How much do you spend on practice?

[Orikoru]

That would be silly , my point is that I have "free" access to the putting green and chipping area but that's only because I am a member, so it does have an associated cost, just not at point of use.

I wouldn't count it, since you pay to be part of the club and use the course first and foremost, then practice facilities are a bonus. If you practice only at your club, I think it's fair to say it doesn't cost you anything in layman's terms.

I'm largely looking at the cost of driving ranges and how it really adds up without you realising, with the costs of Trackman/Toptracer ranges these days.

I could go for 50 balls at the Trackman range instead of 100, that's still a cost of £7.50 though and it wouldn't use up as much time while my wife is nattering to her mate at home.

I could also forgo the Tuesday lunchtime range visit and maybe go to my club and do some putting practice instead, hit a couple in the nets just to keep the swing going. Putting practice is a bit boring on your own though, hard to commit more than ten minutes to it.

 

[KenL]

Pretty much zero.
I never feel I get anything out of going to a range and hitting cheap balls of a mat or rubber tee.

 

[hambugerpete]

I wouldn't count it, since you pay to be part of the club and use the course first and foremost, then practice facilities are a bonus. If you practice only at your club, I think it's fair to say it doesn't cost you anything in layman's terms.

I'm largely looking at the cost of driving ranges and how it really adds up without you realising, with the costs of Trackman/Toptracer ranges these days.

I could go for 50 balls at the Trackman range instead of 100, that's still a cost of £7.50 though and it wouldn't use up as much time while my wife is nattering to her mate at home.

I could also forgo the Tuesday lunchtime range visit and maybe go to my club and do some putting practice instead, hit a couple in the nets just to keep the swing going. Putting practice is a bit boring on your own though, hard to commit more than ten minutes to it.

My local top tracer is 11 quid for 100 balls and they are crappy reduced flight when the weather warms up my usual is use the practice facilities at the course and then play a few holes if it's quiet. I find chipping and putting are more engaging if you make a game out of it and try and beat your best scores, however you score it it.

 

[RichA]

I often go over in the summer and play a few holes , it's 100% practice and isn't free.

If my membership is £1000 and gives me a 20% discount behind the bar and I have a loyalty card that gives a free hot drink after purchasing 5 hot drinks, how much am I spending on hot chocolate?

 

[hambugerpete]

If my membership is £1000 and gives me a 20% discount behind the bar and I have a loyalty card that gives a free hot drink after purchasing 5 hot drinks, how much am I spending on hot chocolate?

Don't know don't care .

 

[Bunkermagnet]

Unless it's under instruction (ie a lesson) I dont bother with ranges anymore. The advent of TT has meant it's become a playground. I also don't want to ingrain bad elements into my swing, so I only play on the course when I can.

 

[Bunkermagnet]

If my membership is £1000 and gives me a 20% discount behind the bar and I have a loyalty card that gives a free hot drink after purchasing 5 hot drinks, how much am I spending on hot chocolate?

What speed is the chocolate dispensed at and at what temperature?

 

[Orikoru]

My local top tracer is 11 quid for 100 balls and they are crappy reduced flight when the weather warms up my usual is use the practice facilities at the course and then play a few holes if it's quiet. I find chipping and putting are more engaging if you make a game out of it and try and beat your best scores, however you score it it.

The Trackman range I'm paying £12 at uses lake balls and old found balls I believe, so the quality varies wildly. Sometimes you get like a Wilson Staff that looks in reasonable nick, other times you get a beige Pinnacle that looks about 30 years old. It's like a lucky dip of balls. I'm not sure if that's better or worse than hitting ordinary range balls - a bit of both probably.

To be honest I don't look at distance at all at the range anyway, it's more the strike and the ballflight shape (e.g. have I sliced it or not). So the only ones I hate are the oldest ones where the dimples have smoothed out and they just drop out of the sky.

 

[hambugerpete]

The Trackman range I'm paying £12 at uses lake balls and old found balls I believe, so the quality varies wildly. Sometimes you get like a Wilson Staff that looks in reasonable nick, other times you get a beige Pinnacle that looks about 30 years old. It's like a lucky dip of balls. I'm not sure if that's better or worse than hitting ordinary range balls - a bit of both probably.

