View source for Driving range

{{short description|Golf practice facility}}
{{For|driving range for vehicles|electric vehicle battery}}
[[File:Golf Range 02801r.JPG|thumb|Driving range with 43 tees (20 covered) at the [[University of Washington]]]]
[[File:Golf driving range in kanagawa 2023 June 27.webm|thumb|Two-story driving range in [[Kanagawa Prefecture|Kanagawa]], [[Japan]] (June 2023)]]
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A '''driving range''' is a facility or area where [[golf]]ers can practice their golf swing. It can also be a recreational activity itself for amateur golfers or when enough time for a full game is not available. Many [[golf course]]s have a driving range attached and they are also found as stand-alone facilities, especially in urban areas. They are typically run by businesses or sometimes by universities.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.milesofgolf.com/practice/miles-of-golf-cincinnati|title=Practice - Miles of Golf|website=milesofgolf.com|access-date=17 April 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://golfcourse.stanford.edu/|title=StanfordGolfCourse.com|website=golfcourse.stanford.edu|access-date=17 April 2018|archive-date=31 August 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190831140335/http://golfcourse.stanford.edu/|url-status=dead}}</ref> Distances are usually marked by target [[putting green|greens]] at regular distances. Driving ranges may have natural grass, similar to a golf course, or players may use synthetic mats that resemble real turf. 

Golfers pay for various sizes of buckets of balls and hit at their leisure. Some ranges feature electronic tee devices, which load balls automatically, and record ball use on a [[smart card]]. Often there are golf professionals available to give lessons and instruction. Balls are retrieved by a specialty cart with a brush and roller attachment that automatically picks up balls and a cage that protects the driver from incoming balls. In urban and suburban areas, large nets protect surrounding people and structures from errant balls. Driving ranges are particularly popular in Japan where golf courses are overcrowded and often very expensive.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Whitehill |first=Arthur M. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=PCRnEAAAQBAJ&hl=en |title=Japanese Management: Tradition and Transition |date=2022-06-30 |publisher=Taylor & Francis |isbn=978-1-000-60303-3 |pages=191 |language=en}}</ref> Many commercial driving ranges are seen in conjunction with other sports-related practice areas such as [[batting cage]]s or [[miniature golf]]. Some driving ranges also offer areas for practice chip shots, bunker shots, and putting.

Driving ranges may use [[golf ball]]s that differ significantly from those used on the golf course. Range balls, as they are known, are often cheap and specially designed with a harder cover to make them more durable. As such they also may not necessarily conform to the [[rules of golf]]. In order to distinguish them from other type of ball, they may have a distinct coloring or colored band and be stamped with the word "range".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.leaderboard.com/GLOSSARY_RANGEBALL |title=Range Ball |access-date=2010-02-20 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101215202820/http://www.leaderboard.com/GLOSSARY_RANGEBALL |archive-date=2010-12-15 }}</ref>

==See also==
*[[Golf instruction]]
*[[Indoor golf]]
{{commons category|Driving ranges}}

==References==
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{{Golf equipment}}
{{Golf|state=expanded}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Driving Range}}
[[Category:Golf instruction]]

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