Use Your Mirror One of my good friends — Rob Labritz , PGA — is a firm believer in getting back to basics and using a training strategy known as ‘ mirror work ,’ which you can do from home . This entails getting a fulllength or even half-length mirror and checking your positions in the swing . This includes making sure you ’ re hitting your checkpoints throughout the swing , specifically your takeaway when the club is parallel to your feet line , the top of your backswing , and your downswing when the club returns parallel to your feet line . Mirror work allows you to create a visual aid using your own body , in which you can have feedback that you would normally need to use a video phone or camera to accomplish .
Find Foam Golf Balls Another fun way to practice without leaving the house is to work on your short game with foam golf balls and practice pitching and chipping to certain areas of your home . Some of my fondest memories are chipping foam balls through our opening from the living room to the kitchen sink , although I had to make sure my mom wasn ’ t home first . If that is a little too extreme , maybe find a spot in your garage or bedroom and set up some sort of target and work on feeling confident landing a ball to a certain spot . It may seem silly , but creating a good short game feel and framework to go back to when you get on real grass is super important .
Pull Out the Putting Mat The last , and probably most obvious way to keep up your game when you can ’ t get outside is to get a nice putting mat . I know it seems clichè , but it ’ s the easiest way to create positive habits and feedback without being able to go out to a real putting green . The big benefit is you can put in real work on your stroke by figuring out how to consistently start the ball on a straight line . If you can gain confidence making straight putts , you can translate that into success on the golf course , not to mention keeping your feel and touch up in a time when most people aren ’ t even thinking about touching a club .
Surprisingly enough , the offseason doesn ’ t have to be totally off . You can gain a lot from doing little things with the tools you have available to give yourself a head start when the spring rolls around . If you can afford a full-size hitting net or even a golf simulator , the at-home work can reach another level , but that isn ’ t required to simply maintain some feels . Unfortunately , you can ’ t teach “ feel ,” but you can train it , and there ’ s no better time to do it than when you ’ re captive in your own home this winter .
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. org J ANUARY / F EBRUARY 2024 | V IRGINIA G OLFER
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