Counting down to the clocks going forward: a six-week plan for the British golf season

For a lot of British club golfers, the season only really feels under way once the clocks go forward and evening golf comes back. In 2027 that happens on Sunday 28 March, according to GOV.UK, which means the useful preparation starts in the middle of February, while the weather is still grim.

Most golfers skip that window and treat their first spring medal as the warm-up. The six weeks below turn the wet end of winter into a head start instead.

Why the order matters

A winter of little golf does not wear everything down equally. The short, slow motions of chipping and putting tend to survive a lay-off fairly well. The full swing, which depends on mobility, sequencing and speed, loses the most.

That shapes the plan. Spend the first fortnight getting the body moving, the middle fortnight sharpening the short game, which returns scoring quickly, and the last fortnight on distances and equipment. Doing it the other way round, with a driver in the first week, is how people hurt their backs in February.

If your course plays much the same all winter, the clocks matter less: count back six weeks from your club’s first spring competition instead.

Mid-February: loosen up, then swing short

The first two weeks are not about where the ball goes. Begin each session with five minutes of rotation, hip mobility and shoulder circles, then hit short irons with half swings, twenty balls at a time, two or three times a week.

Stay away from the driver. A cold body, a February range and full-speed swings after months off is the textbook route to a strained back and a lost April. If something hurts, stop and see a physiotherapist or doctor rather than working through it.

Wrap up for it. At a range with open bays, a thin base layer and a proper waterproof are as much a part of the session as the clubs, and cold hands are the fastest way to a poor grip pressure habit.

Late February into March: the short game, at home and at the club

This is the fortnight that produces lower scores soonest, and the one golfers most often ignore.

At home, ten minutes a day on a putting mat restores the start line of your stroke. Split it between three-footers, which decide whether an early-season round feels comfortable or miserable, and longer putts for pace. The speed of real spring greens will differ from your carpet, but the feel for length is worth keeping alive.

For chipping, twenty low running shots a week off a mat or the back lawn keeps the strike honest. If your club opens its short-game area before the main greens come back into play, use it: in March it is arguably the most valuable few hundred square yards on the property.

On the course itself, remember that winter conditions may still be in force at your club. Under Model Local Rule E-3, a committee can allow preferred lies, with the ball placed within a set distance such as a club-length, a scorecard or six inches. Rule E-12 lets a club require a mat for fairway shots when it is cold. Neither tells you much about your summer ball-striking, so do not read too much into a good or bad winter score.

Mid-March: numbers and kit

Two range sessions with your own balls and a rangefinder, or an hour on a launch monitor, give you a carry chart. Write down carry, not total distance, and the figure that repeats rather than your best strike. Shot-tracking ranges make this easier than it used to be: Hoebridge in Surrey runs a floodlit Trackman range and Trafford Golf Centre in Manchester has 53 Toptracer bays.

In spring, those numbers will be shorter than your summer ones. Cold, dense air takes a little off every shot and soft, wet fairways remove most of the roll. A golfer working from August yardages in late March comes up short all day and wrongly blames the swing.

Then turn to the bag:

• Grips. If they are shiny or hard, replace them. It is the cheapest upgrade in golf. A large UK golf retailer listed a Golf Pride Tour Velvet Align grip at £14.99 and a Golf Pride CPX at £12.99 in September, with a buy six, get one free offer.
• Spikes. Rounded-off studs slip on a wet March tee, which costs shots and can cost an ankle.
• The bag itself. Tip everything out. The stiff glove, the lost scorecard pencil and the four-year-old local rules sheet can go.
• Loft and lie. Irons played for several seasons can drift. A set bent a couple of degrees flat will push shots right of target.
• Wedge grooves. On your most-used wedge, worn grooves mean less spin, and no technique replaces them.

These jobs are quickest before the rush. Workshops and fitting studios fill up once the evenings are light.

Book a coach before the diary fills

A swing change typically feels awkward for a couple of weeks before it starts to feel normal. Making that change in late winter costs you nothing, because you are not yet playing counting golf. Making it in July can cost you the summer.

The PGA’s PGA Play directory lists around 8,000 PGA Professionals by location and specialism. Go with a clear brief rather than a vague wish: describe your typical miss and what you have already tried. A coach given that in February can map out a plan that lasts until October, and you are more likely to get sensible times than in peak season.

If you are due new irons, book the fitting now too, so the clubs arrive before your first competition rather than halfway through the summer.

Where to do the work in Britain

For the indoor half, shot-tracking ranges and simulator venues let you build a carry chart regardless of the weather. Hoebridge and Trafford are two examples; most regions now have a bay with a launch monitor within reasonable reach.

For regrips and loft and lie checks, your club professional is the obvious first call, and in February they are more likely to have time. Some specialist retailers run fitting centres and refund the fitting fee if you buy on the day. Larger chains take custom-fit bookings online, and some sell grips individually if you prefer to have your pro fit them.

For lessons, PGA Play and your own club professional, who knows your course and its winter set-up, are the places to start.

The first round back

Play it off a forward tee, with people you enjoy, and do not treat it as an examination of whether your handicap survived the winter. The aim is four hours of walking and hitting shots on real grass.

If it is a round you can submit for handicap, submit it. Just do not build your whole weekend around it, and do not let a soft-ground spring score undo six weeks of good work.

The countdown at a glance

• Six and five weeks out: mobility work and half swings with short irons, twenty balls a session.
• Four and three weeks out: daily putting at home, weekly chipping, short-game area if the club has opened it.
• Two weeks out: carry chart on a launch monitor or with a rangefinder; expect spring numbers to be shorter.
• One week out: grips, spikes, loft and lie, wedge grooves, and a clear-out of the bag.
• Any week: book lessons and fittings before the clocks change.

None of it is exciting. That is exactly why the golfers who do it tend to start the season a couple of shots ahead of those who wait for the first warm Saturday.

How this page was put together

Grip prices were noted in September 2026 at American Golf (UK), and the fitting-fee terms come from Clubhouse Golf (UK). Panxis Golf has no commercial relationship with these companies and earns no commission.