Let’s face it: between work, family, and trying to maintain a social life, finding the time to improve your golf game is tough.
Even if you do manage to carve out a free evening, going to the driving range is a whole ordeal. You have to drive there, spend money on petrol, shell out £6 for a bucket of mediocre range balls, and stand on a concrete mat while trying not to slice your driver into the person next to you. For most everyday golfers, doing that more than once a week just isn’t realistic.
But here is the good news: You don’t need a driving range to get better at golf. In fact, some of the most critical elements of a great golf swing—your grip, your takeaway, and your alignment—can be practiced right in your living room or garden for absolutely zero pounds. As junior golfers we were taught the crucial aspect of practicing your game from home and so can you.
If you want to shave strokes off your scorecard without draining your wallet or your free time, try these three high-value “home-cooked” drills this week. Carpet putting drill, takeaway mirror check and grip reheersal.
1. The Carpet Putting Drill (Lock in Your Alignment)
You don’t need a fancy $100 electronic putting mat to work on your short game. All you need is a standard living room rug and a plastic cup from your kitchen.
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How to do it: Turn the plastic cup on its side so the opening faces you, and place it 6 to 8 feet away on your carpet. Practice rolling putts straight into the cup.
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The Value: Because a carpet is generally slower than a real green, this drill forces you to focus entirely on starting the ball on your intended line. If your clubface is open or closed by even a millimeter at impact, you’ll miss the cup entirely. Sink 20 of these a night, and you’ll stop three-putting on the weekends.
2. The Mirror Check (Perfect the Takeaway)
A bad golf swing almost always starts in the first two feet of the movement. If you snatch the club inside or push it too far outside during your takeaway, you spend the rest of the swing trying to compensate for it.
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How to do it: Stand in front of a full-length mirror (or a sliding glass door at night) and take your normal golf stance. Slowly take the club back until it is parallel to the ground, then stop and look.
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The Value: Check the clubface angle in the reflection. Is the toe of the club pointing straight up to the sky, matching your spine angle? Perfect. Is it flipped wide open or shut? Adjust it. By doing this slowly in front of a mirror, you are building the correct muscle memory without the distraction of trying to hit a ball.
3. The Grip Rehearsal (Build Muscle Memory on the Couch)
The grip is your only physical connection to the golf club, yet it’s the thing amateurs mess up the most. A grip that is too weak or too strong will cause an accidental slice or hook every single time.
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How to do it: Take an old iron (maybe that 4-iron you took out of your bag after reading our last article) and keep it right next to your desk or your couch. While you’re watching TV or waiting for a Zoom meeting to start, pick it up and practice placing your hands on the grip perfectly. Hold it for 30 seconds, let go, and repeat.
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The Value: A proper golf grip feels incredibly weird and unnatural to a beginner. By mindlessly practicing it while watching Netflix, you desensitize your hands to that awkward feeling. Soon, a perfect grip will feel like second nature when you step up to the first tee.
Smart Practice for Smart Golfers
Improvement doesn’t require a massive budget or endless hours at an expensive facility. It just requires consistency. By spending just 10 minutes a day on these simple home drills, you’ll build a repeatable, confident swing that holds up under pressure.
At GolfThing, that’s exactly how we view the game. We believe in skipping the expensive, unnecessary extras and focusing entirely on what works.
Our launch collection of premium golf caps and apparel is built on that exact same philosophy. We cut out the country club markups to give you ultra-breathable, moisture-wicking gear that looks sharp and performs on the course—leaving you with more cash in your pocket to actually play the game.
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Over to You
Do you have a go-to drill you practice at home when you can’t make it to the course? Have you tried the carpet putting challenge yet? Let us know your favorite home setups in the comments below!