When the weather outside is frightful, but a game of golf sounds delightful… Try these indoor tips to get that golf fix without getting wet.
1. Practice putting. This is an easy one to do as long as you have some carpet – or even hardwood floor – somewhere in your house. Use patterns on your carpet or any straight edges (walls or doors) to focus on making a good straight stroke. If you have a hardwood floor that is very flat, try some slow putts and see how your ball rolls.
If you are imparting any sidespin or jumping the ball it will show up. Most carpets or rugs will have a grain on them. This can be a great educational tool to see how the ball reacts across, up or down the grain.
2. Work on your posture and alignment. Posture and alignment are some of the first things we work on when starting to play golf and also some of the most important. Touring pros will never stop working on posture and alignment.
Every day you wake up, your body will most likely have a slightly different posture. Some nights you sleep funny and one side of your body feels stiff. This can throw off your posture and alignment. So take the time on those rainy days to check yourself out in front of a big mirror and find out what posture pitfalls you are prone to.
3. Work on developing swing feelings. When we get to the practice ground it is very easy to just start hitting balls without any intention. Sometimes this can be good. But when you are working on swing changes it can be great to have the time without the temptation of hitting balls to just play around and feel.
See what you can feel when you try different movements, watch yourself in the mirror and experiment. You may just find that feeling to take with you to the course.
Note: If you live in the San Diego area, be sure to check out my post “Scratch Golf Moves into the Great Outdoors”!
Tom Parkin has written 47 articles. See all articles by Tom Parkin, or visit Tom Parkin's website.
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