Driving range practice plan
The driving range is where most amateurs waste the most practice time. A bucket of 80 balls hit without a plan is 80 reps of nothing in particular. Here's how to build a real range session, sized to the time you have, with a clear job for every shot.
The structure of a good range session
Every effective driving range session has four parts:
- Warm-up (5 minutes). 10 slow swings with a mid-iron, half speed. No score, no target. Just to shift attention.
- Full-swing skill block (15 to 30 minutes). Rotate clubs and targets on every shot. This is where variability and specificity live.
- Wedge yardage block (10 to 15 minutes). Specific distances (e.g. 40, 60, 80 yards) with one wedge. Distance control is a low-handicap skill amateurs skip.
- Pressure finisher (5 minutes). One drill with a clear pass/fail. Forces commitment and ends the session in a state similar to tournament shots.
30-minute driving range plan
- 0:00 to 5:00. Warm-up: 10 slow mid-iron swings.
- 5:00 to 18:00. Random Iron 9-Shot: alternate 8i, 7i, 6i for 9 shots. New target every shot. Success: 6 of 9 within one club length of target.
- 18:00 to 25:00. Wedge Distance Ladder: 3 shots each at 40, 60, and 80 yards. Success: 6 of 9 within 5 yards of target.
- 25:00 to 30:00. Pressure finisher: 3 shots with your worst club, no practice swing, full commitment.
60-minute driving range plan
- 0:00 to 5:00. Warm-up: 10 slow mid-iron swings.
- 5:00 to 25:00. Random Iron block: 18 shots, mixed clubs (5-iron through PW), every shot a new target. Track quality 1 to 5 per shot.
- 25:00 to 40:00. Wedge Distance Ladder, expanded: 3 shots each at 40, 60, 80, and 100 yards.
- 40:00 to 50:00. Driver block: 8 shots, alternating shot shape (draw, fade, straight) on each.
- 50:00 to 60:00. Pressure 3-shot finisher: imagine a hole on the course. Tee shot, approach, recovery, in order, no warm-up swings.
90-minute driving range plan
Add a second skill block (e.g. specific shot-shape practice) after the wedge ladder, and extend the pressure finisher to 9 holes worth of imagined shots. Most amateurs don't need 90 minutes, but if you have it, this is the structure.
What not to do at the range
- Don't start with the driver. Cold, big swing, ego-driven. Recipe for 10 wasted minutes and a sore back.
- Don't hit the same club 20 times in a row. Block practice. Feels productive, doesn't transfer.
- Don't hit balls without a target. If you can't define the target, you can't define a miss.
- Don't keep going past 60 minutes if you're getting tired. Tired reps teach the wrong patterns.
Tracking your range sessions
PracticeCaddie's practice plan generator builds range sessions sized to your handicap, time, and focus areas. The live runner times every drill and logs your made/missed counts so you can see your shot quality trend over weeks.
Frequently asked questions
How should I structure a driving range practice session?
Five-minute warm-up (slow swings, half speed). Then 60 to 70% of the time on full-swing skill blocks (varied clubs, varied targets). 15 to 20% on wedges from specific yardages. End with 10 to 15% on a pressure drill that demands commitment. Total: 30 to 60 minutes, depending on how much time you have.
How many balls should I hit at the range?
Quality over quantity. 50 to 80 balls in a 60-minute session is plenty if every ball has a target and a success criterion. 200 balls with no plan teaches your body to swing tired, not to swing well.
Should I hit my driver at the range?
Driver gets ~14 swings per round. Allocate ~15% of range time to it, not 50%. The rest should go to irons and wedges, which add up to 30+ swings per round.
What's the biggest mistake at the range?
Hitting the same club to the same target until it feels good. That's pure block practice and it doesn't transfer to the course. Vary your club every shot, change targets, and force yourself to commit before the swing.