All golfers, and especially beginners and intermediate players, will spend a great deal of time on the driving range and so it is vitally important that you make the very best use of that time.

It is very easy, and great fun, to get a great big bucket of 50 or 100 golf balls and simply try to hit them as hard as you can and as far as you can down the range and indeed this is just what a lot of golfers do. Unfortunately, it is a complete waste of your time and will do absolutely nothing to improve your game.

Before you set foot on the driving range to practice you must clearly define what it is you want to practice and set yourself an objective for your practice session. For example, if there is one aspect of your game that has been troubling you for the past few days then this particular shot should become the object of your practice exclusively and you should set yourself a target which will clearly show an improvement in the problem.

Start each practice session with just a few warm up shots using a wedge and your middle irons and then select the club needed for the shot you wish the session to focus on and begin specific practice on the shot that is troubling you.

One very important point here is that every single shot you take on the driving range, including your warm up shots, should have a clear target. Unlike the course itself there are no penalties for making a bad shot on the driving range but you need to use the range just as you would the course and realize that every bad shot on the range means another trek into the rough or an out of bounds area on the course itself.

Apart from this, what is the point of firing your ball off down the range without having a target to aim at? It is a bit like getting into your car and just driving around with no specific destination in mind. All you do is waste time, burn up money on gasoline and pollute the atmosphere. On the driving range you again waste your time, burn up money on range fees and get in the way of other golfers who are waiting for their practice slot.

So, pretend you are actually out on the course and slowly and deliberately practice your intended shot, analyzing each shot in turn and making the necessary corrections until you get it right. Then, once you have got it right and have hit several shots in a row with the result you are looking for - stop!

Once you have sorted the problem out simply step back, relax and enjoy the feeling of being able to hit that particular shot to perfection. It doesn't matter if you still have twenty minutes left for your practice slot, continuing on with your practice session just to use up your time could take a great practice session and turn it into a disaster. For example, how will you feel if you go on practicing this shot and, because you are getting tired perhaps, your shot starts to wander off target so you finish your session right back where you started?

Practice is a necessary and very valuable part of the game of golf but it is possible to over practice and it is just as important to know when to stop as it is to know when you need to practice.