Advice on practice nets please?

[Pip]

Hi all, been away for a while, working away from home and no golf for 6 months

But, back now and planning a revival through the winter ready for next year and anyone who saw me at Luton Hoo H4H knows that I need it!!

With Chrimbo coming I was thinking of putting a practice net on the list for Santa. Has anyone found them of real use at home, or should I save the money for lessons? I tend to go outside and swing the club whilst out with the dog most days, so thought a net would be useful.

If you've found a particularly good or bad one, I'd be grateful for your views.

regards
Pip

 

[HomerJSimpson]

Not a huge fan as you can't really judge what will happen to the ball in such a small distance. Great for focusing on ball striking I guess but not something I'd use regularly and would prefer to see the whole of the ball flight down the range.

 

[Toby_LeRhone]

Coupled with a launch monitor....

 

[RGDave]

I use nets at clubs/courses before playing. I wouldn't want to practise in one.

 

[MashieNiblick]

Had one years ago and used it a lot when I was working on getting rid of my slice. I found it useful for drills etc but of course it's no substitute for seeing the flight of the ball on the range. Also handy for warming up before heading for the course.

 

[haplesshacker]

As Homer says. You really don't know what your ball flight / shape is. You also haven't got a clue about distance, obviously.

However, coupled with a lesson or two they can be very useful. Apart from the initial outlay, the practice is free, it can be used daily, you can use proper golf balls rather than airflow balls etc. They're useful for ingraining swing changes, set up, ball position, weight transfer, or weight distribution when using wedges, grip changes, the whole swing from take away to follow through and so on.

It's not ideal, simply because you don't really get an idea of ball flight, but it's blindingly obvious if you've caught the ball right or not by feel. A daisy cutter will still just go very low into the net, and conversely one caught of the top will still go high.

Not surprisingly, I do have one, the SKLZ 7 foot practice net. I've used it for every club in the bag, except the putter of course!! My 4 year old son also uses it for golf and as a football 'goal'. Without a doubt it's helped my game, especially improving my ball striking.

I'm sure others will have their own opinions which might contradict mine, after all, I'm hardly going to 'rubbish' that which I sell. But I wouldn't sell them if I didn't think that it would help fellow golfers.

I hope that I've been helpful and explained the pro's and cons.

 

[haplesshacker]

I forgot to mention. If you have a video camera or iPhone, you can ask the Mrs to video you swinging (no giggling at the back please), and you can use slo mo or frame by frame analysis to look at your swing. If you're that way inclined.

The advantage is that you are hitting real golf balls and not just doing 'air shots'.

 

[Pip]

Thanks for the feedback. I'm really conscious that I could potentially do more harm than good with a net, given that you don't get a true reflection of the ball flight. However, as I tend to swing the club in the garden most days, I think the net might make make that practice more useful, with the chance to hit balls rather than fresh air.

Mmm, still undecided...

 

[Region3]

I'd love a practice net. I'm not that bothered about seeing the flight, and you can tell if it's a clean hit or not from feedback through your hands.

I'd just be terrified of skying one over the top of the net because it would be certain to land in someone's back garden.