How to Play & Stay in Shape during the Winter Golf Season

For some golfers, playing golf during the winter can be a challange and it's likely you'll play a lot less rounds than you do in the summer. If you take your golf fairly seriously, it's important to do what you can to get the best out of your winter days on the golf course, in preperation for the spring and summer days to come.

Josh Wall, Assistant Golf Professional at McLemore, a championship golf course and community has provided the following tips to make the most of winter golf and prepare for the spring.

Stay in shape during the winter months:

- Implement dynamic stretching and active movements where joints and muscles go through a full range of motion. They can be used to help warm up your body before exercising. Dynamic stretches can be functional and mimic the movement of the activity or sport you’re about to perform.

- Your mental game is important to shoot good scores, and there’s no better time to work on it than the offseason. I would suggest reading golf psychology books, like “Decade App” by Scott Fawcett. You can also connect with experts on social media, some of my favorites are Scott Fawcett, Lou Stagner, Bob Rotella and David Cook.

Store Your Clubs Properly:

- Store clubs in a temperature and air controlled environment when not playing instead of the trunk of your car, or a garage. Cold weather can hurt your golf balls more than golf clubs – but it can also dry out your golf grips.

- If playing in wet conditions like rain/snow, make sure you dry and clean your clubs before storing them. Do not leave wet headcovers over clubs, especially high dollar putters, as they will rust.

Keep Warm on the Course:

- Opt for Cart Covers, Heaters & Hand warmers - at least four before round. If your hands are consistently cold, you will lose your feeling fast.

- Invest in good warm weather golf clothing – I prefer two layers: one warm golf fleece from a brand like Holderness and Bourne and on the inside, try a warm golf fleece that has material loose enough to turn your body in but isn’t tight enough to restrict your swing. Finally, make sure your ears, feet, and hands are warm –  if they are, you can get away with less clothing on your body.