Shooting balls into darkness all winter is pointless. Fabian Bünker shows five exciting alternatives to improve your game.Knowing that not all golfers have much time for training, here are five practice tips for your long game that you can do even with limited time at any driving range.
1. Assess the Quality of Your Shots
Take 30 balls and hit each with a different club toward a different target. Before each shot, go through a routine like you would on the course or even in a tournament. After each shot, grade its quality from 1 (very good) to 6 (poor). This exercise helps to increase your concentration over time, as nobody wants to give themselves bad marks.
2. Tai Chi Swing Practice
This exercise requires high concentration and a quiet environment. Perform your golf swing or specific parts you want to improve in extreme slow motion to feel every movement and control it consciously. Many find that closing their eyes enhances the internal sense of the motion. Experts can time their Tai Chi golf swing to the second and set durations such as 30 seconds or 1 minute.
At home, practice without a ball (unless ample space allows using practice balls). This also works well at the driving range, slowly increasing your swing speed following the 30-60-90 rule: start at 30% speed, then 60%, and finally 90%. Avoid full speed swings on the course to maintain control.
Key points for Tai Chi tempo swings:
• Clear, distinct movement instructions
• Focus on a single aspect (e.g., first part of the backswing)
• Quiet environment (turn off your phone)
• Get external feedback (coach)
• Start without a ball
3. Practice the Draw Shot
The draw flight curve moves from right to left. The ball starts slightly right of the target line, curving back left toward the target. Swing the club from inside to outside, feeling as if the club moves far right of the target, with the clubface slightly closed relative to the swing path. For players who tend to slice, this drill is particularly helpful to counteract slicing.
4. Practice the Fade Shot
Conversely, try hitting a fade—a ball flight moving left to right—by doing the opposite: swinging from outside to inside with a slightly open clubface relative to the swing path. Both draw and fade require personalized adjustments, so if you struggle to hit these shots reliably, consider booking a lesson with a pro to receive tailored advice.
5. Focus on Individual Body Parts
If you’re taking lessons and want to stabilize your swing over winter, solo technique training can be tricky as you can’t see yourself. Although smartphones can record your swing, angles are often not ideal for self-analysis, which is hard for amateurs. Instead, focus on one body part, such as your left wrist, while hitting balls. Concentrate solely on its movement and feel. Ideally, pick a focus recommended by your coach—for example, if working on lowering your arms during the downswing, focus on your right elbow. This focused awareness can enhance confidence in your technique.
Whether refining technique or just hitting a