[Quick 9] Ways To Perfect The Practice Round

It’s coming up to a big tournament, and you’re not too familiar with the course or the green. Well, that’s what practice rounds were made for! Giving you the opportunity to play before you compete, never underestimate the power of a quick game of golf before you play for points! We're going to reveal 9 ways to make the most of your practice round.

9 Ways To Perfect The Practice Round

Practice makes perfect, and this applies to the green, too, especially if you’re new to the course. A practice round before the main event can make a huge difference to your overall performance and will help you to identify any tricky holes. A practice round doesn’t necessarily need to involve points, but if you’re competitive, why not give it your best shot! And while some women skip a practice due to the fee involved to play, we highly recommend this small investment. And to make sure your investment generates a good return on investment, here are our top tips on how to make the most of your practice round;

1. Playtime Distractions & Green Texture

Schedule your practice round around the same time of day that you’ll be competing. Why is this important? Well, if it’s a morning shotgun, it is going to feel completely different from competing late afternoon. The green can often be a buzz of activity, and this might peek during the morning and could distract you while trying to win! By playing at the same time of day as the big competition, you’ll become more familiar with the background noise, hustle, and bustle and improve your ability to focus on the game at hand.

While noise levels are one thing to consider, the texture underfoot is another. In the morning, the green may be damp from sprinklers, and in the afternoon, the grass might be more textured since more people have walked over it during the day. This means your swing might need to be softer or harder, depending on the green. Plus, if there is an afternoon breeze, this is going to completely change your entire approach to the game, so being fully aware of the possible obstacles will help you play to your full potential.

2. Practice With A Local

No, we’re not talking about a local to the area, but a local golfer who is very familiar with the course. By playing alongside them, you can take advantage of their experience and knowledge and give yourself an edge. If it’s a public course, there might be some tricks and top tips that a local golfer could share with you. Every little helps, right!

3. Get To Know Your Surroundings

Some golf courses can be confusing, and missing the entrance on the day of a big competition can really throw you off your game. So becoming familiar and comfortable with your surroundings is one of the best ways to stay mentally strong and focused. Plus, knowing how far the golf course is from where you’re staying and where the bathroom is, will also mean never being late to a game!

4. Know What Tee Boxes & Yardages You Are Playing From

Before your practice round, make sure you know which tee boxes you’ll be playing in. Sometimes the tournament director will say that you’ll be playing the white tees, while on another occasion, this could be the red tee boxes. But now comes the confusing part. Sometimes they’ll be using the forward tee boxes, but sometimes they could be using the back tee boxes on all different holes. This info is usually sent out via email on the first tournament day. So take a screenshot on your phone of the plan or print off the details so you always have it for future reference.

5. Use The Round Report Card to Help Keep Stats

One of the best resources to use during a practice round is the round report card. This gives you the opportunity to note down what club you’re using on each hole and the yardages you have in. So in a par three, if you're hitting driver and you have 120 yards in, you can make a note of this. And then let's say after the round, you're looking at the round report card, and you notice, wow, most of my approach shots are between 110 yards and 130 yards. Guess what you should be warming up with! So it really gives you an idea of what your approach shots are gonna be.

6. [6-6-6] Hole Classification

This top tip for perfecting your practice round comes from Justin Cala. Categorize the holes into three, the six easiest, the six middle holes, and the six hardest. This is going to set an expectation for each hole. So if you're coming through and playing, let’s say, the first handicap hole, you need to know that bogie is pretty darn good. And for certain holes, you might need to take a bit more time and have patience.

7. Identify Misses

When you’re on the putting green, look backward to see where you can miss your tee shot and where you can’t. Looking towards the tee box is where you’ll see the biggest part of the fairway, and you can miss where it’s really tight. For example, you could miss all day, every day on the left, but not on the right. If you swing hard and it lands in a good place, you’ll know that you could use this if needs be.

8. Don't Keep Score or Take It Too Seriously

This one I struggle with because I want to keep score! But remember this is a practice round and you don't want to set any unreasonable expectations. However you play during your practice round is not a clear insight into how you are going to play during competition. Sometimes keeping score during a practicing round can influence you too much.

9. Swing FREE!

This is your opportunity to swing free and use multiple clubs to see exactly where they go. Not sure if a driver is useful on a particular hole? The practice round is the time to test out all options!

Resources

Tori:
Instagram: @tori_totlis
TikTok: @tori_totlis
Website: CompeteConfidenceGolf.com

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