Yes, it provides an opportunity to take full swings with irons or drivers while working on improving technique, gaining speed, or trying to ingrain a new swing movement. The net is especially important and helpful during the winter months in many parts of the world.
Golf is an amazing game!
The opportunities that it provides for exercise, competition, social opportunities and an overall journey to get better make it one amazing game.
Unfortunately, for many people living in many parts of the world, playing 12 months a year can be difficult due to the weather.
Golfers, especially in the winter, often dream about being able to play, but may be shut down for 2-4 months at a time. While it might not always be possible to play an actual round of golf, there are some great ways to practice your game and get better.
If you asked 10 golfers what they would want for their game, a higher percentage would answer that they just want to be more consistent.
I translate that into, they want to hit their good shots more often. Most golfers can hit anywhere from several quality shots around up to 30-40 quality shots per round depending on their current ability level.
One great way to practice in the winter to help with ball striking and chipping is a golf net.
The Value of a Golf Net (Overview)
To help you further answer the question of if a golf net is worth it, I will dive into the following topics to give a full picture on how a net might be able to help your golf swing and overall game. These include:
- How To Use A Golf Net To Get Better?
- What Drills Can Be Utilized With A Golf Net?
- Where To Use A Golf Net To Get Better?
- Technology Tools to Increase Your Training Session With A Golf Net
- Why Use A Golf Net To Get Better?
Some Golf Net Options. Check Price Below on Amazon:
How To Use A Golf Net To Get Better?
Simply striking the ball and working on clean, crisp contact can help a golfer improve his or her game.
If a golfer goes 4-5 months without touching a club, there is a period of time when the new golf season starts where it may take 1-2 months to get back to where you were when the season ended.
I would recommend working on the following areas:
Controlling Your Start Line:
You want to be able to control where the ball starts with every shot in the bag. If your net is large enough and you can be 6-8 feet from the net, you can set up alignment sticks and use pool noodles to work on keeping a ball left or right of the alignment stick. (See Stock Shot Drill in the Drill Section below)
Gaining Speed:
We all know that speed in the golf swing and overall distance is the current dominating factor on the Professional Golf Tours. Many amateurs lack speed and end up swinging too hard trying to generate more speed. Now that you have a net, you can train to improve your swing speed with a couple of different options that are out there.
Ever feel like you have too many swing thoughts? Check out this post!
Solid Ball Striking:
If you are standing over a shot from 140 yards with water in front of the green are you confident that you will strike the ball clean and carry the water? The very first fundamental in golf is being able to strike the ball solid to help control your distances and maximize your carry with the speed that you produced.
Looking to gain more Speed and Distance in your swing. Two Options:
SuperSpeed Golf – Read our Full Review (Check Price on Amazon Below)
Gain 30-40 yards in 30 Days – Swing Man Golf (Another Quality Option Worth Looking at)
Ever feel like you have a sudden lost in distance? Check out this post!
What Drills Can Be Utilized With A Golf Net?
Here at golfjourney365 we believe in three fundamentals in the golf swing.
The Stack and Tilt Instructors said it best when they described what they believed were the fundamentals of golf. They explained it somewhat similar to this:
- Fundamental #1: The golfer’s ability to control the bottom of the golf swing. The best golfers will hit the ground in the intended spot, close to 100% of the time.
- Fundamental #2: The golfer’s ability to control the curve of the golf ball. The best golfers are able to start the ball to the right or left of the target line and have the ball curve towards the target without the ball over curving past the target.
- Fundamental #3: The golfer’s ability to have enough power to play the golf course. This means they are able to hit the ball far enough to play the course in regulation.
Drill #1: The Low Point Control Drill (Fundamental 1)
- Take some yard paint and patina a 1-2 yard long line.
- Setup with 55% of your weight on your front side.
- Try to hit the target side of the line and see how many times out of 10 you can do this successfully!
- Repeat this drill every day for a month, tracking your progress and your ability to to this successfully in trials of ten.
- You may need to start with half swing and progress to full swings.
Drill #2: Stock Shot Drill (Fundamental 2)
- At the driving range, set up an alignment stick about 6-8 yards in front of you, straight down your target line.
- If you have a second alignment stick, set the stick 3-4 yards right of the first stick (for a draw) or left of the first stick (for a fade).
- Complete your initial assessment see how many times out of 10 you can start the ball to the right or left of your target. Pick one side and measure your game at this point.
- The goal is to eventually get 7 out of 10 shots to start to the correct side and draw back towards the target.
Here is the drill being explained by Kyle Morris:
Drill #3: Speed Training Drill (Fundamental 3)
Utilize the SuperSpeed Golf SyStem and follow their protocols that have been laid out. We recommend checking out the price at amazon and getting started today. You can see a 5-8% increase in swing speed as early as the first session. Sticking with an every other day routine will help the speed stick and stay with our permanently.
Senior Golf? Need more speed? Check out this excellent option!
