One week I can putt but can’t get off the tee – and the next I’m crushing it with my Driver but can’t seem to buy a putt.

for my 40th birthday, my wife put in a backyard golf green for me. And being in the golf mat business I have plenty of these to test.

So now I swing the club much more often than I ever have in the past. It’s great fun and the kids are even showing some interest.

I have a little over an acre and have devoted about a half acre of the backyard my mini-golf course.

One green apprx 20′x30′ with 4 cups and three mats at various yards (30,35,40) shooting into the green.

So what we do is hit the limited flight birdieballs to the green (or close) and then place a real golf ball down and play in from there.

Join the fun and start playing golf at home in your back yard.

Golfers helping golfers – What games do you play?

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I found with basketball that there were cetrain thing that you could practice with great results.  Foul shots for exmple – It drives me crazy to see college and pro players who can’t shoot better than 80% from the stripe. They call them ”free-throughs” after all! 

Now I was no great b-ball player by any streatch of the imagination – but I could make my foul shots.  In fact I’d get put in the game a critical spots for exactly that reason. 

So how can you practice more effectively in your golf game.

Have fun – make a game of it.  

1) Putt Around – One the common games that I play is what I call “putt around“.  You take a number of balls (7-10 is a good number) and place the balls 2′ from the hole.  Once you make ALL of these add a foot to the distance and repeat.  The object of the game is to make a full circle or “round” before moving on to the next.   Now making a “round” of 2-footersmay not seem like a challenge, but the last one is always a little tougher than the first and that’s the point – it puts a little pressure on you to mimmick a game situation.  Now move out to 3′, 4′  ect.  These are what I call “Must Make Putts” – most golfers would improve a number of strokes if they just made every putt 3′,4′, 5′  or less.

2) Par-3  This is another game that I play with the kids – but it’s fun for all ages.  I have a small putting green in the back yard, but you could improvise with a putting mat on the deck or patio.  First, with a club other than your putter chip a shot onto the green – and then try to two-putt.  This has been a great game to impart some feel on my childeren’s golf game.  They had a tendancy to putt way past the hole  with little chance to make the come back putt.  Now they try to get it close because they are working for a two putt rather than a one putt. It has helped eveyones lagg game a bunch.

If you play any golf games that work for you please contribute with a comment below. 

Golfers helping golfers, jay

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