Building a short game area for practice in back yard

[tiger1873]

Noticing clubs are ever increasing dues and honestly a lot them are not very kid friendly.   For the price of initiation and dues one could build quite a nice backyard shortage area and use a net and simulator for a driving range and save quite a bit of money if you have an acre of land or more,

 

The nicest thing about living on the golf course if you get easy access to a driving range and short game area.  But in all honestly there are plenty of places you cans still play for low prices so I think the only real advantage to living on a course is the driving range and practice areas.

 

[heavy_hitter]

The nice thing about living on a course is getting on the course after hours to practice.  Last evening went out and worked on wedges inside 100 yds.  9 holes 6 balls each hole at varying distances with different lies.  45 minutes and done.  Can't do this on a simulator.

 

I find a lot of CC settings the members really don't care about the handful of players that are tournament level golfers.  The members, for the most part, are using golf as a reason to smoke and drink.  It is social not competition.

[leezer99]

22 minutes ago, heavy_hitter said:

 

I find a lot of CC settings the members really don't care about the handful of players that are tournament level golfers.  The members, for the most part, are using golf as a reason to smoke and drink.  It is social not competition.

Was at the range when a member yelled at 3 D1 girls that were sharing a single stall to practice while another member was waiting. All 3 of those girls are at Grayhawk right now in the ncaa championship.  

[tiger1873]

2 hours ago, heavy_hitter said:

The nice thing about living on a course is getting on the course after hours to practice.  Last evening went out and worked on wedges inside 100 yds.  9 holes 6 balls each hole at varying distances with different lies.  45 minutes and done.  Can't do this on a simulator.

 

I find a lot of CC settings the members really don't care about the handful of players that are tournament level golfers.  The members, for the most part, are using golf as a reason to smoke and drink.  It is social not competition.

 

 

I do agree with you on this. However  a lot clubs out there have become hostile towards kids.  Add in the increasing dues and crazy initiation you have to wonder why pay 20-30K for a club that was 5k a year ago and still looks like a dump.    Some these clubs are also already talking about doubling the dues you pay as well. 

 

A lot courses give huge discounts for juniors in the afternoon so it's not like you can't play 3 or 4 times a week. The biggest issue I see is the ease of practice that is needed.   I been told it's about $15-25 sq ft to build a putting green.   If you had a big enough yard you could chip on it and a decent net you could hit balls and use a mevo plus or similar launch monitor and get decent data.

You still need to drive to a course and be able to play but the daily practice problem would  be solved.

Edited May 23, 2022 by tiger1873

[heavy_hitter]

1 hour ago, tiger1873 said:

 

 

I do agree with you on this. However  a lot clubs out there have become hostile towards kids.  Add in the increasing dues and crazy initiation you have to wonder why pay 20-30K for a club that was 5k a year ago and still looks like a dump.    Some these clubs are also already talking about doubling the dues you pay as well. 

 

A lot courses give huge discounts for juniors in the afternoon so it's not like you can't play 3 or 4 times a week. The biggest issue I see is the ease of practice ones need.   I been told it's about $15-25 sq ft to build a putting green.   If you had a big enough year you could chip on it and a decent net you could hit balls and use a memo plus or similar launch monitor and get decent data.

You still need to drive to a course and be able to play but the daily practice problem would  be solved.

 

Don't disagree.  The greens on our course are arguably the worst in the county.  At least 8 years overdo for new ones.  The fairways have zoysia growing through them.  Frankly, can't wait until he is outta here so I don't have to pay the course we live on anymore.

[MD_]

I'm fortunate enough to live on 3.5 flat tree-free acres (but sadly about 35 minutes from the closest course/practice facility) so I've given this A LOT of consideration...Presently I have 3 12" stakes in the yard at 50, 75, and 100 to hit at...but hitting is off of a mat as I don't have the budget or time for a weed free pristinely cut yard....I thought about ordering some flags, but the wife wasn't keen on the idea as the majority of our property sits in the front of the house on a residential street.

