don't go to the range don't work on their short game either - their attitude is, "Why practice when I can play?" While I appreciate that attitude it has to come with a realization that they will never improve. You will in fact get the best results by working hard on your short game.

 

.............

 

Also a very overlooked part of new irons is how the ball reacts when chipped - make sure you do spend a little time with them hitting chips and pitches on the practice green.

 

Enjoy

 

I hit about 4 to 6 balls on the range before a round to ensure I have the right tempo. I practice my short game on the course during the week by playing one ball, but dropping another in a bad spot every hole.

 

Your comment about how the ball reacts off of "new" irons on chips is so true. This is why I like the muscle backs better than the cavities. I really love my Hogan CB on full shots, but they do not give the feed back and distance control of the mb's on partial shots.

[JMiller]

Interestingly in the ask the pro area we have our resident pro, James, telling us not to waste time at the driving range but rather to go and invest more time on the short game.

 

Had to throw that in.

 

Now to reality - 99 percent of golfers who don't go to the range don't work on their short game either - their attitude is, "Why practice when I can play?" While I appreciate that attitude it has to come with a realization that they will never improve. You will in fact get the best results by working hard on your short game.

 

Well the bad part about Duke where I play is that the public practice chipping area doesn't resemble a lot of the lies and situations you will get into on their course. it is mostly closely cut fairway like grass around the green and what rough is there is a lot deeper then what is on the course. Also, the practice putting green is in a different state completely for the roll of the ball and maintenance compared to the course. The Course has gotten punched 7 times that practice green has been punched two times this year... the Practice green is in PERFECT condition the course is in crappy condition on the greens in comparison. Practicing your short game and putting in a controlled environment only gets you so far in comparison to on the course experience/ practice.

 

I tend to go out and play 9 holes as practice, I play my first ball for score then hit 2 to 4 more shots into the green when no one is around and play all 2 to 4 extra balls into the cup as practice on approach, short game, putting. This gives me 2 to 4 additional shots per hole into a green and playing them all which is going to give me 2 to 4 additional looks and situations on the hole on top of the ball I am playing for score.

 

So yea I personally would rather get out and play, but I only take my 'play' seriously on weekends when it is a 18 hole round, If I have the choice between the range / practice areas and the golf course to play 9m, I am taking the golf course every time. I guess that is just my perspective from developing my game as a 4.8 handicap where my long game tends to be better most of the time then my short game and putting.

[BK in TEXAS]

I practice in my back yard a LOT. Mostly 10-75 yards. I had to buy a mat because I was tearing up waaaaay to much lawn. You can get a 4x6 mat for about $50 on flea-bay and just bring it along. The one I got doesn't leave marks on your clubs either.

[JMiller]

I guess my big thing is that if you have to hit form a mat or are buying one for your own use, make sure it has some give to it. I am not a digger to say the least, I am also not really much of a picker, I fall in the middle and very my angle of attack to match what I need to do but an average seeing the divot is medium sized.

 

I have gotten a left wrist injury from hitting off a hard mat that didn't have any give using a 5 iron, i hit the shot just a hair fat with too steep of a angle of attack and screwed up my wrist. the shock from impact into the concrete like mat did something to the tendon between my pinky finger side of the hand and my forearm bone.

 

The only issue with a golf mat that is designed to have some give to it is that they are a lot more expensive. So I guess that is what keeps driving ranges and people for home use buying them.

[BK in TEXAS]

I guess my big thing is that if you have to hit form a mat or are buying one for your own use, make sure it has some give to it.

Absolutely.

 

This is the one I got:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/TC4860-48-x-60-Golf-Chipping-Driving-Range-Commercial-Fairway-Practice-Mat-/320904097569?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item4ab75fef21

 

This one is even thicker but a few more bucks:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/TT3660-36-x-60-Golf-Chipping-Driving-Range-Practice-Mat-Balls-/221020459144?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item3375d89088

 

Don't get one too small or it moves every time you hit a shot and you have to stop, bend over, move the mat back. PITA.

[JMiller]

I normally have liked the ones that you can physically stick a real tee down into, but those are a lot higher then the ones that have the rubber tee.

[GolfSpy WD]

I normally have liked the ones that you can physically stick a real tee down into, but those are a lot higher then the ones that have the rubber tee.

 

It looks like the second link BK posted allows this:

 

Made of 100% spring crimped nylon material. It will not fade, bunch, weather or leave marks on your clubs.The mat is 1.250" thick with a urethane backing that will withstand repeated abuse.

 

You do not need special rubber tees. No more hitting off of a predetermined height of a rubber tee. Our mat will accept a real wooden tee which allows you to choose different clubs you want to hit at different heights. Rubber tees also give you a different feel because they obstruct your club at impact. Our mat gives you that on the course feel.

 

Our dense fiber mat allows you to feel the difference on a fat shot because if you go to deep the thick fibers will slow your clubhead speed resulting in a fat shot. In practice you will learn to eliminate your mishit shots.

 

Our competitors golf mat will "bounce" which will result in mishit shots. Our mat lets you hit down and through the ball for better practice.

 

I may order this soon. I was about to drop $80 on a matt at Golf Town anyway for backyard practice...

[GolfSpy WD]

Here's another 3' x 5' matt, but .75" thick instead of 1.125" thick (half the price): http://www.ebay.com/itm/TC3660-36-x-60-Golf-Chipping-Driving-Range-Commercial-Fairway-Practice-Mat-/320904092771?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item4ab75fdc63

[BK in TEXAS]

That's the same mat as the first link I posted (the one I bought), but 3x5 instead of 4x5.

[GolfSpy WD]

That's the same mat as the first link I posted (the one I bought), but 3x5 instead of 4x5.

 

How does it hold up to daily use and how does it compare to hitting off the grass? It sounds like a great product.

[BK in TEXAS]

How does it hold up to daily use and how does it compare to hitting off the grass? It sounds like a great product.

Ya, and for 40-50 bucks it's hard to beat. It's holding up pretty good. I'd buy the same one again when it wears out.

 

If you want the feel of real grass, you probably want the thicker one. I lay the thin one over grass and it's fine, but I would NOT use it on a concrete slab.

[dru_]

Hehe, I just took a 10x10 space in my tift bermuda yard to 1/3 inch, top dressed it set up some low pressure sprinkler heads ( usually use as landscape/annual sprinklers ) and buried two PVC pipes to hold a good net that I can take down when I'm not using it and finally mixed up a mess of river sand with tift seed and a nitrogen / lime fertilizer mixture that I use to fill my own divots :-). It's not quite up club standards, but for a back yard setup, it works really well :-).

 

My 7 year old daughter loves having it too because she can whack away :-)