Playing a Virtual Round as Practice

You played eighteen holes on screen, got a score, felt good or bad, and a week later you can't say what changed. That's the symptom of a round with no purpose. A virtual round can teach you plenty, but only if you decide what to look for first.

Cause one: the score is the only goal

A single number hides everything. A decent score might include a few great holes and one wrecked one. Pick one thing to watch before you start, and let the score be the side effect.

Some ideas:

• How many approach shots finish on the green?
• How many holes did you lose to one bad drive?
• Which club did you reach for on short approaches?
• How often did you take on a risky shot when a safe one was available?

Keep the list short. One or two is plenty.

Cause two: you play differently from the course

Many people take mulligans on screen. A mulligan is a replay that doesn't count as a stroke, and it isn't allowed by the rules or practised in tournaments¹. Replaying a bad shot is fine for fun. It's poor practice if you want to know how you'd score. Decide before you start. Either play every shot once, or keep a separate tally of the replays.

The simulator also works out ball flight with terrain, wind, rain and other influences added in². That's useful, since it makes you think about the shot. But conditions vary by software, so read the settings for yours. Turn off help you wouldn't get on the course if you want the round to be a fair test.

Cause three: you ignore the short game

It's easy to spend a round on drivers and long irons. For a scratch golfer on a par-72 course, only about a third of the strokes are taken with a wood or long iron where distance is the main aim³. Even touring professionals miss an average of six greens in regulation per round³, so recovery shots matter at every level.

Count your chips and putts on screen, not just the driver. If your software shows greens hit, use that. Then take the weak area to a drill. The wedge drills page is one place to go, and dispersion drills another.

Pick a scoring style that fits

Stroke play adds up every shot. Stableford instead scores points per hole, and the winner is the player with the highest total⁴. It's gentler on the odd blow-up hole, which can keep a practice round pleasant. Use whichever makes you play honestly.

Run the round

Before the first tee, check the space as you would for any session. Garmin's manual says any net or impact screen should be high enough and extended enough for high-lofted and errant shots⁵. Swing slowly with each club first. Bystanders stay clear of the mat while you swing. Bare walls and windows are off limits as targets. If you've got friends along, see the group games page for turn-taking rules.

While you play, make quick marks. A tick for a shot you're happy with. A cross for a shot that went wrong, plus a word: "pulled", "thin", "wrong club". Don't stop to analyse mid-round.

Review it

After the last putt, spend a few minutes with the marks. Look for a repeat. Did most crosses involve the same club? The same hole type? A repeat is your next practice job.

A simulator can serve practice, instruction, club fitting and entertainment². A round can be all of those at once, but only one at a time. Choose which job it's doing today, and write one line about it you can carry into the next practice block.