 

His hybrid, woods, driver are into a net (as well as anything in my bag outside of my 56 / 60)eventually I'm looking at either the Rapsado or Mevo+ to add to the setup.

 

I've been looking into outdoor artificial putting greens (see time and money as reasons not to do a real one)...but that would require losing a play set and trampoline from the back yard so not so sure about that as my younger 2 aren't as into golf yet as their older brother.

[TripleBogeysrbetter]

On 5/23/2022 at 11:00 AM, heavy_hitter said:

The nice thing about living on a course is getting on the course after hours to practice.  Last evening went out and worked on wedges inside 100 yds.  9 holes 6 balls each hole at varying distances with different lies.  45 minutes and done.  Can't do this on a simulator.

 

I find a lot of CC settings the members really don't care about the handful of players that are tournament level golfers.  The members, for the most part, are using golf as a reason to smoke and drink.  It is social not competition.

Hold my beer!

[TripleBogeysrbetter]

Having a sim in the garage I can tell you its nice for us during the winter months. 

 

My son is an above average wedge player mainly cause of only hitting wedges in the garage.

 

I will say it takes about two rounds to get use to hitting outside again, but thats if you take the entire 5-6 months off and only hit on the sim.

 

It's def a long term investment and I wouldn't buy cheap hoping its a track man or something.

[ChipNRun]

A few years ago I built a short-game practice area in my back yard. This is just for partial wedges, no putting green.

 

 

[ChipNRun]

On 5/23/2022 at 11:04 AM, tiger1873 said:

I been told it's about $15-25 sq ft to build a putting green.   If you had a big enough yard you could chip on it and a decent net you could hit balls...

 

Two synthetic golf turf companies appeared at the St. Louis Golf Expo in March. Backyard putting greens drew a lot of interest.

Here's one Artificial Putting web site that gives similar cost figures to yours. 

[MahalNeneng]

Pandemic setup easy to do.

[kekoa]

We don't have anything close to an acre and only about 800 SF to work with LOL.  I built by son a nice putting green and set up a hitting net.  He used the putting green almost everyday to play soccer.  

 

As far as CC's go, I'm really curious why some snooty members look down upon juniors.  The truth is, most of the kids can beat these members any day of the week from the same tees. These members act like they own the place and kids are just trespassing. 

[heavy_hitter]

1 hour ago, kekoa said:

 

 

As far as CC's go, I'm really curious why some snooty members look down upon juniors.  The truth is, most of the kids can beat these members any day of the week from the same tees. These members act like they own the place and kids are just trespassing. 

Yeah Buddy.  Some juniors 11-13 years old played in a July 4th Tourney Scramble at the club and won.  2 Girls and 2 Boys.  Lip service was "Awesome. Great Job."  The members then complain to the pro about "Why are they allowed to play?".  The Senior Women members are the worst.  Same thing happens when junior girls sign up for the club championship.  I think it is a hoot because they all go and complain.  The men are different and generally want the best players playing even if a junior.  The women though...  gheesh.

[kekoa]

2 minutes ago, heavy_hitter said:

Yeah Buddy.  Some juniors 11-13 years old played in a July 4th Tourney Scramble at the club and won.  2 Girls and 2 Boys.  Lip service was "Awesome. Great Job."  The members then complain to the pro about "Why are they allowed to play?".  The Senior Women members are the worst.  Same thing happens when junior girls sign up for the club championship.  I think it is a hoot because they all go and complain.  The men are different and generally want the best players playing even if a junior.  The women though...  gheesh.

These same 'Karens' try to sneak a peak of the kids striping it at the range and I think it pisses them off even more how good they are.  lmao

[MB19]

27 minutes ago, kekoa said:

These same 'Karens' try to sneak a peak of the kids striping it at the range and I think it pisses them off even more how good they are.  lmao

Then there's the occasional ODB commenting, "That girl was really hitting the ball over there on the range.  She put her little a** in to it and--pow!" 🤣

[leezer99]

5 hours ago, heavy_hitter said:

Yeah Buddy.  Some juniors 11-13 years old played in a July 4th Tourney Scramble at the club and won.  2 Girls and 2 Boys.  Lip service was "Awesome. Great Job."  The members then complain to the pro about "Why are they allowed to play?".  The Senior Women members are the worst.  Same thing happens when junior girls sign up for the club championship.  I think it is a hoot because they all go and complain.  The men are different and generally want the best players playing even if a junior.  The women though...  gheesh.

