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Range Session: Game Planning

By Brendon Elliott, PGA
Published on

Practicing on the range can often get mundane and repetitive. When this happens, golfers can find themselves growing disinterested and simply going through the motions. That is not good for those golfers looking to improve or that have goals that they want to
meet. Making your range sessions more interesting can certainly help in making what could otherwise become a boring session, into something more fun and useful in your journey towards improvement.
The following is an example of a Range Session Plan that I recently prescribed to a student. This could be a great template for you to follow as well…
Warm Up
Starting with your most lofted wedge, hit 10 balls with each club and work your way through your bag all the way up to your Driver. Go through your normal pre-shot routine on each and every shot, and always play to a designated target.
Course Simulation
Play a “Round” of 9 or 18 holes of your most played golf course. Visualize each hole while on the range. For example, if the first hole is a 400-yard par four, with trouble all down the left, hit the club you would off the tee, and play the “hole” how you would on the course.
After your “tee shot”, estimate what your next shot would be based on how you hit your drive. If you have some sort of radar, that can help in telling you how far your shot went, then you will have an exact distance for your 2nd shot. If you don’t have a radar, use your best guess of what you would have left in for your second shot.
With a radar, such as a Trackman, Flightscope, Flightscope Mevo, or Rapsodo, you will be able to take this part of your Range Session to a whole new level. If you do not have a radar, you will only likely beable to focus on playing your tee shots and approach shots in this simulation. If you do have a radar, you will be able to work on shots that may have missed the green on your approach shots…those 30–80-yard shots.
Make it a point to go through your pre-shot routine for each shot while doing this exercise.
Range Session Notes
  • Focus on your set up and alignment and use alignment sticks to set up your practice station.
  • Make a conscious effort to hold a balanced finish with all your weight on the lead side for the count of 3 on each shot.
  • Take your time and DO NOT RUSH.
  • Consider wearing earbuds and listening to a playlist you created specifically for your range session.