by Andre Sanchez

As winter is upon us, you will likely find that your golf course is closed until the early spring. You might be lucky, and live in the south of the country, In which case you have year-round golf, but for most, winter is golf free.  However, that does not mean that you should let your game go, and have to start all over again in the spring.  There are ways to keep in trim, and practice until you can back on the golf course again.

Here is how you can keep practising throughout the winter so that when you get back on the course you will be fit, and ready to start up where you left off. The most obvious thing to do is to have a winter vacation at a golf school in a place like Scottsdale, Arizona or even Florida.  This will help to tidy up any niggling faults you may have had, and have you ready to start up again refreshed and with a new-found swing or extra length come March.

However, failing that, there is still a lot that you can do, such as train using some golf DVDs or carry out some simple practice on your swing and your putting.  You can also keep yourself fit with some simple fitness exercises for golf involving flexibility and rotational strength. Let’s start with some simple winter training on your swing, that involves rotational and flexibility exercises.

The golf swing is a rotational movement that is not natural to your body physiology, and so can lose its effectiveness during a long lay-off.  You would have to spend time regaining your flexibility and rotational strength, or otherwise your swing would be weak.  You would find it difficult to get into a full swing and you would swing using your arms and shoulders, but not your back and legs.
First find yourself some simple training aids.  An iron bar or a dumbbell will do to strengthen your rotational muscles, and keep you flexible.

Hold the iron bar as you would a golf club and practise your swing.  Make sure you are alone when you do this because you don’t want to hit anybody when you are swinging the bar or you could serious injure them. Simply swing as you would do normally.  The objective here is to strengthen the muscles you use during your swing, so that you have a stronger swing and drive when the season starts, rather than weaker as all your buddies will be.  It is not to improve your swing technique, but strengthen your existing technique.  The reason for the bar is that it is heavier than your golf clubs, and hence will strengthen your muscles because you are swinging against a greater resistance than you are used to.

Then hold the bar over your shoulders and slowly twist your body to the left, hold it for a few seconds, then the same to the right.  Each time twist as far as you can. This will keep your muscles flexible and supple, and also maintain flexibility in your joints.  Sit down, hold the dumbbell or weight in front of you with both hands, and with your hands extended, repeat sitting down what you did standing up with the iron bar.

If you repeat these exercises every day, you can be pretty sure that your swing will be a lot better when your start playing again than it was when winter set in.  Now for your putting and chipping. You can practice your putting at home or in the office by using a carpet, and concentrating on running the ball up to a target.  If you can get a piece of carpet that has a similar speed to a putting green then all the better.  If not, just practice the accuracy and try to hit a target such as a table leg or empty can from a variety of distances.  Do the same with your chipping, trying to chip into a tin can or other receptacle.  Once the season starts you will be a lot more accurate with your putting and chipping than anybody else in your foursome.

Finally, your stance.  Take up your stance in front of a mirror and have your partner mark the mirror either with a dry marker or with tape to indicate the critical positions of your back, legs, arms and shoulders.  Keep practising this position each day, even trying a swing from it, and you will not lose what you have already learned.

The objective of winter training is twofold:  to maintain what you already have, and to improve on your fitness for golf.  You will maintain your stance by checking it out each day, and also your putting and chipping abilities by practising on the carpet. Your fitness for golf will improve by increasing the rotational strength that you use in your swing, and also the flexibility of your muscles and joints through the stretching exercises.

It is essential to carry out these exercises, or exercises like them, if you are not going to have to spend the first third of season getting back to where you left off.  The exercises don’t take long, and you will be thankful for them when you step onto the first tee in the new season.

How to Practice Golf in Winter was originally published at http://www.golfplayernow.com