your pre-round routine

leading on from the comments on the pre-shot routine thread, i'm interested to know how everyone prepares for club comps and bounce games.

i usually spend about 30-40 mins at the practice green. starting off with short pitches of about 20 yards and working my way in to some shorter chips to get me going. then about 15 mins hitting full shots, usually starting with a three or four 5 irons, then hitting a couple of 7s, a couple of 3s, a couple of 9s, a few 1/2 and 3/4 gap wedges, and then my hybrid and finish with three or four with my driver as this is the first club i'll use at my home course. at my away course i'll hit a couple of 4 or 5 irons to finish as i will use one of these off the 1st tee. then, after collecting the balls, its off to the putting green for as long as i've got left usually 10-20 mins. i've been concious that my putting has been somewhat left behind this season in terms of practice so hoping to increase this area of practice a bit in the next few weeks and hopefully will see some results.

my warm up for medal rounds and weekend bounce games is the same. i sometimes play the odd game during the week where i might struggle to get much preparation in. if so, i'll always try and leave at least half an hour to get a wee bit of short game practice if possible.

I rock up, pay up then run to the first doing up my laces before I stick my tee shot usually in the trees on the left.

I turn up about 30 mins before my round, go into the clubhouse and order a pot of tea and a bacon bab, (for my scottish pals read "roll") by the time I have eaten it its time to tee off.

Turn up 10 mins before tee off.
Put left shoe on then put right shoe on.
Walk to first tee
Two pracrice swings then hit it straight down the middle
Works every time.

I've always thought I play better after all the practicing, putting etc especially if the round is in the afternoon. I hate playing first thing, usually a bit hung over.

In a Sunday pre 9 am round:

Scurry to find an open newsagent to ensure I have two cans of energy drink (preferably a sugar free red bull generic equivalent) a litre of water and always make sure my cigar reserves are at the optimum level

Get to the clubhouse, exchange pleasantries, pay my entry fee and make a beeline to the changingroooms to drop a greasy shyte. Usually at this point to I utter the words, "why put yourself through this" and then off to the car to get the clubs out. Sometimes I will go back to the pro shop to buy a pair of shoes as I have left them at work/ in the house / on the balcony at home and then return for a quick slash as the red rooster is kicking in.

Get to the tee box and let fly

Arrive at golf course. Make third trip of the day to khazi (now sorely regretting the Ruby and six ales consumed the night before which seemed a marvellous idea at the time), chastise yourself for having picked the trap in the men's room with the dodgy bog seat and insufficient bog-roll for the task in hand. Saunter up to practice green and proceed to practice all the things which don't actually work; spend 3 minutes warming up (swinging two clubs with all the finesse of a grizzly bear wrestling with an anaconda smeared in jelly), do a few quick stretches whilst a) trying not to put dodgy back out b) express involuntary wind at same time. Step up to tee reaching for Driver (cos that's what everyone else has in their grasp), take few hurried practice swings, stand behind ball (to convince those around you that you actually have a clue what you are aiming at) step up to ball and hit the usual slice into bushes, sigh and amble off hoping you can find ball.

I seem to have a minor OCD in terms of making sure I'm not late - particularly for comps.

I live about 10 minutes away from my course. Used to leave home about 60-70 minutes before my tee time. Recently I've found that I hate standing around for too long before I tee off so I've cut it down to leaving 50 minutes before tee off. I STILL find that I get there in no time at all (traffic problems very rare), pay by entry fee, change shoes, walk to the first tee and I'm still stood around for 30 minutes!