To be honest I don't look at distance at all at the range anyway, it's more the strike and the ballflight shape (e.g. have I sliced it or not). So the only ones I hate are the oldest ones where the dimples have smoothed out and they just drop out of the sky.

We have decent 2 piece at our range and I can use my own balls on the chipping area.
I also have a prgr monitor which I got as part of my speed training set up.
The only time I go to the top tracer is with my son who likes to destroy me at longest drive
I'd say I spend about 8 quid a week in the winter at the range, probably half that in the summer.

 

[patricks148]

zero.

when i was playing regularly i rarely went to a range and when i did it was at the clubs practice ground with free ball or up the Kings where you have to use your own. TBH playing i lot i found i didn't really need to practice. ive a relatively good short game as practiced that a lot when i started playing and having a large garden meant i could do that at home. i would hit balls from 20 to 30 yards into a bucket of water and hit wedge shots 50 to 100 into an old upturned umbrella.

i find you don't actually need to hit balls you can, practice your swing and do drills without a ball

 

[Neilds]

The Trackman range I'm paying £12 at uses lake balls and old found balls I believe, so the quality varies wildly. Sometimes you get like a Wilson Staff that looks in reasonable nick, other times you get a beige Pinnacle that looks about 30 years old. It's like a lucky dip of balls. I'm not sure if that's better or worse than hitting ordinary range balls - a bit of both probably.

To be honest I don't look at distance at all at the range anyway, it's more the strike and the ballflight shape (e.g. have I sliced it or not). So the only ones I hate are the oldest ones where the dimples have smoothed out and they just drop out of the sky.

When we got Toptracer the club invested in TM balls which are very good

 

[kp17]

Range at my course is discounted for members, think 10 credits (50 balls per credit) is £15. I probably hit 100 balls per week so £3, maybe more in the winter.

 

[Mandofred]

Nothing. The range next to one of my clubs I think I've been to twice in the last couple of years. A range doesn't do anything for me unless I'm really having a swing issue and just need to straighten things out (higher/lower flight, fade/draw).....and I'm cheap and don't want to spend a ton of money to practice if I don't need to. I need a field.....just a lot of grass and my own old golf balls. I put out some cones to judge distance so that I'm not just smacking balls. I'm more than happy to pick them up, gives me a break between efforts. My shag bag holds 85-90 balls. I might be changing one of my clubs for next year just because it doesn't have a practice field, and one of my old clubs (thinking about rejoining) has a nice big field that you can have several people on and not get in each others way....much. The current club in town has a small field, works for most of what I want to work on but you can't hit driver or you will kill people on the 7th green (the club isn't happy if you kill people). You also can't get more than a couple of people practicing...just too narrow...some idiots won't stop hitting when you go out to pick up your balls.

 

[sunshine]

You never have a practice shot on the golf course even ?

Do you have to pay per practise swing? You're getting ripped off, because most people do them for free.

 

[sunshine]

Don't know don't care .

Can somebody please help me find the clown emoji?

 

[hambugerpete]

Can somebody please help me find the clown emoji?

 

[hambugerpete]

Do you have to pay per practise swing? You're getting ripped off, because most people do them for free.

Hence the term practice shot and not swing

 

[kp17]

The best bit about the range at my place is although there’s mats and covered bays, you can go to opposite end of range and hit back from the turf. I find that a lot better although use the mats and covered bays in winter as turfs usually a swamp.
And just hope rory or bryson doesn’t turn up for a whack at driver as it’s only about 350 yards to other end

 

[fenwayrich]

Nothing.

 

[sunshine]

I'm largely looking at the cost of driving ranges and how it really adds up without you realising, with the costs of Trackman/Toptracer ranges these days.

I factored this in when I moved to a more expensive club.

I like to hit balls as a warm up, used to go to the range on my way to the course and hit a small bucket of balls before weekend competition rounds. Then maybe go to the range one evening during the week. Adding it up it comes to £1000+

I'm now a member at a more expensive club, but we have a big range with unlimited free range balls, can hit off prepared turf or a mat. Short game area is basic but members can spend all day hitting balls if they want.