We all have those tough weeks on the budget. You know, when you have 15 things that all need to get taken care of or you just decide to plan an impromptu family outing that ends up costing way more than it should. At the end of the week, when there’s just no money left in your pocket to hit the range or play nine, sometimes it’s nice to have a fall back plan, like where you can go to get some good practice in without having to pay a dime for it. So, this week’s tip is all about how you can practice for nothing, zero, nada.
First things first, please pay attention to your local rules and laws. Many times, a park is a great way to chip, but only if you are allowed to do so at them. Some parks and cities have rules and regulations about golfing in them, so pay attention to them. Also, don’t abuse you local course’s practice facilities if you never play there. If you go over to a course and hit ball after ball out of their practice bunkers, you need to make sure you pay it back by playing there when you can afford to. That practice facility isn’t ‘free’ to run, but they let you use that putting green whenever you want, so try and be supportive – even if it’s just buying lunch while you practice. Finally, if you are using the warm up green as your practice area, stay off to one corner and keep the balls on the green to a minimum. Don’t drop a shag bag out on the fringe and start putting 30 balls to the cup when a half dozen should do the job just fine.
Now that we have the basics out of the way, it’s time to look at your stats from your last round and see exactly where the bleeding occurred for you. If it was the tee box, it’s not the easiest thing to practice without having some sort of feedback on the flight of the ball. If it was long irons, same story, but not quite as hard. If it was wedges, you can start finding some good alternatives, even just for impact drills. Finally, if it was chipping or putting, there are literally hundreds of options for getting that done. So, let’s look at the lowest cost option for each ‘practice session’ you might need so you can get the work in that you need to without having to spend any money.
Driving and Long Irons: These are always a tough one since ball flight is so crucial to knowing if you are fixing things or making them worse. That said, there are plenty of great options that will help you along the way even if you are just able to swing in the back yard. Starting with an alignment club on the ground and a prop up for your cell phone, you can use the SwingAid app to record your swing while you practice taking cuts. If you can see the issues in the video, you can align yourself properly and get that swing back on plane quickly. This works great for times where you don’t have the room to hit balls, but need to work on the longer sticks.
Moving on to short irons, facial alignment is the number one cause of misses that I see on the course every time I go out. People aren’t afraid of their short irons, but they just haven’t figured out how to aim them well. By using the alignment club on the ground, then using a tee or another object to align to that is only 10-15 feet in front of you, you can start to get the face aimed at the right spot. This is also a great tip for working on the course as well. Find that spot 10-15 feet in front of you that is on the line with where the ball needs to go and aim at it. Again, use the SwingAid app to check yourself by recording your swing a few times to see if your alignment stays locked on.
Moving down to the wedges, this is when chipping and pitching becomes a reality. The good news here is that most courses have an area where you can do this for free. If you can find a secluded part of the practice facility that you can drop a dozen balls and hit them to the hole, that is the best thing you can hope for. Again, don’t take a shag back of 100 balls out to the green to practice with, but also, don’t just take 2 or 3 balls. Used game balls are the best option here if you have a few that have taken a cart path bounce or maybe just survived one too many rounds before you lost them. Chipping what you actually use will give you a better feel around the greens and let you judge your shots much better than using something that is harder or checks more than your usual ball.
Putting practice never gets old. It’s even more fun if you have a course that is only 10 or 15 minutes away that you can take your kids with you to. There are so many lessons that can be taught on the putting surface, but most of all, putting can be turned into so many games to keep everyone entertained. Sure, you could set up killer drills or round the clock drills, but honestly, how much fun is it to try and get your ball closer than someone else’s or maybe play stymie with them. Stymie is one of my personal favorite drills to play as the goal is to make your putt before the other player, just like in real conditions. The difference is, you can play defense in this game as well. There’s no marking your ball and you aren’t allowed to hit the other player’s ball either. It’s great fun and really makes you work your putting stroke when there’s a ball in close to the hole. Of course, almost every course has an available practice green to work on your putting, so as long as you have one of those around, you shouldn’t have a problem working on that.
Other great lessons on the green, especially if you have younger children or new comers to the game, would be time to explain how to read a green or explain how certain rules work. It’s also a great time to go over basic course etiquette, like whoever is away plays first and never walk through someone else’s line. The lessons taught on the putting green last far longer than the words that it takes to teach them. Whether it’s how to grip the putter, or maybe something more important like how to respect your equipment and yourself, the putting green is a place where life’s lessons are learned. That may sound crazy, but try it the next time you head out. The free putting practice may just be the start of the benefit that you get from a session on the green.
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