SuperSpeed Training Protocol:
Where To Use A Golf Net To Get Better?
A golf net can be used in a location where you have enough space to make a full swing. Some excellent options include your garage, basement, extra room in house or outside. Test your ceiling height with a slow swing before taking a 100% swing.
If you choose anywhere but outside, you will want a solid hitting mat to ensure you keep your arms and wrist safe and free from injury.
Here is a complete post on golf hitting mats. We have done a lot with golf simulators here at golf journey and one of these mats is what I have in place in my garage for my golf simulator setup.
I have seen a variety of setups in a garage to help a golfer practice over the winter. Some have spent thousands of dollars for their setup, while others have simply purchased a net and a hitting mat and practice full swings or drills in their setup.
Whatever you can afford, go for it and your game will thank you in the spring!
Technology Tools to Increase Your Training Session With A Golf Net
Add a launch monitor!
This is a an amazing enhancement to bring your practice area to life!There are many different setups for at home practice.
I personally built a golf simulator setup in my garage and can now play golf 365 days a year regardless of the rain, snow or cold weather. My own training lab has been wonderful and has helped reduce my average score from between 74-78 to between 68-74.
These lower scores are a result of being a better ball striker, my ability to rely on a stock shot (see drill above) and the gain in speed from working with the SuperSpeed Training System.
I went with a SkyTrak Launch Monitor, gaming computer, TGC software, hitting mat, enclosure and a projector. However, if you simply want to add a launch monitor, many are compatible with smartphones or Ipad and the feedback you received can be a game changer.
If you visit any PGA Tour even you will see golfers preparing for the tournament or their round utilizing a launch monitor. While it is not feasible for many amateurs to spend $16,000 on a Trackman (see 3 awesome options below), there are some viable and affordable options on today’s market that provide some quality information including:
- Carry Distance
- Ball speed
- Club speed
- Spin rate
- Spin axis
- Launch Angle
- Swing Path
This information can all become very useful when hitting into your mat. Mapping out you bag and knowing the distance you hit each club, while developing a reliable stock shot can help bring the consistency that many golfers crave.
Here are my top 3 recommend affordable golf launch monitors:
Why Use A Golf Net To Get Better?
This is going to be an answer that is personal to all golfers. For me it was about having more fun with the game, shooting lower scores and taking on the challenge to play my best golf possible.
Quick Tip: While you are at it, grow your knowledge of the game! Check out our post on Ball Flight Laws and learn how to make simple adjustments!
The game can become addicting and I enjoy playing as much as I enjoy practicing, experimenting and working on my game. We all dream about the perfect round and stripping the ball down the middle, hitting it close and sinking putts.
Utilize your time during the winter to work towards that dream round and loving the game even more!
Closing Thoughts: My Secret To Golf Improvement
Let’s face it, in order to get really good at golf, we must practice frequently. About three years ago, I made the leap and invested in a golf simulator build for my garage.
I went with a SkyTrak Launch Monitor and the TGC software and can now play over 100,000 courses including Augusta, Pebble Beach, Bethpage Black, Whistling Straits. St. Andrews and many other of the top 100 courses in the world.
This golf simulator setup, which is more affordable that you might imagine, has been a game changer. I can now play golf everyday of the year regardless of rain, snow, cold weather or time of day.
I can practice or play rounds of golf. I can stand in the 11th fairway at Augusta and with the auto-rewind feature I am able to practice my approach shots from various differences.
It is worth checking out through Rain or Shine Golf as they offer some incredible packages along with financing offers that are difficult to beat.
Some direct links to Rain or Shine Golf for pricing and financing:
Take Action – What You Can Do Today to Get Better
What does this mean for you? I believe in the following recipe to get better:
1 – Improve your motion in the golf swing by identifying a golf instructor. Here are some options:
Here is a list of golf instructors that we have reviewed:
2 – Train to swing faster and improve your swing speed. Here are some options:
Looking to gain more Speed and Distance in your swing. Two Options:
3 – Understand course strategy and work to break through your next barrier. Here is a series on breaking through:
We have provided guides on how to break 100, 90, 80 and 70. Check out more below, if interested.
4 – Practice Frequently
Did you know that I build a golf simulator in my garage and have played over 500 rounds of golf on my SkyTrak system? It has been a game changer and one worth checking out. Here are some of my other posts on golf simulators frequently asked questions:
- Is a Golf Simulator Worth It?
- How to Build a Golf Simulator?
- What is the Best Golf Simulator?
- Golf Simulator Accessories?
- How to Build a Golf Simulator for under $7000
- Top 11 Reasons to Buy a SkyTrak
- How to Build a Golf Simulator for Under $1000
- Why Build A Golf Simulator?
- What Space is Needed?
- Can A Golf Simulator Improve My Game?
- How Much Does A Golf Simulator Cost?
- Don’t Forget to Check out our 15 best golf swings of all time.