I'm not one for hitting balls on the range before playing - 5 mins swishing an 8 iron to loosen up and 5 minutes on the putting green - still leaves 20 minutes standing around

Noshankingtonite wrote:Arrive at golf course. Make third trip of the day to khazi (now sorely regretting the Ruby and six ales consumed the night before which seemed a marvellous idea at the time), chastise yourself for having picked the trap in the men's room with the dodgy bog seat and insufficient bog-roll for the task in hand. Saunter up to practice green and proceed to practice all the things which don't actually work; spend 3 minutes warming up (swinging two clubs with all the finesse of a grizzly bear wrestling with an anaconda smeared in jelly), do a few quick stretches whilst a) trying not to put dodgy back out b) express involuntary wind at same time. Step up to tee reaching for Driver (cos that's what everyone else has in their grasp), take few hurried practice swings, stand behind ball (to convince those around you that you actually have a clue what you are aiming at) step up to ball and hit the usual slice into bushes, sigh and amble off hoping you can find ball.

You should get with the programme son, that'll never be conducive to good golf

I putt round the 9 holes on the practice putting green with one ball, Then take a few practice swings and hit a fat one down the middle!

tarka wrote:

Noshankingtonite wrote:Arrive at golf course. Make third trip of the day to khazi (now sorely regretting the Ruby and six ales consumed the night before which seemed a marvellous idea at the time), chastise yourself for having picked the trap in the men's room with the dodgy bog seat and insufficient bog-roll for the task in hand. Saunter up to practice green and proceed to practice all the things which don't actually work; spend 3 minutes warming up (swinging two clubs with all the finesse of a grizzly bear wrestling with an anaconda smeared in jelly), do a few quick stretches whilst a) trying not to put dodgy back out b) express involuntary wind at same time. Step up to tee reaching for Driver (cos that's what everyone else has in their grasp), take few hurried practice swings, stand behind ball (to convince those around you that you actually have a clue what you are aiming at) step up to ball and hit the usual slice into bushes, sigh and amble off hoping you can find ball.

You should get with the programme son, that'll never be conducive to good golf

Haha - you up for the Trevose Open in October? Already sent my entrance fee

When is the trevose open btw? If you need somwhere to stay before or after, it would really be no problem at all for me to sort you out a b and b next to my house (only joking). I am off for one week in oct, the last week but my parents are down the first weekend so might not manage to play in this

I like to arrive at least an hour beforehand so I don't feel rushed...and hour and a half if having breakfast in the clubhouse. For big comps I'll do a quick feel chip and long putt 10-15 mins then go to range and have a warm up bucket (about 30 balls). Go up & down wedge, short, mid iron, utility, Driver, back down through to wedge. End with 3 shots with my first teeshot club (I've had a sneaky wee look at tee position and wind speed/direction). A quick putting session (putting to tee pegs for distance feel without trying to hole anything. Finish with 1,2,3,2,1 club length putts. Just superstition but I must hole the last putt I take before walking off the practice putting green (even if I have to put it a foot away - it's important to have that ball rattling into the cup sound in your ears).

On a bounce round, I'll take it as it comes, sometimes I'll do the same routine sometimes I'll do parts of it. Hate teeing up on the first without having ironed out the rustiness.

With regard to the Trevose Open Tarka It's Oct 9th, I've just booked into the Vic in Newquay for 4 nights from the Thurs, not sure where I'll play Fri/Sat yet, Possibly Perranporth & St Enodoc but may have a preview of Trevose itself (it's been a year and a half)

Can't play in it unfortunately, but I'll take u and any lads round launceston on the Friday if anyone fancies it, got days off to burn, tenner a head and Looe also could do the two for under 30 I would have thought for 36 holes

I always go through a comprehensive stretching routine so that I'm fully loosened by by the time I get on the first tee. This consists of stretching down to tie my shoelaces then stretching out the fingers of my left hand and pushing my glove right down onto my fingers before pulling the velcro across.

Job done, ready to larrup one down the middle

Turn up, pop on my shoes and step onto the tee. I will then usually take a few swings and try some stretches. I then get to the fifth hole, having played terrible, and start to hit the ball well and wonder if next time I should warm up properly.

Although I do remember when I was about 15/16 and got into the knock out stages of the club championship so thought I would spent some time on the range before the match. Not sure I have ever played so poorly yet somehow got to the 16th before being put out my misery.

