Driving Range
The driving range is the practice area where you hit balls.
The driving range is the training ground of golf: a wide field with hitting bays from which you hit balls out into the field. You buy the balls from a machine by the bucket or with a card. Many ranges have covered or heated bays, mats or grass tees, and target flags with distance markers. There you train your full swing, from driver to wedge. The range is the only place where you are allowed to practise without restriction without a course certificate.
For getting started, the range is the right place. Example: you rent a set of clubs, buy 50 balls and work your way up from the short wedge to the long club. That is how you build feel before you head out onto the course. Practising with targets instead of hitting away wildly makes sense: pick out a flag, test your pre-shot routine, read the ball flight. Those who only train length lose the short game, which makes up most of your strokes.
One misconception is the mats question. Balls from a mat always sit perfectly; on the course, rarely. So also practise difficult lies if your range has grass tees. You can recognise facilities with a range in the golf course search by the practice facilities on offer. For winter, it is worth taking a look at indoor golf with simulators as a supplement.
FAQ
May I practise at the driving range without a course certificate?
Yes, the range is there for exactly that — you need neither a course certificate nor a membership to hit balls there. Only for the actual course do most facilities require the course certificate. So feel free to use the range as your starting point before heading out onto the course.
How do I train sensibly at the range instead of just wasting balls?
Work with concrete targets: aim each stroke at a flag or distance marker and assess the ball flight instead of simply blasting away. Rotate through your clubs and include short shots, because the short game decides your score later, not the driver. Ten balls with a target and routine are worth more than fifty balls without a plan.
Why do shots on the course feel different from those on the range?
On most ranges you hit from mats, on which the ball always lies perfectly and small contact errors are forgiven. On the course, balls lie in the rough, on a slope or in hollows — that is a different world. If your range has grass tees, practise there regularly so that the transition to the course is not so harsh.