Those same adults hit balls and practice an hour per week versus some kids that play and practice five hours a day. You’re not going to beat a kid at golf that puts in more effort. 

[heavy_hitter]

10 hours ago, leezer99 said:

Those same adults hit balls and practice an hour per week versus some kids that play and practice five hours a day. You’re not going to beat a kid at golf that puts in more effort. 

I don't disagree.  I see more women making it an issue than the men.

[MahalNeneng]

14 year old just recently won her "Club Championships" and they were none too pleased 🙂

[kekoa]

3 hours ago, heavy_hitter said:

I don't disagree.  I see more women making it an issue than the men.

I see grumpy 'men' board members making the biggest deal.  Like @leezer99 said, these guys normally have a beer or cigarette in their hand and never a golf club.  

[tiger1873]

On 9/19/2022 at 3:09 PM, kekoa said:

 

As far as CC's go, I'm really curious why some snooty members look down upon juniors.  The truth is, most of the kids can beat these members any day of the week from the same tees. These members act like they own the place and kids are just trespassing. 

 

A lot members can’t stand kids at some clubs.  The club pro can be the worst person to your kid and the most jealous  when your kid starts doing well. 

 

 

The crap I had to put up with was just disgusting. Make me really mad and angry to even think about them.  The stuff that happened really hurt both my daughters a lot this year.    

 

There is no reason to join a club as a junior. Better to go out find a place with no HOA and big backyard. 
 

Getting away from that toxic environment has been a huge priority recently.  

[tiger1873]

On 9/20/2022 at 12:35 PM, kekoa said:

I see grumpy 'men' board members making the biggest deal.  Like @leezer99 said, these guys normally have a beer or cigarette in their hand and never a golf club.  

 

The pro can be the worst person against a kid that does well at a club.

 

First they don’t like when your kid can beat them it makes them look bad.

 

Even worse they get mad because a lot tikes they give bad advice.  They will even talk to other members and in some cases and bad mouth your kid so they can look good.

 

The sad thing is this happens a lot to kids especially girls. It was only after talking to a dad who daughter was #1 that i found it was common for south Florida clubs 

[Wade Patton]

On 8/6/2022 at 10:11 PM, ChipNRun said:

A few years ago I built a short-game practice area in my back yard. This is just for partial wedges, no putting green.

 

 

Nice.

FWIW I didn't catch any flack as a junior at the club I played as a kid (16-18).  Oh yeah, there was the one time on "ladies day" that three groups of women INSISTED on "playing through" and I had to follow them around and walk slowly as I was solo and going down the middle for the most part...So there was that one time and it was some gals. 😆

But I have 6.5 acres out back and I hit out there just about every single day the weather is tolerable for a few minutes. I've even put on a headlamp and put up a floodlight to hit at night (great for focus).  I'm hitting from lumpy lies at short targets and also have a net out there.  My land is partially wooded so the woods catch some balls now and then-when I want to see ball flight or let off some steam. I find them eventually.

Turf grass-I've access to some Zoysia that I love but I don't want to kill it while it's dormant and the stuff wont be green again until late Spring.  I've transplanted it before with some success.

I'm thinking of buying some seeds to try out different grasses. I think I can grow more than I can divot away.  I don't dig most of the time at all. Any guys have experience there? I'm going to set up half an acre at least, so I can move around for wear.  I'm just dealing with mowed down field right now. It's not too bad when it's soft.

Edited December 4, 2022 by Wade Patton
ladies day

[ShortGolfer]

Grow extra sod to replace the divot area with transplanted grass. Instead of cutting sod, it could be grown in areas confined by lawn edging.

 

In the winter when the grass doesn't grow I've been hitting foam balls off a mat with simulated rough.