Bounce Round: Rock up 30mins early, 10mins of putting concentrating on pace. 10mins warm up in the nets more to stretch out the muscles then off to first tee 10mins early for pre round pleasantries.

Competitons:
Turn up to course 60mins before tee off
Stretch for a good 10mins, this includes swinging weighted club
20mins on putting green. Putting to a tee to focus on hitting to a small target and pace of the greens. Then putting from long range focising on getting the ball within 3feet of hole
Then onto range 30balls, 5xWedge, 5xShort iron, 5xMid iron, 5xLong iron, 5xDrivermfinsih on range with the last 5balls hitting the exact shots I plan to hit on the first 3holes.(Opening 3holes are par 3 par 4 par 4) so that should be 5 regulation hits and is the last 5 shot on range a strange thing I do but I feel if I already played them on range its like the first 3 holes are auto pilotm

Of to tee 5mins early and pray for a good round

Mav

How many shots do you think I could save if I got into the habbit of using a proper pre shot routine like yours?

Mac

I have tried and tested this method obviously for my own purposes but the 3 hole prep thing I do made a huge impact I used to always drop silly shots on the openers by being ill prepared and now average -1 to par on those 3 alone compared to what was usually +1 sometimes +2. So the fact I'm no longer fighting to get back to level par after 3 helped me have no rounds over par in the comps I did manage thise year.

Also the long putts focusing on pace rather than line helped me get closer to the hole a lot more meaning lower putting average and putting to a tee peg meant by the time I got on the course I was so used to aiming a small target the hole seem like a bucket instant confidence booster I would say now I'm one of the best putters in my club as a result

Combine the whole thing together I'd say I'm an average of 3-4 shots better and as a result was on way to +1 handicap before injury. Give it a try it can't hurt

Don't have one as such, normally just rock up and hit a couple of putts, swing a couple of clubs and away to go.
Probably explains why I'm so inconsistent,can be 74 or 84 !!

Trouble is our practice range is not that long and very narrow, 3 iron at most and lucky to get 3 other golfers in .

We have no range so have to content ourselves with one net, hitting off a mat. I've never really found hitting balls in there did anything to help my round. I've obviously tried it.

By the way my usual routine worked well to day - although it was a bit of a pulled, fat one it was still on the fairway!

I always tee-off at 0730 or 0740 and I live 25 minutes from the course, so the start of my pre-round routine always consists of sleep and brushing my teeth.

generally i try to get to the course 30 minutes prior to tee time, start off with 10 mins on the chipping green, 10 mins on putting green then last 10 minutes stretching and hitting a few balls in the net beside the 1st tee.

Last sunday i wanted to work on something so i went up an hour early and was hitting balls and chipping for a good 50 mins. Thinking i was all prepared and reasdy to go out and win i proceeded to the first tee and (driving normally being my strong point) to duck hook my first two tee shots, 1st oob, 2nd barely in and went on to shoot my worst round of the summer an 85 gross. Last evening, Thursday fourball, rushed from work , traffic was terrible, arrived in the car park at 17.17 for a 17.20 tee time, threw on my shoes and change of shirt, two practice swings, nailed a drive and 4 iron to the middle of the par 5 1st for a 2 putt birdie and went on to shoot 72 gross on my own ball! a funny game indeed!

A friend usually picks me up around 30 minutes or so before our tee time. Only live 2 minutes away so it's not a real rush. I then have to try and ignore him reliving his last round where his driving / irons / pitching / chipping / putting was bad just in case it is contagious. The guy plays almost every day and he's still struggles to beat mid to low 90's.

When we get to the club it's a bit of banter, some putting, stretching and swinging clubs as warm up. Balls get thrown into a hat to draw you playing partner(s) and then the last 10-15 minutes before teeing off is spent trying to work out / explain what stupid game my same friend has devised. Tomorrow I'm going to forget the stupid game, just play my ball and hope to score better on a Saturday, for once, as per the mind set thread JAS started. (My apologies if it was someone else or called something different)