If you live in a wintry weather state and your golf courses close for the season, you may be wondering how to maintain your game until Spring when the courses re-open. Afterall, nobody like to lose all the gains they made during the last season! Well you’re in luck, because there are numerous things you can do to not only maintain your game, but improve it during the off season! While all these suggestions may not be for everyone, everyone can certainly find some ideas from this list that they will not only enjoy but will reap real benefits from. Let’s get started!

THINGS THAT INVOLVE A GOLF CLUB

HOME GAME IMPROVEMENT DEVICES

Perhaps the easiest and most obvious way to maintain your golf game during the winter is by practicing at home using one or more affordable game improvement aids. Afterall, while it’s fun to bomb a big drive-in front of everybody, the simple fact remains, low scores (and winning skins) come from on and around the green. Outdriving everybody only feels good until you write down a double bogey on your score card and your opponent birdies because of a close chip and one putt!

Putting: There are countless putting devices that will help you improve on the greens, and honestly, you should be using them year-round. From simply putting to a target or through a gate, to devices designed to correct alignment and stroke, there are a multitude of putting trainers well worth the investment. Winter is also a great time to experiment with grip. There may be only a couple viable grips with an iron, but putting is unique and about feel. If you pay attention to the pros, you’ll be amazed at how many ways there are to grip the putter. Check out TRAINING AIDS on the Link’s Golf Shack website for some excellent and very affordable options to improve your putting game!

Chipping: Grab your wedges and some sponge golf balls and just chip! Chip off the carpet, at a target, over the couch, or into a laundry basket. If you want a more realistic chipping surface, pick up a small chipping mat that will slide right under the couch when you’re not using it. Thousands of chips over the winter build muscle memory and consistency.

Carve out 5-10 minutes a day, 3-4 days a week for indoor practice and you’ll come out of the winter with a better short game than you had at the end of the prior season!

VIDEO TAPE YOURSELF

First, video taping only helps if you know what you’re looking for. That said, if you’ve had lessons and know exactly how to check yourself, video taping can be a great way to inspect your chipping and putting technique. This is also great if you pay for lessons and have an instructor who offers video analysis. Finally, there are some AI swing analysis tools that you can put on your phone which will analyze your swing and give instant feedback and practice plans, though they cost money.

INDOOR LESSONS

Reach out to golf instructors in your area. Without question, you will find more than one who have venues they use for winter lessons. Whether they move to an indoor sports dome, of have a heated facility with a garage door that rolls up, allowing you to drive balls off into the winter landscape, lessons are available if you are willing to pay the money.

INDOOR VENUES

Many golf courses have begun installing golf simulator bays in their bars and restaurants in order to attract patrons and boos off-season revenue. Chances are if you’re in a large enough city, you have a facility specifically dedicated to golf simulators where you can have fun, practice, or even play some of the best golf courses in the world (virtually of course)!

HEATED OUTDOOR VENUES

Some golf courses and businesses like Top Golf give you the chance to golf year-round. A little warning … if you’ve never been to this type of venue, it’s important to understand heat lamps only provide so much protection from the cold! On a mild winter day (40’s for example), you may be able to golf in just a long-sleeved shirt or a light golf jacket. However, on a bitter cold winter’s day, especially a windy one, you may want to re-think this choice and revert back to the home chipping and putting.

LAUNCH MONITORS & FLIGHT SIMULATORS

Enter technology! The advances in ball flight simulators and launch monitors have been significant in recent years. If you have the space to fully swing a club, and you want to spend the money, you can turn an area of your basement into a full-blown golf course. The launch monitors themselves range from a couple hundred dollars up to a few thousand for the devices themselves. Much of this cost is dependent on what they offer in analysis (swing speed, club face angle, attack angle, ball speed, carry, distance, etc.), so be sure to do your research! If you want simple ball flight and distance, for example, you get something for a couple hundred dollars. Additionally, the cost goes up with the ability to expand your launch monitor system. Some allow you to hit into a giant vinyl screen whie projecting a golf course or driving range. You could literally hold a winter golf league in your basement or garage! So, if you’re willing to spend a little money, you can golf Pebble Beach Golf Course (or thousands of other courses) year-round!

TRAVEL FOR GOLF

Depending on where you live, you may only need to travel a few hours to find temperatures you’re willing to golf in. For example, a short trip from Michigan to central Ohio could result in temperatures changing from 35 degrees with snow to 50 degrees and sunny. Golf courses in these “mild winter” states often open their courses day by day, weather dependent, allowing you to travel, golf 18 holes, and be home the same day. Taking an entire golf vacation would also be amazing. Or, if you’re already vacationing in a warm weather state, take your clubs and sneak in a round or two If you drive, transporting your clubs is no problem. If you fly, you can find some very affordable golf club carry cases to protect your clubs on an airplane, or you can use a premium service like Ship Sticks, who will properly pack, ship and guarantee your clubs arrive safely and on time at your designated hotel or golf course.

THINGS THAT DON’T’ INVOLVE A GOLF CLUB

If you’re still with us, don’t click away just yet! There are several things you can do that don’t involve golfing yet have the potential to elevate your game to the next level.

READ

There are some amazing books by famous golfers and golf instructors that will make you a better golfer without even getting off the couch! Subscribing to a golf magazine is also a great option to get a never-ending supply of golf tips and tricks.

WATCH

You can learn a tremendous amount watching golf on television. Watching the players and listening to commentary, particularly around course management, can help you better understand proper club selection, and assist with the mental aspects of the game. YouTube is filled with more instructional videos than you could finish watching in two lifetimes.

EXERCISE

Yup … get off the couch and get into the gym. Or at least get moving! Whether you find a complete fitness routine designed specifically for golf, break out the dumbbells and resistance bands, or do simple body weight exercises, the better your physical shape, the better your golf game. Strength train for distance and speed. Cardio train to make those long, hilly golf courses seem like a breeze. And flexibility train (stretching and yoga, for example) to reach your swings full potential.

MENTAL GAME

If you don’t already, it’s time to start working on your mental game. There is so much to be gained from meditation, breath work, and mindfulness! Some of the benefits include: being present on every shot, blocking out distractions, overcoming your fear of tight lies and water hazards, shot visualization, and dealing with the anger or frustration you feel when you hit a bad shot or drop a ball in the creek. Whether you meditate to music, in complete silence, or you download any of a large number of meditation and mindfulness apps, you’re certain to find something you enjoy.  Sharpen your mental game and you sharpen your golf game!

And that is our list of the best ways to maintain and even improve your golf game during the winter! Be sure to check out our Link’s Golf Shack’s TRAINING AIDS to find cost-effective tools that are sure to take your game to the next level!