The driving range is often seen as just a place to warm up or practice your swing, where you hit ball after ball without really thinking about it. But if you use it right, it can be a great place to experiment, perfect your technique, develop new skills, and, most importantly, build your confidence before heading back out onto the course.
The key to a good practice session is not the number of balls hit, but the quality of the work done. It is better to hit 30 balls with a clear intention than 100 balls in a row without a real goal. Thoughtful, structured training not only helps you progress faster, but also prevents you from developing bad habits that could hinder your long-term progress.
Before presenting three specific exercises to incorporate into your sessions, it is important to understand the three fundamental rules that determine the quality of your practice.
The three golden rules for a successful practice session
1. Set a clear goal
Each session should begin with the definition of a specific goal. This could be working on your rhythm, the stability of your footing, your finish, or the consistency of your contact. The most common mistake is trying to correct several aspects of your swing at once. This leads to a loss of concentration and superficial assimilation. On the other hand, a single goal allows you to focus all your attention and gradually integrate a new technical skill.
2. Seek feedback
Training without feedback is incomplete training. To progress effectively, you need to be able to assess whether the movement you are performing matches your initial intention. Feedback can come from various tools: alignment sticks to check your posture and club face orientation, a headcover placed on the ground to control your club path, or even a simple video to analyze your position. This visual or sensory feedback allows you to avoid reinforcing mistakes and adjust your feel in real time.
3. Continuously correct and adjust
Progress is built on intelligent repetition. If you execute a shot exactly as you visualized it, repeat it to reinforce that feeling. If, on the other hand, you notice a mistake, such as a club that is off-plane or a closed face at impact, it is essential to identify the cause and try to correct it, sometimes even deliberately exaggerating the opposite movement to rebalance your swing. It is this process of intention, feedback, and correction that transforms a simple practice session into a truly qualitative training session.
Three essential exercises for progressing
1. The contact line: mastering ball centering
One of the fundamentals of a good swing is the ability to control the point of contact between the club and the ball. To work on this, place two sticks parallel to the ground, leaving just enough space to place the ball. The goal is simple: hit the ball without touching the sticks. This exercise develops consistency in your club path and refines your ability to center the ball on the club face. By varying the clubs you use, you will work on both your irons and woods in realistic conditions.
2. The “Nine Windows Drill” popularized by Tiger Woods: learning to control your trajectories
This legendary exercise involves hitting nine different trajectories with the same club, usually a 7-iron. You combine three ball heights (low, medium, high) with three directions (draw, straight, fade). Even if you don’t manage to do all of them, simply trying forces you to consciously change the orientation of the club face, the angle of attack, or the rhythm of your swing. This exercise develops your control over your trajectories, improves your creativity, and makes you more adaptable on the course when faced with wind or a tricky flag placement.
3. Simulate a round on the driving range: transfer your training to actual play
One of the dangers of practicing is falling into an artificial rhythm, where you repeat the same shot with the same club without ever putting yourself in a game situation. To avoid this, choose a hole from your favorite course. Imagine you are at the tee, take your shot, then logically select the club for the next shot until you reach the green. This simulation forces you to vary your clubs, visualize your shots, and follow a complete routine, as if you were actually competing. It’s an excellent way to work on concentration, strategy, and pressure management.
Progressing at the driving range is not a question of the number of balls hit, but rather the quality of training. By setting specific goals, systematically seeking feedback, and correcting your mistakes intelligently, you will transform your sessions into real levers for progress. The three exercises presented—the contact line, Tiger Woods’ 9 windows drill, and course simulation—will allow you to work on your technique, control, and mental game.
By incorporating these principles, you will quickly see your sessions become more effective, more motivating, and above all, much closer to the reality of the course!
