Indoor Driving Ranges

I've been the indoor driving range several times since the snow started falling and I've noticed a few things that I'd like to share.

In a sentence: I hate indoor ranges. The air isn't quite the same as being outdoors, it's kind of musty, kind of old. The matts are like hitting off concrete from their "fairway" lies and the "rough" offers what I think more closely resembles actual grass. So all of my shots are either off rubber tees (more in a minute) or the rough.

There are countless people above me hitting shots, which is a bit more distracting than the usual crowds on either side. Sometimes they'll try to chip to the flags that are positioned at the 20-yard mark, so the balls will just suddenly plop from the sky and land less than 10 yards away from me. To say that golf balls that fall from the sky into my peripheral vision is a distraction would be an understatement.

The tees are in front of a mini-golf course, which is often jumbled full of kids or old guys with money on the line that shout and holler constantly. I honestly am not sure whether the crazy guys or the kids bother me more. But I let that one go because they're having a good time and my serious practice time shouldn't keep anyone from enjoying themselves.

I also am not a big fan of the putting surface. While it's pretty nice that the putting green has six holes, is a decent size and is available to practice for free, it's basically the same feel as the fairway mats: pure concrete. The ball rolls a long, long way on the fake greens and it really won't help me come spring when the greens are damp and spongy. I can get the same practice at home, even if it takes a little creativity, and not have to worry about disrupting anyone else's putting practice. Plus, the carpet is a little slower so it more accurately helps me dial in speed compared to the range's greens.

Lastly, I'll mention the tees. Rubber tees could be the most difficult thing in the world to deal with. Firstly, many of the mats are patted down pretty firmly, so switching tees out is a pain. When I finally do swap them, I have to try and track down a few for the different heights that I need. I use a medium length tee for my driver, and a fairly low tee for my fairway woods and hybrids. Low tees at the dome are few and far between, and high tees just never seem to find the right height until I've wasted four or five balls. Regular tees just don't seem to stay in the rough very well, often leaning one way or the other even before the ball is placed. I'm tempted to find a long one and cut it down slowly until I have the perfect length and keep it in my bag for when I come back. It might be a little criminal and probably a little crazy, too, but if it helps me groove a better tee shot I'm game.

Is all this a bad thing? Maybe. I'm not a golf professional I couldn't tell you how habitually hitting off this fake grass actually affects my swing. I can fathom a guess that when I start hitting off grass again that I'll have to work on getting into a groove with my irons again to start taking divots. I would also imagine that too much hitting off a hard surface (like the fairway that I avoid) is going to bend the lie angles of the clubs if you keep pounding into them. And picking shots cleanly off that garbage won't teach me to dig into the ball. But being the average golfer that I am, I can only bite my tongue and drive to the dome every week until spring melts the snow off the dirty mitten.