Golf Tips: Drills to Work on when you're Stuck Inside

Whether you are stuck in the house from the weather or some other unforeseen circumstance, it doesn’t mean you can’t practice. In today’s golf tips, we look at some different things you can do in the house to satisfy the golf itch.

You may find yourself stuck in the house during certain times of the year. Maybe it’s too cold out to go golfing comfortably, raining too hard, there’s snow on the ground, or there is some other circumstance keeping you from playing. There are still plenty of things you can do inside, which is what we look at in today’s version of golf tips.

Before we get started, there are a couple of things that I cannot stress enough. One, make sure that whoever else is living in your house is okay with you practicing. There is nothing worse than starting to practice and having your spouse walk out and give you “the look”. No one wants that, and I wouldn’t wish it on anyone. Except for Patrick Reed.

Secondly, make sure you have plenty of room. If you think you’re going to be cutting it close, don’t do it. You know what is worse than “the look”? Putting a hole in your wall, and then having them come out and give it to you. Once again, I wouldn’t wish that on anyone. Except for Patrick Reed.

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Let’s get to it. Here are some indoor drills you can work on, or things you can do inside your house to get your golf game on.

Golf Towel Drill

This is one that you have likely heard of before and takes little to no room. You can do it without a club, but if you have space it definitely helps to feel more realistic. Take a dish towel (or something in similar size), and put it underneath your back elbow. What we are doing here is making sure that your elbow stays inside on takeaway, and that your swing isn’t getting inside out or vice-versa. the glove/towel should stay there until your swing is coming to completion and flare out in front of you.

You can do the same thing with your front armpit as well. This is something you may have seen Rory McIlroy working on. What it does is to keep the front arm connected, and to make sure that your chest is rotating. Either of these can be done inside, and they can be a solid drill to make sure you are keeping your arms inside, with good rotation.

Bouncing the ball

You’ll see this out on the course a lot, but its a simple and easy drill to do inside as well. Take a wedge, and try and bounce the ball on there as long as you can. Tiger Woods had a goal of doing this 1,000 times in a row with his strong hand, and then at least 500, if not 1,000 as well, with his weak hand. It’s a great way to build hand/eye coordination, as well as strengthening your forearms.

Simulator – like Optishot

This one takes a bit of room, as you want to make sure you have enough room to take a full swing with a driver. They recommended 8.5 feet, but if you are a taller person (I’m 6’6″, I need more room) then you will need a bit more. You can find an Optishot on sale at some point during the year for $200-300, and they come with 15-20 courses.

I’ve set up mine in my garage, and have a blanket up against the wall to catch the ball and the tee coming off of the mat. On your own, you can play a round in about 45 minutes, and even though it isn’t as good as a real round, it’s still a great way to play. Especially if you can get together with some buddies to play.

Foam/plastic golf balls

Find yourself some foam or plastic balls. Just start chipping them around the house. Simple. If you’re able to get outside, flop them around the yard. If you are completed stuck inside, set up a blanket or target somewhere to catch them, and start hitting. Again, just make sure you aren’t making a ton of noise.

Wedge drills into a bucket

These last two drills will go along with the prior one, and just add a bit of focus. Take out a decent size bowl or bucket. Try and hit those foam or plastic balls into the bucket. You aren’t really worried about the roll-out or path the ball that takes once it hits the ground, as this is more of a drill for working on your landing point. The landing point is essential around the green and something that many golfers overlook. You can get solid work in this way, and its a good way to increase your up-and-down conversion percentage.

Wedge drills into a circle on the ground

After getting some work on the bucket, now we move to focus on the rollout of the ball. Find some rope, or if you have bought one of the circles that you can place around a hole, use those. What you want is a circle on the ground, the size of which is up to you. If you have a carpet or something with some friction, it’s going to be much easier. If you’re on hardwood, it will help you prepare if you are ever playing somewhere that’s a 14 on the stimp.

The goal here is to chip/bump and run the ball and get it to come to rest inside the circle. Along with the last drill, these should combine to really help you increase your up and down percentage, a huge factor in cutting down your handicap.

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That’ll do it for today’s golf tips. A reminder to everyone to stay safe, stay healthy, and keep the rust off that golf game.

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Golf Tips: Drills to Work on when you’re Stuck Inside

By Christopher O'Day | Mar 26, 2020