Why Pay More? 7 DIY Golf Training Aids That Actually Work
Top 50 Coach Katie Dawkins on how to use the best DIY training aids to improve your game


I’m a huge fan of up-cycling and utilising objects that you already own to help improve your game. There are plenty of household items that will help you hit it further and more consistently, as well as lower your score on the green. Here are some of my favourites.
Sock It To Them
If you are prone to an overswing then this sock drill will help. You may think it odd that a sock can improve your action, but it’s really effective in eliminating collapsed arms and engaging your core.
Adopt an athletic golf posture holding a sock at each end and maintain that tension. From the address position, with arms hanging down, make a smooth full turn and keep hold of that tension. If you collapse your arms, the tension will disappear. Make a solid turn through to a finish and notice how rotational the swing feels and how much your body engages.
Chop Out The Scoop
Put a chopstick under your watch strap and practice some small chip shots, or even just the action indoors. If you have a tendency to flick your wrists, you’ll feel that jab of the stick. Harsh, but this will really help you to maintain that lower case ‘y’ as you chip, and will stop you trying to add loft.
Have A Ball
A slightly deflated football or basketball can be a really useful training aid. You can sandwich it between your forearms to help you feel a pendulum action and to eliminate a chicken wing on the way through impact. Much like an impact ball, but this one you happened to find lying in the garden!
My favourite use for a ball that’s seen better days is to use it to help engage the body and transfer weight through impact. Standing in your golf posture, hold the ball softly in both hands as your arms hang down. Your target should be the garage wall or side of the house.
Swing by performing a half swing and feel the weight load behind the ball, then drive through from the ground up and throw the ball against the wall. If your body has moved in the correct sequence your ball will hit straight on your target line. If you neglect to use your bigger muscles and the arms take over (as happens so often in the golf swing) you’ll lose the ball either right or left. Aim for a solid smack into the wall, not a delicate pop. This drill doubles up as wonderful stress relief! You can also do it indoors with a cushion into an armchair.
Get the Golf Monthly Newsletter
Subscribe to the Golf Monthly newsletter to stay up to date with all the latest tour news, equipment news, reviews, head-to-heads and buyer’s guides from our team of experienced experts.
Add Some Sparkle To Your Putting
Practicing putting along the hallway isn’t a new phenomenon. The best putting mats have helped thousands of golfers improve on the greens. But how about changing your golf hole or putting cup for a smaller target? Enter a bottle of sparkly nail varnish. By putting to a tiny target, your margins of error shrink. Do your usual holing out drills and when you next set foot on the putting green the hole will look like a bucket!
Hang Three Putts Out To Dry
To ensure your putts hit a nail vanish bottle, your stroke has to be silky smooth and an everyday coat hanger can help. Some golfers struggle to feel a rocking action from the shoulders and can get too handsy with their stroke.
Slide a metal coat hanger up your arms and adopt your usual putting grip and posture. Eyes down and rock your shoulders back and through. That feeling of connection means the hands will be softer and quieter and you can finally control the distance with length of stroke, not how much flick you give it. An end to your holing out hangups!
Towel Time
This one is a great DIY project. Roll up a small towel and gently secure the ‘sausage’ with hair ties or elastic bands. You now have a training aid to swing indoors without smashing the place up.
Hold onto one end and allow the other to hang freely. Make some great swings, feeling your body turning and keep the movement going until you finish. The towel will thump your back at the top of your swing.
This drill requires a correct sequence of movements so every part swings in order - body, arms, then the towel. Get out of sync and this action will feel messy. Another option is to take the sock mentioned earlier, and simply add a tennis ball or a medium weight dog ball in the end of it.
Stick It On And Square Up
Blu tack a tee peg to your clubface and point it so it’s at a right angle to your grooves. Use this to check your clubface alignment at address, in the takeaway, and with super slow motion swings, ensure it’s square through impact. A great checkpoint is to swing to hip height. The tee should be pointing away and behind you in a mirrored position.
