How To Improve Your Golf Game At Home

Many people think that practicing on a putting green in your living room is the only way to improve your golf game at home. You thought wrong! We've compiled a super helpful list of ways to perfect your golf game, right from the comfort of your own home, and a strip of astroturf is not required!

Hand Muscle Strength

One of the key factors in perfecting your golf game (and installing golf cart parts on your ride), is strengthening your hand muscles. There are many tiny muscles in your fingers and hands that need to be in tip-top shape in order to swing and putt your best. A super easy, at-home way to perfect your golf game at home is: 

• Lay a dishrag flat on a hard surface and then crumple the dishrag up into a tight ball, letting it go and repeating about a dozen times or so with each hand. Do this 3-4 times weekly. 

You can also utilize one of those grip-strengthener devices that's spring loaded, however, believe it or not, it won't use all of the tiny muscles as effectively as a simple old dishrag.

Easy as pie! 
 

Grip Improvement

Grip in the game of golf is one of the most important. Legendary golfer Ben Hogan fought a hook shot that was more pronounced than anyone would have preferred in the early stages of his career. Because of this, he dedicated himself one entire winter, just to learn how to affix his hands properly to the club (Now that's dedication!). He did this by doing nothing more than simply holding the club. 

To improve your grip, we recommend:

• Using a training grip, or form-fitting grip from any local golf store and attach is to any of your golf clubs. Hold the club for five to ten minutes a day, roughly 4-5 times a week. Let your hands get familiar with the proper positioning on the club. 

Because the only connection that the golf players body has to the club is through the hands, it makes perfect sense. Practice makes perfect and with enough simple club holding to perfect your grip, it will be super comfortable to replicate once you're out on the actual course. 

Clubhead Speed Increase

The faster the swing of the club, the more you compress the ball, in addition to a solid strike (as opposed to a strike that is off-center), the longer and straighter the ball will fly. 

It all starts with your core, hip flexibility and internal rotation of the hip. A strong core = a faster swing. 

A really great way to strengthen your core, hip flexibility and internal hip rotation from the comfort of your own home is easier than you would imagine:

• Grab your exercise ball
• Get into a 'plank' position with arms stretched out, resting on your forearms
• Keep your spine in a neutral position (i.e. You don't want to raise your head up or dip it down), keeping your back nice and flat
• Raise knees up without letting them touch the ball
• One at a time, cross one knee over the other

We recommend doing 10 reps and 2 sets on each leg. 

What this exercise does, as you continue trying to miss the ball while crossing one knee over the other, is rotate your hips inward, internally. Your core muscles will be worked as they keep you stable on an unstable surface (the exercise ball).

If you stick to this exercise a couple times a week, the next time you pick up a club on the golf course, you will find yourself swinging several miles per hour faster than you did before. 

Sharpen Your Mental Focus

The most important six inches in golf are between the ears. As with any sport, accomplished golfers think of golf as a way of life. However, sharp mental focus isn't just for the hardcore golfer. It's also for those who play golf just simply for leisure. 

Whatever the case may be, mental focus is of the utmost importance in the game of golf. Helping yourself sharpen mental focus and perform better under pressure is very easy, you just have to know where to look and what to do. 

Reading relevant books and Resources is a great way to improve your mental focus. Who doesn't love to curl up at home with a good book? You get to relax and read, all while improving your golf game. Who knew it was that easy?! 

With so many books out there to choose from, here are our favorites and most highly recommended:

1. Easier Said Than Done by Rick Jensen, PhD: This book emphasizes how to move your effectiveness on the driving range right to the course. 
2. Golf Is Not A Game Of Perfect by Bob Rotella, PhD: This book offers some excellent visualization techniques. 'See it and be it', so to speak.
3. Every Shot Must Have A Purpose and The Game Before The Game by Poa Nilsson & co-author Lynn Marriott: This set of books offers valuable information on effective practice techniques and how to play your best using mental focus. 

Yoga is also a super helpful way to improve mental focus, in addition to strengthening your body and improving flexibility, right from the comforts of your own home. Centering your body, meditating and putting a mental bulls-eye on your golf goals and aspirations will send you straight to the top! 

Remember also: Be kind to yourself at all times, whether at home or on the course. If you end up taking a bad shot, don't beat up on yourself. Breathing and staying positive is key! 

Theraputic Bands

Strengthening your shoulder and chest muscles in ways that cumbersome and expensive gym equipment does, can easily be done from your own backyard with use of stretchy bands. 

Shoulder muscles, in particular, rotator cuffs, can be injured really easily and will prevent you from joining your friends (and rivals!) at the golf course for sometimes, extended periods of time, if they become injured. For an effective swing, and to prevent injuring muscles, a strong chest and shoulders are needed. 

A very easy way to keep these muscles in tip-top shape:

• Grab your Theraputic Band
• Hold the band over-head with both hands so that you start to feel some tension in your band (tension is key). Note: You can increase or decrease tension in the band by gripping it narrowly or widely. 
• Slowly bring the band behind your back, then back over your head and down to your waist. 

You can also secure a band to the knob of a door and practice your golf swing! 

• Hold the position at both the back-swing and follow through for a few seconds to build strength

Remember to never overdue it. If you start to feel any pain, stop. Give yourself a minute and then try again. Practice makes perfect! 

And last but certainly not least:

Daydream

Yep, you heard us right! I'm sure you probably think we are crazy but, hear us out. 

Scientific studies show that a positive effect on performance has been proven, many times over, by daydreaming about the game. 

Besides the obvious physical practice, the most beneficial technique is mentally practicing that swing and desired ball flight. Essentially, daydreaming and mental practice is more beneficial than doing nothing. 

The sound and feel of the solid contact from the tree. Picture it! 

The contour of the green and speed of the putt. Picture it! 

The club you choose for your approach shot. Picture it!

The speed of the putt. Picture it!

The flight of the drive. Picture it!

Try playing the first several holes out in your mind. When you start to drift away from your focus, it's okay, try again the next day. Then keep trying, day after day, until you can play it out in it's completion without losing focus.

This is certainly an exercise that you can do, not only in the comforts of your own home, but anywhere! Your mind is with you wherever you go. 

Whether you're waiting for your wife outside the dressing room, or waiting for a golf cart tune up. You can daydream about the game, anywhere.

All in all, remember that, while golf is a competitive sport and to be taken seriously, it's fun! It's probably one of the most fun sports you can play. It accommodates folks of all ages, from young to old. It's all about having fun and that's the most important thing to remember while improving your golf game. 

We hope that you found this article resourceful and helpful in improving your golf game right from your own backyard. We have many other great articles available with a plethora of golf and Golf Cart Related Resources for your reading pleasure. We hope you'll check them out! 

Last updated August 2, 2021