I also took some divots in the snow!  I placed the foam balls on the snow.

[MahalNeneng]

In fairness the adult members at our club are respectful towards our son. 

[heavy_hitter]

14 hours ago, rpawly said:

In fairness the adult members at our club are respectful towards our son. 

Our club is respectful to all juniors to their faces.  It is behind their back where they are not.

[tiger1873]

16 hours ago, rpawly said:

In fairness the adult members at our club are respectful towards our son. 

 

Some clubs are great towards juniors. However in South Florida after covid a lot clubs despise juniors at a lot clubs it's everyone from members to the head pro.    

 

Stuff I could tell that happened would make you sick that anyone could act that way towards kids.   There is no reason to join a club if you have different places to practice.

 

There is reason why almost every tournament in South Florida is played at Indian Springs or a run down course that no one wants to play. No club since covid wants anyone to play their courses anymore.

[heavy_hitter]

1 hour ago, tiger1873 said:

 

Some clubs are great towards juniors. However in South Florida after covid a lot clubs despise juniors at a lot clubs it's everyone from members to the head pro.    

 

Stuff I could tell that happened would make you sick that anyone could act that way towards kids.   There is no reason to join a club if you have different places to practice.

 

There is reason why almost every tournament in South Florida is played at Indian Springs or a run down course that no one wants to play. No club since covid wants anyone to play their courses anymore.

This is pretty accurate.  Starting to do more Amateur and Mini tour events and they are played on better courses than the juniors are.  Part of it is cost though.  Mini tour Even $300, but have a chance to win the fee back.  Amateur Events and Qualifiers for 1 day nicer course but over $100.00.  PGA Pre Qualifiers for a Tour event $200 for one day.  Tour event One day normal qualifier $500.00.  2 Day Amateur events $200.00 plus.  Then you get to junior FJT and SFPGA at $100.00 event.  $100.00 for a two day event is the biggest issue.  Would rather pay a couple of hundred for a better course.  Hurricane Courses are better but you pay more and the fields are terrible.

[Golfingdawg19]

My daughter has won our club championship 3 years in a row. There are some of the ladies that embrace it and others that don’t. The club runs the championships so the members don’t have a say who gets to play. The men and women’s golf associations have rules that you must be 18 or older to play in their events. So she isn’t allowed to play in anything run by the WGA. Women have complained to the pro many times and they didn’t even want her riding with them the first year she won the club championship. We had to have a designated driver for her since she wasn’t 16. The men are much more into embracing the juniors for whatever reason.

 

 

 

[heavy_hitter]

1 hour ago, Golfingdawg19 said:

My daughter has won our club championship 3 years in a row. There are some of the ladies that embrace it and others that don’t. The club runs the championships so the members don’t have a say who gets to play. The men and women’s golf associations have rules that you must be 18 or older to play in their events. So she isn’t allowed to play in anything run by the WGA. Women have complained to the pro many times and they didn’t even want her riding with them the first year she won the club championship. We had to have a designated driver for her since she wasn’t 16. The men are much more into embracing the juniors for whatever reason.

 

 

 

Yeah...  keep her playing just to piss them off more.

[GolfnGatorNC]

On 12/22/2022 at 7:40 AM, Golfingdawg19 said:

My daughter has won our club championship 3 years in a row. There are some of the ladies that embrace it and others that don’t. The club runs the championships so the members don’t have a say who gets to play. The men and women’s golf associations have rules that you must be 18 or older to play in their events. So she isn’t allowed to play in anything run by the WGA. Women have complained to the pro many times and they didn’t even want her riding with them the first year she won the club championship. We had to have a designated driver for her since she wasn’t 16. The men are much more into embracing the juniors for whatever reason.

 

 

 

I can't stand this!  Our MGA/WGA has the same 18 y/o rule.  Then the ladies got the club to change the eligibility rules so prior pros (who have the amateur status now) could not play in the club championship, then they introduced the 18 y/o rule because they didn't like the high school players involved, then when that didn't stop the senior high school girls from playing along with the collegiate players they boycotted the club championship.  It makes no sense.