It seems the cold weather is here to stay for a while so I might as well get used to going to the driving range. This isn't such a bad thing though because if you are going to work on technical aspects of your golf swing this time of year is the time to do it and the driving range is definitely the place to do it rather than the golf course.
I actually started the day off by hitting the gym. 20 mins bike, 20 mins running and also a few squats thrown into the mix. Doing some exercise is definitely the best way to warm up if you are feeling cold and is a great way to start the day.
In the afternoon I headed to the driving range. Man was it cold! Some of the balls came out of the ball dispenser with an extra layer of ice on! The aim of today was to get through 100 balls. I know it is quality rather than quantity but at the moment I just need to get my body and especially my hands use to hitting a large number of golf balls again. My aim is to be comfortable hitting 200 balls each session. From there I can split each session up into working on technical aspects and then also working on playing. A good thing to do is visualise that you are playing your own golf course with each shot at the range. Driver off the tee, then a 7 iron lay up and finally a PW into the green. If you are off line with the final shot you can even chip to one of the closer targets. This type of practice should help you take the shots you hit on the range onto the actual golf course. A common complaint from golfers is that they hit the ball beautifully on the range, but then struggle on the course - a cause of this is the mental challenges playing on a course throws into the mix, so if you can add these challenges while practising at the range then all the better.
How else do you make practice at the driving range interesting?
Holes played : 43
Range balls hit : 320
Time spent in gym : 2