There are some brilliant training aids on the market, but it often pays to delve into your cupboards at home and get inventive. If you’ve got children who play golf, set them a challenge on a rainy day to invent the best training aid or drill. This is a great activity for junior golfers and you never know they may invent something that really helps your golf and sparks a new idea for a product of the future.
Katie is an Advanced PGA professional with over 20 years of coaching experience. She helps golfers of every age and ability to be the best versions of themselves. In January 2022 she was named as one of Golf Monthly's Top 50 Coaches.
Katie coaches the individual and uses her vast experience in technique, psychology and golf fitness to fix problems in a logical manner that is effective - she makes golf simple. Katie is based in the South of England, on the edge of the New Forest. An experienced club coach, she developed GardenGOLF during lockdown and as well as coaching at Iford Golf Centre, The Caversham- Home of Reading Golf Club and Salisbury & South Wilts Golf Club.
She freelances, operating via pop-up clinics and travelling to clients homes to help them use their space to improve.
She has coached tour pros on both LET tour and the Challenge Tour as well as introduced many a beginner to the game.
Katie has been writing instructional content for magazines for 20 years. Her creative approach to writing is fuelled by her sideline as an artist.
Katie's Current What's In The Bag
Driver: TaylorMade Qi10 9degrees.
Fairway: TaylorMade Qi10 5wood
Hybrid: TaylorMade 4 & 5
Irons: TaylorMade 770 6-AW
Wedges: TaylorMade Tour Grind 4 54 & 58
Putter: TaylorMade Tour X 33"
Favourite Shoes: FootJoy HyperFlex with Tour Flex Pro Softspikes on the course.
You must confirm your public display name before commenting
Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name.
-
Augusta National Women's Amateur 2025 Picks, Odds And Predictions
The Augusta National Women's Amateur returns for a sixth time, and many of the leading female players from all over the world will do battle in Georgia
By Jonny Leighfield Published
-
PGA Tour Pro Wraps Up Masters Spot In Incredibly Tight Affair
Michael Kim edged out Ben Griffin to qualify for The Masters via his world ranking following a tense battle between the pair in the Houston Open
By Mike Hall Published
-
Tee Box Inequality: Why Aren't All Tees Rated For Women?
Long-hitting female golfers are let down by tee ratings
By Katie Dawkins Published
-
What I Learned From My First Golf Competition: The Unexpected Importance Of Preparation
Playing in your first golf competition can be a daunting experience. Here are 5 tips to help you prepare for a stress-free round
By Carly Cummins Published
-
I've Always Struggled To Create That Solid, Compressed Strike... Until I Fixed These 5 Key Moves
Single figure golfer Jess Ratcliffe on how she has fixed her swing puzzle to deliver crisp shots
By Jess Ratcliffe Published
-
Fix These 7 Common Mistakes And You'll Be On The Path To Lower Scores
PGA Professional Emma Booth on how to fix the mistakes all high handicappers make
By Emma Booth Published
-
‘It’s About Perception, Not Rules. Women Are Allowed To Wear A Lot More Than Men At Most Golf Courses’ - Mia Baker On Golf's Dress Code
Content creator and presenter Mia Baker on why changing mindsets is key to building a more inclusive golf community
By Alison Root Published
-
‘Most Of The Time I Don’t Bother Signing Up’ - The Cliquey Culture Hurting Women’s Golf
Our women's golf editor highlights an issue that is quietly pushing some female golfers to the sidelines
By Alison Root Published
-
The One Mental Mistake Pro Golfers Never Make - Are You Guilty Of It?
Top 50 Coach Katie Dawkins shares her tips on how to mentally reset your golf game
By Katie Dawkins Published
-
The Cold Hard Stats And Harsh Realities That No One Tells You About Turning Pro
Former pro Kathryn Imrie reveals the brutal truth on what it really takes - from swing speeds to bank balances - to make it in the world of professional golf
By Kathryn Imrie Published