The Hidden Benefit of Golf Simulator Practice

For over a decade, I’ve been producing game improvement content. I’ve received thousands of messages from golfers who are desperate for help and share their common frustrations.

By far and away the most popular complaint I receive is, “I hit it so well on the range, but I can never do it on the course. Where is that golfer?” Even the PGA Tour player I coach, who has won multiple times and played on Presidents Cup teams under unimaginable pressure, says the same thing to me at times.

So why are there so many golfers who can hit it well on the range and not on the course? Well, I can answer that question about 50 different ways, but in this article, I want to talk about one word…

Pressure!

The Wrong Environment

Golfers typically don’t create a practice environment that puts any pressure on their shots, which is often why they are so unprepared for these moments on the course. Left to their own devices, most players don’t have the discipline, creativity, or knowledge to do it properly.

Think of when you are practicing, and be honest with yourself. Do you have a true focus on your shot intention and target? Have you gone through any kind of routine, similar to what you would do on the golf course?

But most importantly, are you stepping up to the ball feeling any kind of pressure or expectation on your performance? Or are you simply just raking the next ball and hitting “over there” without any worries or concerns? I’m going to guess it’s the latter most of the time.

How Golf Simulators Have Solved This

Luckily, someone has solved the problem. We’re entering what I believe is a golden age of golf practice, thanks to simulator software that keeps getting better.

Almost every major launch monitor on the market now gives golfers access to tremendous software from companies like Trackman, Foresight, GSPro, Rapsodo, and SkyTrak, to name a few.

For example, if I’m just mindlessly hitting balls on my simulator that The Indoor Golf Shop built, I can quickly get my focus back with a few clicks of a button on GSPro. I can change the practice range to randomize targets to real greens, do a ladder distance control drill that is brutally hard, or, my favorite, load up one of the many practice combines so I can compete against high scores from golfers around the world.

And of course, perhaps the best form of pressure practice is to play a simulated golf course where every shot counts.

This Is the Difference

I can keenly sense the difference between hitting the…