3 easy ways to stay golf ready in the off-season
When you can’t get out on the golf course, what are the few essential things you can do to stay golf-ready in the off season?
Matt Starr, PGA Director of Instruction at Meadow Links & Golf Academy, provided his tips: 3 easy ways to stay golf-ready even in the off season. Matt and I met recently for our annual planning meeting to get clinics setup for the Queen City Links Ladies 2025 golf season.
(If you’re local to Cincinnati, get on the interest list & save the dates for the Meadow Links clinics - short game & full swing - the fill up quickly, so get on the list so you won’t miss out).
I asked Matt, “What are the top 3 things to do in the off season to stay golf-ready?” He delivered! Here are his top tips:
Putting
Matt: “When you’re stuck inside it’s a great time to work on your putting. I love the yardstick drill in the winter, and you can do it anywhere in the house, even challenge family members. Place a golf ball at one end of the yardstick with the goal of rolling the ball to the other end without it falling off before it gets there. This will help you with direction control and recognize directional tendencies you have in your putting if the ball is falling off the yardstick left or right. This will certainly help you make more three footers when you head back out in the spring.” Yes that’s right - practice putting at home by using a wooden yard stick.
2. Short Game - Wedges
Matt says, “Take these opportunities to practice with a purpose. Spend time on your wedges, the closer you can get these shots to the hole the lower your scores will be. Work to make consistent contact and control your distances with these shots.
“With more and more indoor locations available for practice and heated outdoor ranges like ours at Meadow Links, you have opportunities to get out and swing even when the weather isn’t perfect.”
“When working on full swing make sure you have a target in mind, use alignment sticks to ensure your aim fundamentals are correct. Winter is a great time to work on your game from a skill perspective but also physically and mentally.
3. Mental Game
Matt: “People often disregard the mental part of this game. However that is one of the most important aspects to being successful, you must ride the waves of good shots and bad, low scores and high, excitement and frustration. Learning to weather the storm so to speak will help understand that part of the beauty of this game, and it’s the ups and downs, the gratitude for the opportunity to play and the connections you make. Dr. Bhrett McCabe is a great resource to help get you started.”
So tell me, what do you think of these 3 tips? Do you have anything specific that you do in the off-season? I’d love to hear it!
Thanks Matt Starr for some awesome advice. I hope you guys enjoyed this first edition of: “I asked the Golf Pro".
