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5 Ways to Prevent Your Golf Game from Hibernating This Winter
For those of us who live in cold-weather climates, the winter can be the most damaging thing to our golf games. If you want to make sure your game does not hibernate, there are plenty of things you can do to make sure your game is fresh in the spring.
I’ve laid out several action items that can be done during the winter, along with accompanying products that I recommend. Most of them can be accomplished at home. You don’t have to do every single one of them, but depending on your living space there’s actually quite a bit you can do.
Putting
Almost every golfer has the ability to practice their putting at home. It doesn’t require much space and there are plenty of ways to get it done.
The first thing you need is a proper surface to putt on. If you are going to use your carpet, then I suggest getting a product called the PuttOUT Pressure Trainer.
It’s a simple device that gives you real feedback on whether you have made a putt or not. You can read my full review here.
If you need a surface to putt on that is more realistic, then you can check out my guide on indoor putting greens. Additionally, there are plenty of putting aids on the market that can help with your stroke. This guide will give you more info.
One of my personal favorites is the TIBA Putt. It’s inexpensive and recreates one of the best putting drills out there that can help with the path of your stroke.
Overall, if you spend a moderate amount of time putting a few times a week at home, you can easily improve your stroke. This will help you make more of those testy shorter putts, and improve your speed control.
Bonus Content: Be sure to check out my complete guide to putting.
Full Swing
If you have enough room in your home to swing a golf club, then you can also work on your swing. You’ll need a mat and a net to get started; here are guides that can help with that:
Mindlessly hitting balls into a net won’t do much to fix your swing though. There are a few things that I’m always working on at home that I would suggest. The first is working on your swing tempo – this article shows you how to do that.
The next is impact location. Get yourself a dry-erase pen or a can of Dr. Scholls Odor X spray. Your goal is to figure out your impact tendencies and experiment with moving your strike pattern to different parts of the clubface (preferably the center of course!).
If you want real feedback then you could build yourself a home golf simulator. The costs on many models have come down significantly. This article can help you decide which setup is right for you.
Additionally, if you want a collection of drills to work on your swing, then you can join our Practical Golf Insider program. We have a library of videos and practice games from some of the top coaches in the game to help make your practice time more effective. As a thank you for reading this article (and making it this far) I will offer you $10 off – use coupon code wintergolf at checkout.
Learn
For those of you who are readers, there are plenty of great golf books to boost your knowledge during the winter months. I wrote this article a while back with my favorite titles out there.
Books are a great way to change your perspective as a golfer. While you don’t want to overwhelm yourself with too much information, getting information on a few topics can certainly help.
Get Fit
Despite what you might have heard, starting a fitness routine is a great idea. Not only will it help your golf game, but it will help you live longer and have a higher quality of life. Sound good?
This article explains why golf fitness can be an important part of your improvement plan. The winter is a great time to start doing some exercises at home or in the gym. Our Insider members also get access to a library of golf-specific training videos from one of the top trainers in the game.
If you are really looking to increase your swing speed I would recommend checking out SuperSpeed Golf. In my opinion, it is the best system available for golfers, and you can read my full review here.
Evaluate Your Equipment
Golfers tend to just buy new clubs for the sake of buying new clubs. This is a mistake for a number of reasons.
If you are thinking about getting a new set of irons, driver, or wedges the best thing to do is to see a knowledgeable club fitter who can evaluate your current equipment. They can accurately test if any of the newer clubs on the market can provide you with a performance upgrade.
You may find out that your current set of irons is performing just fine, but you might need to adjust your lie angle. The offseason is a great time to do this because you’ll have a few months to hit your clubs on the range and get used to them before the season starts up again.
Be sure to get a real benchmark test with a professional using a launch monitor like Foresight, Flightscope, or Trackman before you make any changes. Many times your current equipment might be fine, and you can save yourself some money.
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