If you’re anything like most golfers, you love heading out to the driving range and dropping a large bucket of balls down in front you. But as you work through that bucket of balls do you actually have a strategy for what you are doing or are you just mindlessly pounding shot after shot out there into the distance?

The world’s best players know that how you practice is just as important as how much you practice. When they head to the driving range they have a very specific plan. Sometimes they are working on certain swing mechanics, but other times they are focused on simply executing great shots. This second strategy, focusing on executing great shots, is one of the best ways for amateur players to get better results on the range.

Here’s how to do it:
Every time you rake a ball into place choose a very specific target – just like you do when you are out on the course. Practice choosing small targets and you’ll find that your mind becomes even more focused.

Go through your pre-shot routine before hitting every single ball. This takes discipline but it’s really the only way to get your pre-shot routine ingrained into your mind and start developing the trust that you need to execute when the pressure is on.

After you hit your shot watch it fly through the air and keep your eye on the ball until it comes to a complete stop. After that analyze what happened. Did you hit your target? If not, what happened and caused you to miss?

If you hit an errant shot and miss your target play a recovery shot with your next ball. Practicing punch outs is something that most golfers never do, and when they are faced with one of them on the course it can be a disaster. Don’t let this happen to you!

If you’re going to spend time on the driving range, you might as well make it worthwhile. The tips above will help you simulate the on course conditions that you face and help you lower your scores.