No lines, no waiting and a space to call our own for as long as the golf ball supply lasted attracted us to the driving range. I wasn't interested in learning technique. I just wanted to hit some golf balls with the kids without all of the waiting around that comes with the miniature golf territory.
Once at the driving range, I realized that there was no general instruction available. "Just whack the ball," came my husband's reply to my concern.
I pushed aside my doubts and moved on to getting our equipment. An attendant doled out appropriate-sized drivers for each of us based on our height, an empty plastic basket and a token for the golf ball machine to spit out the number of golf balls we paid for.
We chose a place far away from the other patrons. No need to knock off someone else with a stray golf ball, which I thought was entirely likely with my two kids. Stranger accidents have happened without flying balls. So we headed to a couple of empty stalls at the farthest end of the range.
Everyone grabbed their driver and a golf ball to balance on the tee. This took the girls a few tries to do without the ball falling right off. And I admit, it took me a couple of tries as well. I should have know right then it wasn't going to be as easy as it seemed.
The first to take a swing was my 7-year-old. It was a big swing and ... a big miss. My 9-year-old gave it a whirl next with the same lack of results. Surely, I'd have an easier time. I had played Little League and high school softball and could swing a bat. Swinging a driver couldn't be much different, right? Even better, the balls weren't being thrown at me at high speed.
Sure, we weren't playing softball, but I still managed to strike out.
After my 9-year-old gave it a few more tries, she started looking for answers.
"OK mommy, why can't I hit the ball?"
"I have no idea, honey. I can't hit it either."
My husband, known in our house now as the king whacker, was on his fourth drive and averaging over 175 yards.
After several more tries and a couple of swing correction suggestions from king whacker, we were all making contact with the golf balls. My 9-year-old's biggest mistake was standing too close to the ball. My 7-year-old's hands kept slipping below the grip and she needed to be reminded to hold the driver more firmly. For my part, my biggest mistakes were misjudging the distance of the golf ball from the ground (I hit the ground long before the ball on the tee) and not following through on my swing.
Although he admits he has very limited knowledge of the sport, king whacker's suggestions turned out to be helpful. Our golf balls weren't traveling great distances, but they at least made it out of the stall and onto the grass.
My 7-year-old developed her own strategy for driving: Every time she put a new ball on her tee she would tap her driver several times - next to the tee, on the green, on the rocks next to the green - before taking her swing.
"What's the driver tapping for?" I asked.
"It's for luck," she said.
As I continued to struggle to hit the ball, I thought she might be on to something.
For all the swinging and missing the girls and I did, we had a really good time. There was a lot of laughing at our "form" in the style of swings and misses. And the errant balls hitting the stall's side panels or trees next to us continued to keep us giggling.
My husband quietly, and quite seriously, kept increasing his range to over 225 yards with every drive. And this, the girls and I decided, was quite amusing. We enjoyed teasing him about his serious attitude between drives.
The 100 balls we started off with were gone in about 20 minutes so we decided to go for another round. We were all really getting into the spirit of whacking by that point. Another 100 balls later, the girls' driving distance increased to about 60 yards. My husband consistently reached 275 yards. I think maybe I made it to 125 yards at the end, confirming that my talents lie elsewhere.
I realized that even if you're not very good at it, driving balls can be a great stress-reliever. My husband agreed since the focus of the activity is on whacking the golf ball as hard as you can. Plus, all the swinging and missing translated to some great exercise for all of us. And the antics, laughing and my husband's new nickname won't be forgotten by anyone in the family anytime soon.
The driving range isn't for very young children but elementary school-aged children can have some fun there with their family. Just pick a corner, stand clear of the pros and bring your sense of humor.
Trip: Driving Range
For a listing of driving ranges in Maine, check out: www.neteetimes.com OR www.golfingnewengland.com
Originally published in the Maine Sunday Telegram, July 31, 2005
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