There is an old saying “Dead men tell no lies” but did you know there is an equivalent one in golf too?
That’s right… with golf, the equivalent is, “The divot never lies.”
I’ll be honest, I don’t know if that’s a saying or not, but it’s 100% true. If you’ve been playing the game for any amount of time, you know that a divot can tell the full story of a golf shot.
There’s nothing better than hitting a perfect shot, looking down, and seeing the perfect divot to match. On the other hand, it’s frustrating when you hit a bad shot and the divot confirms it, which just adds insult to injury.
But what if there was a training aid that could help you reverse engineer your swing to hit it more consistently?
Luckily, there is… introducing the Divot Board. This revolutionary training aid might be just what your game needs to improve your ball striking and shoot lower scores.
Divot Board Review
Unfortunately, we don’t always get to practice on real grass and see what story the divot actually tells. A lot of golfers have to practice indoors or outside on mats, especially during winter months.
While hitting from mats is better than nothing, you don’t get to see your divot to help analyze your swing. But with the Divot Board, you can practice indoors or outdoors and instantly understand the divot pattern. This will help you adjust your swing as needed to help straighten out the ball and ultimately, become a much better ball striker.
What is the Divot Board?
The divot board is a training aid unlike anything on the golf market. It’s a small board that helps you get instant feedback from your swing, even if you’re practicing inside.
Basically, it gives you real-time feedback on any swing you make to identify your divot pattern. When you know your divot pattern, it makes it so much easier to analyze your swing patterns and make adjustments as needed.
With each swing and “divot” you make, you can tell if you hit it straight, pull, push, fat, or hit one thin. Not to mention, it provides instant feedback, so you can start making adjustments right away. You don’t have to sync it to an app like some training aids to analyze your swing.
The device is built on the premise of simple ball flight laws. The ball will have 1 of 9 shot patterns, depending on your swing and clubface at impact position.
For example:
- If you pull the golf ball, your divot will be to the left of the target. The face will determine if it’s a pull draw, straight pull, or pull cut.
- If you hit a perfectly straight shot, your divot will show that as well.
- If you push the golf ball, your divot will be to the right of your target. Just like the other example, the face at impact will determine if it’s a push cut, straight push, or push draw.
When you get a better understanding of these laws of golf, it makes it much easier to change your swing as needed.
Not to mention, it’s very user-friendly without any extensive setup on your end.
How To Use Divot Board
The cool thing about this board is that it’s incredibly easy to use, unlike most training aids. You can take this thing right out of the box, grab a club, and start making swings.
To make the most of this new golf gadget, you want to make sure you have adequate room to use it. While the dimensions itself are small (22” long x 6” wide), you need to have enough room to swing the club. Plus, you want to make sure you have a sturdy surface to use the board as well.
Here is the 4-step process to use the divot board:
- Position the board so that the ball is aligned with your intended target. Set up to the ball that is on the board as if it were going to hit a shot on a golf course or driving range.
- Once you’re in a good setup, take a normal swing as if you’re hitting a real golf ball. Don’t focus on the board, act as if you’re hitting a ball on the range or course.
- Your swing will change the turf from green to white where a normal divot would appear. After you finish the swing, now it’s time to do some detective work and read your divot. Is it straight at your target? Right? Left?
- Reset the board. After you “make a divot” you can instantly adjust the board by resetting it with your hand or club. By brushing the turf the opposite way, it will reset the turf from white back to its original setting (only if it was so easy on the golf course).
Then, it’s time to analyze and assess your divot to make necessary swing changes as needed.
Assessing Your Divot
Once you swing a few times, you will likely start to notice tendencies in your game. As you know in golf, old habits die hard.
For example, maybe you’re too far over the top and the divot is always left of the target. Or, maybe you’re too shallow, and your divot is facing right.
When it comes to reading your divot like a golf professional, you want to think about three things; direction, depth, and divot to ball location.
Divot Direction
The first thing to look at is the direction of the divot. Is it right, left, or straight at your target?
If it’s straight, great job, you just hit one of the hardest shots in golf… a straight one! But you still want to make sure the face is square at impact, otherwise it’ll be a straight ball flight but have a fade or draw.
Meanwhile, if it’s left or right, you might need to make some backswing or downswing changes to improve your ball striking.
If you’re like most golfers, you’ll probably find a divot going left, as a result of an over the top move. If this sounds familiar and you want to straighten things out, make sure to read our post about how to shallow out your swing.
Depth of Divot
While the direction is important, don’t forget about the depth of the divot as well. While you won’t actually take any turf with you on this training aid, you can still get a good idea of the depth.
So how “deep” should your divot be? I once had a coach say, “Your divots should look like a thin strip of bacon.”
Which, if you think about it, is a perfect example. A good divot should take about one inch down of the grass and about the width of a slice of bacon. If it’s deeper than that, chances are you’re going to hit it fat and end up way short.
With this device, you’ll also notice if you don’t get any divot at all. If the grass barely changes from green to white, you’re likely going to thin the ball and sail the green.
Also, divots will change size depending on the club you hit. They should also be larger with wedges and short irons than with longer clubs. With longer clubs, your swing naturally shallows more, so the divot will be thinner.
Divot to Ball Location
The final thing to think about is where the divot is in correlation to the golf ball. Ideally, you want to hit the ball, then the turf… not the other way around.
If you watch golf on TV, I’m sure you’ve seen this when they use the slow motion camera to illustrate the point. A player will hit the ball, then the grass, leaving the divot well ahead of the ball.
While amateur golfers might make some bad moves and end up hitting grass, then the golf ball. This results in all kinds of mishits. Ideally, you want it about 1-2 inches in front of the golf ball to ensure you hit down and through the shot.
Use all three of these factors when assessing your divot on the board to make the necessary adjustments.
FAQs About the Divot Board
Do you have more questions about this cool new training aid? If so, hopefully we have answers in the FAQ section below.
Do you hit real golf balls with it?
No, this device does not allow you to hit real golf balls with it. Instead, you take swings, learn from the divot, and then make adjustments as needed.
What’s great about this training is its portability. Since it’s so small, you can take it to the driving range with you and use it in between hitting range balls.
For example, if you’re on the range hitting pull cuts, you can use the board to verify the divot pattern going left. Then, using the board, adjust your swing as needed to get a straight divot. Once you do it a few times on the device, hit some actual balls on the range to hone your new swing.
Can you buy a replacement pad?
Yes, you can buy a new pad for a fraction of the price of the original investment. This replacement pad is easy to install and should last between 1,000 to 3,000 adult swings. If it’s a junior using the device, it can last up to 6,000 swings!
Is this like the DownUnder board?
No, the DownUnder board by Bradley Hughes is a swing trainer to help improve your posture and other parts of your game. It helps create a stable lower body and encourages upper body rotation to make a consistent swing.
But, you could use them together if you want a full swing session. The same goes for the Orange Whip Balance trainer as well, which is a similar device to help with balance.
Final Thoughts on the Divot Board
Remember, divots don’t lie!
If your divot is left, you’re pulling the ball. If your divot right, you’re pushing the ball. What the ball does in the air is then determined by the clubface at impact. Plus, the size and location of the divot can tell you a lot about your swing as well.
The sooner you can understand the basic ball flight laws, the sooner you can become a more consistent ball striker.
Even if you can’t make it to the driving range or course as much as you’d like, this training aid will help you groove a great swing at home. Plus, it’s so small and portable that you can take it to the practice tee for a more efficient session.
